Just had a guy come up and confront me while taking some video over the ocean.
Over the 15 or so minutes I was flying, I heard several women passing by making comments that they didn’t “like drones”. And seeing it made them very uncomfortable. I’m guessing this guy must have been the husband of one of the women, because he came up to me later and commented, “There are several of us here that would love to see what you are filming when you are done. We are just not used to seeing those things here. “
He might have said something else, what he said wasn’t all that rude, but the tone of his voice expresses clear annoyance, and suspicion regarding what I was filming. He was close enough that I could smell a whiff of alcohol, and I wasn’t sure how much more quickly things might escalate.
I told him I would be happy to share the footage, and that folks on the ground look like “ants”.
Truth be told, I was filming the ocean, not the people behind the drone, but it didn’t stop children from running along the beach waving at the drone, screaming with excitement, thinking that I was filming them. I remember when kids acted that way anytime a video camera came out. Now everyone pretty much ignores normal cameras. But when it comes to drones... too many people automatically assume they are being filmed.
I stuck around after my flight. Nobody bothered to ask to see any footage.
I was flying legally, had the right permits, etc, but people are people, and they can be especially suspicious about things they don’t understand. I imagine if the man came back and looked at what I was filming, he might have actually appreciated the footage.
