Can you make a MM "crab" for shots angles with yaw at 45° in motion?

[vindibona1]

The title pretty much says it all. Can it be executed on a MM? Are the controls sensitive enough for a complex command that it might take as the MM does not have L-R camera rotation? For those who don't know what "crabbing" is, it's when a something is moving in one direction yet angled slightly in another. In other words, forward motion with some yaw mixed in. I've got a particular shot that I'd like to get where I travel along side a building looking into the windows, but yet continuing to face the first wall that I pass. I would guess that the way to do it is to yaw the drone into the proper position then find the exact position of the right stick moving sideways and slightly backwards at the same time to maintain the yaw angle as the drone moved along the side of the building.

Are the MM controls sensitive enough to do that? Has anyone here been able to do anything like that?

 

[old man mavic]

it is very possible just takes practice,best in C mode as it slows things down find a nice open spot and using just the right stick first fly sideways and back at the same time and see how the drone responds and then if you need it mix in some yaw as well ,when i had my early drones i used to switch off GPS and in Atti mode i would go full forwards then full left or right and full yaw at the same time and fly what they call funnels great fun and a great way to get down from height at speed if some down stick was added in as well

 

[vindibona1]

it is very possible just takes practice,best in C mode as it slows things down find a nice open spot and using just the right stick first fly sideways and back at the same time and see how the drone responds and then if you need it mix in some yaw as well ,when i had my early drones i used to switch off GPS and in Atti mode i would go full forwards then full left or right and full yaw at the same time and fly what they call funnels great fun and a great way to get down from height at speed if some down stick was added in as well

Not for this shot idea specifically, but I've been practicing complex maneuvers including direction change, change in yaw and gimbal pitch changes simultaenously. I know partially it's my beginner hands, that keep me from being successul and I think also need to adjust the gimbal movement settings. I know I need to bump the smoothness and and slow down the action. I think I'm set on 15/5 right now and might be better off with something like 10/20? The question remains as to how many simultaenous input instructions can the MM take and execute smoothly, not to mention how much "touch" is available in the controller?

So much to learn.

 

[old man mavic]

because its not easy that why there are lots of auto flight modes on the mavics ,but there is nothing better than doing complex moves yourself,and the beauty of it is if things start to go wrong then just release the sticks and hit pause ,and then try again,

 

[scro]

The controls of the MM allow any mix of possible movement inputs. You can fly forwards and upwards, while yawning and panning the gimbal down, for example. The tricky bit is keeping your inputs smooth and coordinated!

A potential cheat's way of crabbing is to set your home point just off one corner of the building and then fly out along the face you want to film. Hit RTH and the drone will move along a straight path back to the home point. While its doing thst you can yaw to get the drone to face what you want to film and hit record. If you wanted to you could do pirouettes with the drone while it moves along the path to return to the home point.

 

[Deleted member 103366]

set your home point just off one corner of the building and then fly out along the face you want to film. Hit RTH and the drone will move along a straight path back to the home point.

I woke up thinking of that, sad isn't it, lol? The one concern I had was the ground speed, it might be necessary to play with the right stick, and maybe height.

 

[vindibona1]

The controls of the MM allow any mix of possible movement inputs. You can fly forwards and upwards, while yawning and panning the gimbal down, for example. The tricky bit is keeping your inputs smooth and coordinated!

A potential cheat's way of crabbing is to set your home point just off one corner of the building and then fly out along the face you want to film. Hit RTH and the drone will move along a straight path back to the home point. While its doing thst you can yaw to get the drone to face what you want to film and hit record. If you wanted to you could do pirouettes with the drone while it moves along the path to return to the home point.

An interesting idea. Can you set the RTH height 4 ft off the ground?

UPDATE: I had a few more scenes to shoot to fill in a project which I did yesterday, the "crab scene" being one. I didn't see the "cheat method" before going out so did it all manually. It took me 4 or 5 passes to get enough decent footage where it looked smooth. As the shot was a very low level, again about 4 ft off the ground, and the path had to run parallel between a building (about 3 feet from the building) and a tree I stood along side the building to eyeball the path attempting to keep the distance from the building as even as possible throughout the shot. I wouldn't dare try this soley in FPV. I actually got a few seconds of decent video, though I may have to mess with the time a bit in post.

I might be going out to meet a buddy who also has a MM and it might be a good opportunity to try your cheat technique in an open area. I'm not ready to test it near brick and steel yet .

 

[jnatt]

If its only 4' of the ground is there a reason you can't do it by hand to get the smoothness you want?

 

[Paleomanjim]

I've been using the right stick (roll) to follow contours on ridges and mountains with good success, as well as crabbing to view ridges from the side while traveling forward. It works well and reduces the need to use Yaw inputs. Resulting video is much smoother and the sinuous travel path looks cool as well.

 

[scro]

If its only 4' of the ground is there a reason you can't do it by hand to get the smoothness you want?

Indeed! Its easy to forget that filming at ground level very often is easier handheld. You can even use the drone (without the motors running) to record the video and reap the benefits of the gimbal.

I think minimum RTH height is 15m (50ft), but you can manually lower the height during the RTH operation, or even stop it ascending fully to its set altitude before it starts returning.

 

[vindibona1]

If its only 4' of the ground is there a reason you can't do it by hand to get the smoothness you want?

I often miss things in posts and I know I can be a little verbose. But the third sentence of my updates says
" I didn't see the "cheat method" before going out so did it all manually. It took me 4 or 5 passes to get enough decent footage where it looked smooth. "

FURTHER UPDATE;
I got a chance for open field practice today and spent a good deal of time practicing crabbing in a straight line. It’s doable but requires great nuance on the sticks. I’m getting the hang of it but not consistent yet. I wanted to try the RTH cheat, but that only works if you’re above 50 feet as 49ft is the minimum RTH height.

After back and forth practice I worked circling around a soccer net with the camera always facing the net. MUCH more difficult of an exercise.

 

[scro]

I think what jnatt was meaning is: could you not hold a camera in your hand and walk along the facade of the building you wanted to film? Maybe there was a good reason to use the drone, though.

I was filming at a skate park and had my drone and my phone camera. Filming with the phone was just so much easier and far more successful than trying to track moving subjects with the drone. I did get some good shots with the drone but they were ones where the additional height made them better.

 

[vindibona1]

I think what jnatt was meaning is: could you not hold a camera in your hand and walk along the facade of the building you wanted to film? Maybe there was a good reason to use the drone, though.

I was filming at a skate park and had my drone and my phone camera. Filming with the phone was just so much easier and far more successful than trying to track moving subjects with the drone. I did get some good shots with the drone but they were ones where the additional height made them better.

I think I overlooked the obvious hiding in plain sight... my first thought was “how do I stay steady- I don’t own a gimbal?”... then I realized that I could hand hold the drone and record and just walk it thru...DUH???!!!

 

[scro]

I think I overlooked the obvious hiding in plain sight... my first thought was “how do I stay steady- I don’t own a gimbal?”... then I realized that I could hand hold the drone and record and just walk it thru...DUH???!!!

Thats exactly what I was meaning in post #10. Just hold the drone in your hand and you have a nice gimbal stabilised camera
I've had to remind myself a few times that flying a drone to get ground level shots is not always the smartest way to get some good footage.

I have a galaxy s10 and it actually does a very good job of stabilising video. Handheld walking shots come out floaty-smooth. It only starts to fall apart in low light where you get strange motion blur on things that don't appear to be moving.

 

[vindibona1]

Thats exactly what I was meaning in post #10. Just hold the drone in your hand and you have a nice gimbal stabilised camera
I've had to remind myself a few times that flying a drone to get ground level shots is not always the smartest way to get some good footage.

I have a galaxy s10 and it actually does a very good job of stabilising video. Handheld walking shots come out floaty-smooth. It only starts to fall apart in low light where you get strange motion blur on things that don't appear to be moving.

I really haven't shot video in over 30 years so this is all new. The closest other thing that I own for shooting video is a Canon 5D Mark III, which isn't very elegant in that regard. I wish I'd held our for the Mark IV which has focus tracking in video something woefully lacking in the Mark III. Gimbals are a relatively recent development. We were just watching a movie last night- made in 2011 which opened up with a drone shot of downtown Chicago and the first thing I noticed was the unstable aerial video in a professionally made movie. That footage would be totally unacceptable today.

Anyway... So much to learn about this stuff- and simultaneously learning video editing and audio recording... all at the same time. To paraprhase Rahm Emmanuel... "Never let a good pandemic go to waste" ? .

 

[BokiFly]

Are the MM controls sensitive enough to do that? Has anyone here been able to do anything like that?

Yes. I practiced that in DJI Flight SImulator, and then in the real flight. Bit for now I didn't use that maneuver much, and I definitely need to practise more, but it can be done. And it looks nice when you manage to do it right.

 

[vindibona1]

As a tangential comment to the thread...

I wanted this shot (crabbed footage) for a project that I'm working on. It's a personal project which the finished project I have a purpose for in the back of my mind. If it works out I will donate the project to the project's property. But last night as I was discussing the project with my significant other, she reminded me that while the project has expanded and taken on a life of its own, the underlying purpose behind the project started off and still remains skill development. Developing flying skills, recording/cinematic skills, video and audio editing skills, all the things including but beyond flying. And while in retrospect I could have walked the drone through the footage, the challenge to have fine, complex control over the drone in a limited-space area was well worth overlooking the easy way out. And the fact that I didn't recognize the easy way taught me something in itself. And while I know there are other "better" more expensive drones out there, I marvel at what this little drone can accomplish.

 

[SW_Drone_Guy]

...purpose behind the project started off and still remains skill development. Developing flying skills, recording/cinematic skills, video and audio editing skills...
I marvel at what this little drone can accomplish.

Well said, vindibona1. Same for me. Its such a challenge and often frustrating; but when it's good, it's real good!
Post production is the same. Sooo many options with so many different results. When it seems like I've wasted time on some aspect of a project I remind myself that it wasn't wasted. It was time well spent. I'm learning!
So much to learn, but what better time? Happy flying

 

[vindibona1]

Well said, vindibona1. Same for me. Its such a challenge and often frustrating; but when it's good, it's real good!
Post production is the same. Sooo many options with so many different results. When it seems like I've wasted time on some aspect of a project I remind myself that it wasn't wasted. It was time well spent. I'm learning!
So much to learn, but what better time? Happy flying

Learning?? An understatement . Going back to the same site multiple times gave me insight and opportunity. It's taught me to plan the story, look for the time of day to shoot, consult for conditions, match colors (better) in post. It's made me look at flying more cinenmatically. It's forced me to (begin to learn) a heavy duty video editing program, search for audio- and much more.