Aerial

DJI should have called me and made me the face of their new drone insurance policy. I've crashed many of their drones, destroyed one, and lost another. Sadly, I didn't have the luxury of buying insurance, but now, you do... but it's probably too expensive.

If you were on Fstoppers last week (or anywhere on the internet for that matter), you probably saw the newest music video from popular band OK Go. The band is known for their incredibly complicated filming, choreography, and performances which go into each video. Their latest song "Upside Down & Inside Out," is no exception as they take their act into a Zero Gravity filming situation. As they've done past for past music videos, this one was also followed up with a behind the scenes look at how they accomplished their latest viral hit.

Ok Go is a band whose internet fame probably started with the music video for their song "Here It Goes Again." The brilliant part of that video is the production quality. It isn't your typical cinematic, beautifully lit, shallow depth of field aesthetic; it looks like a VHS tape from a family gathering in the 90s. The video gained its fame from the pure creativity involved. Since then, their videos have all shared one other quality that makes them so entertaining and captivating: they are all just a single take.

Drones are great, but they also pose a huge threat to general safety and national security if in the hands of the wrong people. The Secret Service has even said they don't yet have an effective method of defending against drones, although they recently began testing drone flights in their own backyard to defend against them. While some turn to strictly technological methods of bringing drones to the ground, the Dutch police are evaluating the effectiveness of a new program that trains eagles to grab drones from the sky with their talons.

We can all agree that there's nothing wrong with a little publicity stunt, as long as it's awesome, right? I think that Intel has achieved that with this video they released during their CES keynote last week in Las Vegas. It's pretty straightforward actually, just 100 drones flown simultaneously in the sky while performing a choreographed light routine as a live orchestra played Beethoven's 5th Symphony. Go big or go home, right?

Just in time for 2016, the FAA released a registration system and will require anyone currently operating unmanned aerial systems (UAS), otherwise known as "drones," to register by February 19 of this year. Although the FAA's legal authority over this issue is questionable and although this applies to anyone flying drones only within certain weight guidelines for hobby or recreational use outdoors, there are a number of reasons you should register in the next 10 days, even if these particular circumstances do not apply to you.

I recently had the pleasure of picking up one of the first final production models of the Inspire Pro and X5 Micro 4/3 Camera, and immediately took it to one of the most beautiful photography destinations in the world to test it out: Meteora Greece. I spent the better part of a week there getting the hang of flying and capturing both photos and videos and I was able to come away with some stunning results. This review is meant to showcase what I was able to capture and give you an idea about the capability of the new X5 Camera and the key differences between the Inspire and...

I have been following and reporting on Vincent Laforet's "AIR" series since its first round was released. I came across an early printing of the book itself in the waiting area of San Francisco's Storehouse startup while I was about to take on another interview. I knew Storehouse and Laforet had a good working relationship, and I knew the images so well. But I didn't have time to look inside -- not that I felt I had to, however, since I knew the work inside and out. So when Laforet offered me a copy of the book to review, I simply had to say, "Of course," even if it was with mixed feelings. What could I, objectively speaking, really get out of it? Hadn't I seen it all?

Leave it to a German drone company to create the world's first light painting by drone with a fully programmed flight path, all to create one fantastic holiday time-lapse of Santa Claus delivering presents. Perhaps the most unique part of the project isn't the world-first of programming a drone to complete a multi-colored light painting, but is instead the reimagining of Santa Claus' method of delivery, as something more similar to that of your neighborhood newspaper boy with perfect accuracy.

Today's airspace is more and more crowded with drones that, for the most part, all do the same thing. This lack of product diversity is the reason Lily, with its unique combination of features including landing and taking off in water or on your hand, awed thousands when its promo video launched. Its incredibly good pre-order deal undoubtedly helped spread it further at a low price of $499. The best part: this wasn't a crowd-funding campaign. Lily had financing. This was happening. Until it wasn't.

The Verge reported Tuesday that British hydrogen fuel cell technology company Intelligent Energy has been successfully testing a miniaturized version of a hydrogen fuel cell as part of a drone system with the intent to increase flight times. Through such hydrogen fuel cell technology, drones could start flying for up to and over two hours, which would be a six-fold increase over the current industry-standard 20-minute flight time for many drones.

The FAA has been working on establishing rules and regulations for drone owners for several months, and today they have announced a mandatory registration law for drone operators that goes into effect on December 21 of this year. Starting on December 21, you will be to apply at the new FAA registration website.

No stranger to unique and challenging photography pursuits, Ben VonWong's latest adventure sent him across the Western United States in search of summer thunderstorms, with an entourage of assistants, filmmakers, and models helping along the way. VonWong shared this behind-the-scenes video, but also some insightful information as to the conversation he hopes to start– one about the seriousness of climate change.

With the hundreds of deals going on today, this one should grab your attention more than most. Drone's are one of the most popular items in the industry right now and these deals could be your best opportunity to get into the aerial photography game. Deals for up to $200 off are available on several different types of drones as well as other camera stabilizers which offer $500 off.

As the legal situation involving drones continues to evolve and registration becomes an inevitability, many "drone registration" firms have begun to spring up. The FAA has made it a point to note that drone owners do not need to jump the gun, as registration is likely to be a simple and straightforward process, easily completable without outside assistance.

If you have been on Instagram lately, there is a good chance you have seen "urbex" photography. Urbex, short for urban exploration, is where people venture deep into cities, exploring areas such as the tops of skyscrapers and depths of subway tunnels where the public isn't allowed to go. Victor Thomas, known as his Instagram name Vic Invades, is a kid from Brooklyn with a love for urbex.

By now you've likely seen this crazy commercial that features a couple of stunt flyers taking to the skies in personal jetpacks, maneuvering around a giant aircraft above the city of Dubai. If you haven't the finished video is below, but you might find more interesting is just how this insane concept got off the ground.

It's hard to keep up with Casey Neistat's daily vlogs, but today's stands out in particular for its special ingenuity and because it's Halloween. Thanks to a little creativity with an electric skateboard, some red cloth, and an Aladdin costume, New York City has Neistat and his buddy, Jesse Wellens, to thank for a truly epic Aladdin and Magic Carpet sighting. Go behind the scenes and see how they filmed it.

AIG's recent move to begin insuring unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) marked the beginning of the first large, national insurance company to get ahead of (or catch up with) the "drone movement." Like this season's migration of Canadian geese, everyone seems to be flocking in droves, clearly intent on getting to the online shopping outlets and local electronics stores that sell the latest drones. But few actually know about how to use their newly affordable crafts safely and without risking their entire life's savings. A quick phone call with the Hill & Usher insurance agency led us to a few clues about where to start.

GoPro announced last month that it is working on bringing a drone to market in early 2016, and the go-to action-cam company just released the first video taken from their drone. Thankfully, the footage looks incredibly stable — so stable that some shots look incredibly similar to something that would come from a track-mounted or cable-mounted rig on the ground. Of course, the slight slow-motion nature of the shots help mitigate the perception of any small movements throughout the flights, but the footage is surprisingly smooth nonetheless.

Not so surprisingly faster than the FAA, apparently, AIG sprung into action to allow drone operators and owners to purchase insurance that covers not only their drone and camera equipment, but also a number of other terrible things that can happen while you're piloting a UAV.

We’ve long passed the beginning of the end and are now certainly in middle-of-the-end territory with respect to the freedom to fly drones. The latest high-profile drone incident further ensures that drone piloting will remain a privilege and not a right, though rightly so, as some people apparently can’t exercise enough common sense to stay away from populated areas (i.e. Los Angeles) and critical city infrastructure (i.e. power lines).

According to NBC News, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is getting close to announcing new rules for recreational drone use, beginning with the requirement to register every drone a person buys. Registration itself, however, is not a large obstacle to drone ownership and operation, as registration will only be able to help the FAA keep track of just how many there are and, hopefully, identify aircraft that break rules or cause collisions. But just how effective will this be? And what other laws will come in the way of recreational drone flight?

If you're like me and you're sick and tired of the Drone Takeover, this state-of-the-art weaponry is for you. In an effort to defend the airspace around you, the Ohio-based, nonprofit Battelle has created the DroneDefender as a way to keep videographer drones at bay during that next wedding shoot. There will be no more swatting at poor-resolution cameras buzzing about your head; simply pull this bad boy from your quiver and "bang!" Drone down.

I'm not even sure they existed five months ago but since then the prolific crew over at RocketJump Film School have pumped out some really great educational (and often funny) content, quickly becoming one of my personal favorite crews out there. In this humorous short, "Droneward Bound," Ashly and Lauren (both adored) have to chase down a super sexy Inspire 1 drone as it takes on a life of its own. From there, director Kevin Senzaki jumps in on the second video to show us how they went about repairing the audio for the video. Senzaki jumps in on the second video to show us how they went about repairing the audio for the video.

Cinema5D founder Sebastian Wöber's latest three-part tutorial on drone shooting starts off with quite the introduction in Part I. Wöber could honestly be saying anything to accompany his to-die-for footage, but what makes it so fantastic is how great the information in this video is. From safety to beginner tips on getting started and how to get that cinematic shot you have in your head (don't worry, Wöber has plenty examples if you don't), Part I has you covered. And there's more to come...very soon.

A few weeks ago, I shared the second episode of the video series "Off the Beaten Track," where photographer Chris Schmid visited the land of the Maasai people, photographing their culture and the wild animals of the National Reserve in Kenya. Chris recently released the third episode where he explores a much cooler climate. Svalbard is one of the most remote places in the Northern Hemisphere. This episode is beautifully shot with the DJI Inspire 1 and DJI Zenmuse X5, giving you a new look into the quickly melting ice and the polar bears who live there.

Story & Hart's Academy of Storytellers just put out this wickedly informative video that not only highlights five great drone shot techniques but also breaks down their uses and how to actually achieve them.

When DJI announced the Inspire 1 drone, I didn't get it. It was a much larger and more expensive quadcopter that had only a slightly better camera attached to it. I had no interest in the Inspire 1 until they announced the new Zenmuse X5 Micro 4/3 camera/gimbal system. I currently have one and I can tell you, it's pretty amazing.

Designed to combat flights over private property by paparazzi photographers looking to get glimpses of celebrities in their "natural elements," a new bill, AB 856, signed by California Governor Jerry Brown Tuesday, broadens the definition of a "physical invasion of privacy" to include flying a drone to record images or video over private property. While countless issues surrounding invasion of privacy and drone usage have appeared on the Internet over the years (including one instance of a father shooting down a drone recording his daughter sunbathing in their backyard), this expansion could pose more danger to well-intentioned videographers.

In a move that's sure to stir the pot of an already hot-button topic, the Federal Aviation Administration proposed a record $1.9 million fine against a drone company for operating in a "careless or reckless manner so as to endanger lives or property."

Recently our own Lee Morris shot a model photoshoot entirely with an iPhone 6s Plus, showing that with proper lighting technique, a good model, and proficient use of editing software, you can obtain professional looking results with even the most humble of cameras. Andrew Weber, a professional sports photographer, decided to take it one step further by capturing the unpredictable environment of a primetime NFL game with only his iPhone 6s Plus in hand. Weber was kind enough to answer some of our questions and provide a great sampling of his photos from the shoot.

Aerial photography has always been something that I have found interesting. Seeing so many of our writers like David Geffin, Mike Kelley, and Noam Galai capture exciting photos and video from the sky has inspired me to finally attempt my first doors-off helicopter excursion. In just one short one-hour ride, I've learned a lot of do's and don'ts as well as a bunch of things to experiment with again. I even attempted shooting with a $7,000 lens that everyone told me would be a disaster — and it nearly was!

New Horizons left Florida's Cape Canaveral launch pad on January 19, 2006, arrived over Pluto more than nine years later on July 14, 2015, and finally gave scientists its first images over Labor Day weekend, when its year-long, tediously slow data dump first began. Coming in at 2,000 bits per second (1/28th the speed of dial-up), these images - many of which are composited in various ways to form a final image - finally shed some light on what secrets Pluto's surface, atmosphere, and core might hold. All told, the results give sci-fi fanatics a run for their money.

The final episode of this season of Photographing The World Behind The Scenes is finally here. In episode eight, we finally wrap up three months of filming and to celebrate, I go bungee jumping and Patrick takes a ride on the worlds tallest swing.