Recent content by RBeaton

^ This. When I first started flying, I felt a little bit like I was bound to be stopped or questioned with every flight. After learning all the 107 content and passing the test, I found myself much more confident and know that I am operating legally whenever I fly. Someone still might question...

I tried it recently while surfing. I know what shot you are describing - in my experience, it won’t really keep up with a surfer on its own with only ActiveTrack without the pilot manually controlling it to maintain that distance in front of the surfer. Especially with how surfers accelerate...

That's fair. Thanks for understanding. Happy flying!

I hate being the guy to snark about someone's flying and footage, but you should definitely not do that again. Whether or not the nest appears to be flourishing, and whether or not a developer is going to be working there, please stay away from that nest and let them be. Ospreys are protected...

Agreed that you should get that in writing. Last time I checked. It was more like $75 / $150 depending on whether you were flying recreationally or commercially, and I think this was posted on the NJ State Parks website. Or, I might have inquired at Island Beach State Park... can’t remember...

The water isn’t that big of a deal except for keeping wind in mind and returning with the wind, not against it. More importantly: Maybe do a little research about how wind interacts with mountains/cliffs. There will be some inconsistent wind with updrafts coming up the faces of the cliffs. It...

Just a thought on this: Even if you think that there’s only a *slight* chance to make money with your 107, don’t make the mistake of thinking that you’ll just wait and get it when a job presents itself. It is more time consuming than you think - studying, scheduling the test, going out to a...

I thought the same. With boats, you need to use a visible, high contrast color - like don’t put white letters on a white boat. It’s kind of the same for drones. There’s not a one size fits all solution. There are different sizes, colors, and shapes of drones, so it’s much more logical to put the...

I’m in NJ too. Flying in state parks is doable but with a major caveat. The rules are about operating a drone (takeoff, landing, and maybe controlling the drone) inside the park limits. There are ways around this - since state parks do not have jurisdiction to control the airspace, you can...

Anytime I fly over water (which is almost every time), I just remind myself that this is why I wanted a Mavic in the first place. If I lose it (hopefully not), I’ve had tons of great flights, gotten amazing footage/pics, and sometimes there’s no reward without some risk. Just remember your...

I’m smelling what you’re stepping in, and I think it’s actually not a bad point to consider. Whether or not you can think of possible ways that someone might exploit your number, it’s a lot easier to avoid disseminating it from the start than to have to get back things you posted publicly on the...

Thank you so much for posting this. This exact thing happened to me (even down to the same age Mavic). I was all primed to fly for a shoot, but things weren't quite right. I noticed that the compass wasn't calibrating and a "gimbal disconnected" message. My symptoms: Tapping the screen...

That is absolutely appalling and reckless. All it would take is for one tent to hit someone the wrong way and they're dead. We just had someone at my local beach get impaled - completely through their leg - by a beach umbrella that was blown by a gust of wind. A couple years earlier, a woman was...

If it played out like it does with coastal access here, every homeowner is NOT required to let people walk through their yard. The onus is on towns and sometimes businesses to have a spot dedicated for public access. (Not saying that is always the best idea, especially with business properties...

Right! Though maybe it CAN change, just like it did for the ancient fishermen back when the Public Trust Doctrine became a thing. (We're the "fishermen" here.) And maybe having that as part of the dialogue with the FAA can make that happen. That is my point.