This was from a paramotor flight along the "San Diego Coastal Route" over North County beaches, on September 11, 2024. I held my phone to the left of my harness and angled it straight down, capturing a top-down view of the coastline, adjacent neighborhood, and teal blue ocean water. My flying buddy was below me, and is visible as the green paraglider just below the center of the frame.
I like this photo first for its color -- the water was beautiful and clear with the sun coming into it at an angle illuminating the shallow seafloor, and it was a spectacular evening for a beach flight! Additionally, I enjoy looking at the beach from this atypical angle. Paramotors offer a great way to see the world, because without a cockpit or fuselage, you really *can* just look straight down! Or anywhere! There's nothing in the way of the view.
I took this photo on my iPhone 15 Pro using the 48 MP "1x" lens, in 48 MP using ProRAW in Apple's built-in camera app. ProRAW DNGs are large files with rich per-pixel color depth and ample data in the shadows and highlights, and yet are relatively free of noise. They are a total joy to work with. I processed the DNG in Capture One Pro 22.
Thanks for looking!
Not that I doubt you being on a paramotor, but just curious, how did your phone didn't slip off your hands while doing so? Or there was not much wind at the time? Well, had I not read the description, I would guess this photo was taken using a drone. So congrats on shooting this in a phone.
Oh hi! Some people do rely on themselves to not drop their phones while flying, but I always have my phone on a retractable tether. If I drop my phone (and I have before!) it will dangle by my leg. As for wind, there is always a 25 to 40 mile per hour wind on you while flying, because that's the speed at which you fly through the air. It feels wonderful, but it makes pouring salsa on a burrito very difficult. The one time I tried, I got salsa all over my jacket and harness...