Community Forums

PKI · 08-19-2020, 05:50 PM

If you are still looking, here is a review that might be helpful.

http://bestreviews.com/best-photography-drones

I see you have one picked out and are doing some video. Maybe the review will help others. Good luck with the new toy.

W5CI · 08-19-2020, 05:55 PM

DJI Mavic Mini or Mavic Air 2

Cferguson · 08-26-2020, 01:21 PM

Youve probably already gotten your drone, but know that DJI puts limiters in the software to keep you out of restricted areas (which is a good thing- no one wants drones flying around airports!). And it also keeps you out of lots of other areas too.

eg, a friend who has a DJI wanted to fly to the top of the hill in his backyard for a nice property shot. Trouble is, the hill is about 450' above where he turned on his DJI and it would only allow him to go 400' above the starting point (FAA regs require drones to stay under 400'). Didnt matter that he was still 50 below his ground level at the top of the hill. LOTS of stories on the net like this if you care to look. Also if you protect your privacy, never hook your DJI onto the internet for an 'update'. DJI openly says they d/l your data and pics and use them however they please. Did i mention that DJI is in China and admits they provide data to the Chinese gov when requested?

disclaimer: i dont do photo drones. i fly racing drones exclusively.

Grn_Mtn_Boy · 08-27-2020, 04:47 AM

I don't worry too much about China using my drone footage to spy. Nothing from a drone they can't see on Google earth, in a more organized view. If you are concerned, just take your files off the drone if you need to connect for a new version upgrade, which happens from time to time. The upgrade furnished this month for my mavic air 2 is adding zoom capability as well as some additional controls for speed of drone movement changes. Both are very welcome upgrades. As for the 400 ft ceiling, it's good that my drone limits it's height as this is the law. A little cumbersome in hilly terrain, but tell your friend to hike the hill and launch his flight from there. Another rule of drone flying is you must keep your drone within sight. I wonder if your friend could actually fly up a hill with 400 feet of elevation change and still be within sight. Not happening around here not with these old eyes. I can barely see the thing if I take it straight up 400 feet. I find that if I follow this in sight rule, I fly with a lot less concern as I can see exactly where my aircraft is and what hazards may be in the vicinity.

Big-Foot · 08-27-2020, 06:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cferguson

Youve probably already gotten your drone, but know that DJI puts limiters in the software to keep you out of restricted areas (which is a good thing- no one wants drones flying around airports!). And it also keeps you out of lots of other areas too.

eg, a friend who has a DJI wanted to fly to the top of the hill in his backyard for a nice property shot. Trouble is, the hill is about 450' above where he turned on his DJI and it would only allow him to go 400' above the starting point (FAA regs require drones to stay under 400'). Didnt matter that he was still 50 below his ground level at the top of the hill. LOTS of stories on the net like this if you care to look. Also if you protect your privacy, never hook your DJI onto the internet for an 'update'. DJI openly says they d/l your data and pics and use them however they please. Did i mention that DJI is in China and admits they provide data to the Chinese gov when requested?

disclaimer: i dont do photo drones. i fly racing drones exclusively.

Sadly, your friend is misinformed and has passed that misunderstanding on to you. The DJI Drone ceiling is set with a default of 400’ but is user configurable. Yes, there are NO FLY ZONES, but those Geo Fencing areas are those which we really shouldn’t be flying anything anyway and many can be over-ridden if proper permission has been sought and acquired.
DJI will only get thumbnail photos and location information if you upload your logs to them. The only reason to do that would be if you are on DJI Care warranty and want them to replace your lost drone. You can erase your logs after each flight if you wish.

I’m a photographer and use my DJI Camera Drones as part of my work almost daily.

Cferguson · 08-27-2020, 09:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Big-Foot

Sadly, your friend is misinformed and has passed that misunderstanding on to you. The DJI Drone ceiling is set with a default of 400’ but is user configurable. Yes, there are NO FLY ZONES, but those Geo Fencing areas are those which we really shouldn’t be flying anything anyway and many can be over-ridden if proper permission has been sought and acquired.
DJI will only get thumbnail photos and location information if you upload your logs to them. The only reason to do that would be if you are on DJI Care warranty and want them to replace your lost drone. You can erase your logs after each flight if you wish.

I’m a photographer and use my DJI Camera Drones as part of my work almost daily.

Friend may well be uninformed as he is pretty new to drones, but if you care to google up some links, DJI abuses and admissions are all over the place.

MSHappyCampers · 09-07-2020, 04:15 PM

I stumbled upon this site and found it informative. Hopefully you will too!

https://uavcoach.com/?fbclid=IwAR0b6...GL7Dlrm1zaHLOc

Cferguson · 09-08-2020, 05:53 AM

Here's my favorite site for all levels of learning:
https://oscarliang.com/fpv-drone-gui...autolevel-mode
FPV is where the fun is!

MSHappyCampers · 09-08-2020, 09:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cferguson

Here's my favorite site for all levels of learning:
https://oscarliang.com/fpv-drone-gui...autolevel-mode
FPV is where the fun is!

Thanks! I'll take a look at that one!

MSHappyCampers · 11-01-2020, 03:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RoccoDuhnam

I have only been flying drones for a couple of months so am about as far away from "a great" pilot as you can get, i will say these things are easy to fly and easy to learn on as long as you take your time.

Just take things easy and listen to the guys who've been at it a while. Very few if any will tell you how to crash your drone or how to get in trouble with it or anything like that.
They'll all be very eager to help you learn to fly well and keep you safe and also teach you from experiences they have either had or learned off along the way.
It's difficult to get into trouble but if you take your eye off the ball or "go looking" you'll find trouble real quick. o_O

Hi ! Welcome to IRV2! We're sure glad you joined us!

Yup, I'm taking things slow and easy, learning one step at a time.

Good luck, happy trails, and God bless!

Maxxcamping · 09-25-2021, 02:15 PM

Thats a nice one. Looks like Amazon said it is "Unavailable". I sold my DJI Phantom a few years ago but never got another one till recently. I bought a Holystone D120. Works well. I'd say its downfall is its weight. A little light in 10+ MPH winds but still works great for scouting out boondocking sites.