Aerial

Flying a drone indoors is always a challenge. You have to remain absolutely calm and collected, and generally, I highly recommend not flying a drone indoors, especially if you're new to them in general. That's also the warning that Filmmakers Guillaume Juin and Joris Favraud give anyone wanting to recreate this feat. They are a pair of rather brazen drone operators if I've ever seen any, coming together to form their company BigFly. Normally, the risk of flying a drone inside of a structure is already high, but usually, the highest risk is to the safety of your equipment, as the ease with which your drone could come into contact with any number of disastrous endings is increased exponentially.

Drones continue to explode in popularity. The small flying cameras have suddenly enabled thousands to get shots that only a few years back would have required a very expensive helicopter rental. If you're one of many photographers who now own one, there's a market you should look into.

Take three minutes, open this video full screen, and enjoy the beauty. "Aotearoa - New Zealand" is a stunning tour of a country chock full of natural wonders.

Tsavo, a region in Kenya, contains the world's largest elephant population, and thus, it is a prime target both for poachers and conservationists. Nonetheless, policing the 8,150-square-mile area is a daunting task. With some clever math and the help of drones, though, Penn State University researchers are helping to make that task much easier.

Controlled burns are crucial to conservation efforts, but setting them can be dangerous to firefighters. In fact, five have lost their lives in the past eleven years during such efforts. A team from the Nebraska Intelligent Mobile Unmanned Systems (NIMBUS) Laboratory at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln is seeking to make the job safer by removing humans from the equation.

One of the biggest concerns about drones is their usage around airports. Several recent close calls have left the government scrambling to continue to catch up to the quickly evolving capabilities and usages of the flying cameras. The FAA is now testing a new system for detecting unauthorized drones near airports.

I always watch aerial videos; there's just something about them that really stands out to me, so my bad for another aerial video. In this video, "Perspective," we see nature in a very different way. Drones are tools that give us the freedom to film and photograph from the air. These tools allow us to change our perspective and create imagery that is new to our eye. In this video, Jay really captured some content that we don't get the opportunity to see. He does a great job controlling the camera, panning, flying and shooting in a unique way.

Despite the explosion of interest in drones with cameras, one place you're not likely to see them used in the near future is commercial television newsrooms. A just released annual survey by the Radio Television Digital News Association and Hoftsra University reveals most stations have not used drones with cameras and don't plan on using them. Why you ask? That makes no sense. From a photographer or producer or reporter's perspective, it doesn't. These Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), as the FAA refers to them, are far cheaper than a news helicopter to acquire and operate and can get closer to the action.

Professional Aerial Photographers Paul Hoelen, Emmanuel Coupé, and Scott Jon McCook are here with the ultimate guide to getting you started with aerials yourself. And of course, they shared some mouthwatering imagery that will make you ask the question: “Are these shot on Earth at all?”

Hong Kong is one of the largest cities in the world, so capturing it in a way that does it justice is no small task. Filmmaker Brandon Li has accomplished that, however, by creating a fast-paced feast for the eyes that keeps the viewer on their toes and illuminates many of the unique facets of the City of Life.

I was recently commissioned to photograph fields of Rooibos Tea (a healthy tea with no caffeine and great antioxidants found in South Africa) so the farmer could document his potential yield. He also wanted details, as in what side of the tea field to start planting so he could plan the sowing schedule for the next five years. The idea is to not sow on the same soil, so new rows of tea plants need to be formed in five years. Tea likes fresh, new soil.

Drone Videos are slowly becoming more and more popular as the drone market seems to endlessly expand. Consumer drones now seem like one of the most popular items for people to buy for themselves or as gifts for others. I walk around and see “drones” in 7/11’s and other random stores with the advertising “HD Video.” These tools are becoming so popular that almost anybody can get one and start flying around.

Chances are, if you are at all interested in cinematography, you have heard of Brain Farm. Brain Farm is the entertainment and production company that brought you films like The Art of Flight, Jackass 3D, and View From a Blue Moon as well as tons of other film, TV, commercial, and digital content. With credentials like this as well as commercial clients ranging from Nike to Mercedes-Benz, I think it is safe to say these guys know what they are doing. For years, Brain Farm has been pushing the limits of Cinematography. That's why it comes as no surprise to hear that they recently paired a Phantom Flex4K with an Aerigon UAV to shoot the world's first Ultra High Definition, 4K aerial drone footage.

The DJI Phantom is the most popular drone ever made. It's cheap, light, and easy to use. It seems like everyone has one and therefore we have seen some hilarious crash videos with them. The Inspire 1 is a different beast though; it's the "professional choice" and it's very heavy and extremely rigid. This poor girl takes one to the face.

The Phantom 4 is out. I've got one and it's pretty awesome, but in reality, it's not THAT much better than the Phantom 3. If you're looking to buy your first drone I would suggest starting with something more affordable anyway. Right now you can get a new Phantom 3 Advanced for just $599.

The news is filled with stories about people who use drones in ways that endanger lives. It wasn't long ago that drones kept firefighters from fighting life-threatening blazes in California. But firefighters battling an Alberta firestorm that could prove Canada's "costliest natural disaster," according to Business Insider, are looking to drones to help answer the question of how it started — something that is still unknown for this fire that is estimated to take months to extinguish.

I recently came across this video by Christoph Galep and was very impressed by the editing thereof. The transitions between shots and the slowing down and speeding up of the time-lapse provided a good energy to the video, something a simple cut edit isn’t able to do.

Watch YouTube star Julien Solomita follow behind-the-scenes as fellow YouTuber Keaton Keller of Tech Smart reviews the new DJI Phantom 4 Quadcopter obstacle avoidance feature. As a review, it isn't to be taken too seriously with Keller attempting to fly the drone into a tree, branches, a tripod, and finally himself.

Tim Sessler of Brooklyn Aerials and Brandon Bray of Decade have teamed up to create a dizzying drone video. Using extreme rolls and the "Vertigo" effect they have successfully created footage of New York City unlike anything we have seen before. In a video titled "Balance" they hope to explore the feeling of imbalance that is more in tune with the real world rather than the perfectionist and steady footage we usually see. Queesy stomachs beware!

Documentary Filmmaker Janssen Powers makes me want to go to the mountains immediately. The beautiful Pacific Northwest is on amazing display in "Muir Song," an ode to naturalist and conservationist John Muir. Fittingly released on what would have been his 178th birthday, Powers takes us on a beautiful journey through the mountains and sea. If after watching this video you haven't booked your tickets (or if you're lucky to live there and don't go outside immediately), there is truly something wrong with you.

I've been feeling pretty cool lately. I've been making some time-lapses and doing a lot of aerial work. It's hard not to feel cool when you're taking shots from 300 feet in the air. Then, NASA came along and made a time-lapse 250 miles up in space. I no longer feel cool.

If you're like me and you've already purchased a Ronin-M gimbal, hearing news of its replacement is terrible news. Luckily, the new Ronin-MX brings new features to the table, and it's a whole new beast.

They say necessity is the mother of invention, and when you want to film incredibly smooth footage of fighter jets at over 300 knots and pulling 2.5G's, you can't exactly get an off the shelf gimbal for that. Aerial film company Blue Sky wanted to do exactly that so they commissioned Gyro-Stabilized Systems to built them a custom 5 axis gimbal capable of such feats. Boy did they deliver!

I recently purchased a drone, and I've caught the aerial bug. The new perspective afforded by it has been wildly addicting. However, I'm still very much an amateur in my newfound abilities. Films like Wild Scotland, in their beauty and seamless sense of evolving wonder, give me something to aspire toward.

Vincent Laforet is a name that has recently become synonymous with world-class aerial photography. His incredible images from above gives us a new artistic perspective of the cities we love and the world we live in. In this five-minute video from the B&H “Prospectives” series, Laforet gives us a great overview of his body of work shot from the sky as well as some practical takeaways from what he’s learned along the way.

It seems like at least once a week I find myself having a conversation with a filmmaker or photographer who is struggling to understand the current state of rules, with regard to the commercial use of drones. And who can blame them? Digging through the FAA's website to get clear information is a painful exercise, and things continue to change every few months. This video features Chris Newman, a professional drone pilot, to break the current policies down in a clear language, and he tells us what to expect next from the FAA.

I'll be the first to say it, smoke bombs are usually too Tumblr for my taste. Generally you see them with a moody girl looking off into the distance in some backyard forest. I never got the point of those images. But I found myself mesmerized by "Chromaticity"; the smoke bombs were alive, more like wayward spirits hovering above the big blue. I was so entranced it took me half of the video to realize they were attached to drones, and the drones were nowhere to be seen.

I'm not a landscape photographer, but I am a photographer. At the heart of all us 'togs is a deep-seated yearning to capture the rare and the beautiful. Another concept I find overly enticing about photography is that of being a nomad; a wandering explorer with only a camera as a companion. Or, in the case of this video, three cameras, a DJI Inspire 1, and presumably a helicopter. Whatever, stop watering down my poetic vision.

Reportage seems to be a genre where feminine qualities are seen as an obstacle rather then as an asset. I sat down with French photographer Audray Saulem who proved them wrong and listened to her experience shooting an epic race of 210 kilometers in the Sahara over 6 grueling days.

Best or worst idea ever? April Fools Joke? While this might be the perfect zombie slaying device ever created, a Finnish video production company decided to have some fun with their multi-rotor UAV and the results are awesome.

Every couple of years Red Bull hosts one of the coolest photo competitions in the world called the Red Bull Illume. If you aren't familiar with this photo contest, the Illume showcases some of the most unbelievable sports photographs in the world. Many of the photos are landscape in a nature which give them an almost fine art feel but there are plenty of edgy closeup shots to grab your attention as well. The deadline to contribute to this year's Image Quest has been extended by 12 hours to April 1st 12:00 (CET) which I believe to be 6:00 PM Eastern if my brain is working correctly.

Citing savings due to larger-scale production following an expansion into 22 countries and over 2,000 retail locations, 3D Robotics has dropped the price on its popular and well-designed Solo drone, as well as on the matching Solo gimbal. The Solo drone captured a wide audience with the help of a flashy launch video that introduced the product about a year ago, in addition to its fresh, modern design. Today, you can get the Solo for just $799 and/or add a gimbal to your kit for $199, down from yesterday's price of $999.95 and $399.95, respectively.

Over the last few years, there just haven't been that many massive updates to DJI's Phantom drone lineup. The biggest was perhaps the inclusion of its own camera when it ditched the need to add a GoPro to the bundle. But just looking at today's Phantom 4 design is enough to indicate the major steps DJI took to step into an entirely new generation of autonomy. Featuring class-leading obstacle avoidance and autonomous flying modes, the Phantom 4 is so good that people are afraid of the implications of never actually having to learn to pilot a drone.

Sometimes we all take for granted the sheer wonder of the tools at our disposal in this industry. Sometimes what it takes is transplanting those tools to a world a little further removed from technology, and sometimes seeing it through the joy and amazement of a childs reaction is exactly the perspective that is needed. That is exactly what Mark Brandon Smith did when he flew his drone for a group of school children in Uganda and their reaction to it will put a smile on your face.

Wedding Photographer and Videographer Aaron Eveland of Makai Creative recently took his drone out to Waimea Bay to film a local surf competition. The waves were huge that day, and Aaron was able to capture some incredible footage.