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Drone newbie

faadpe

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Greetings. I am absolutely brand new at this drone thing. I am very experienced in flying airplanes, approx. 12,000 hrs. I am considering getting in the drone photo and video business.

I am wondering what is the:

Best Part 107 school
Best drone, (thinking of the DJI mavic pro 3)

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Jerry
 
Best drone, (thinking of the DJI mavic pro 3)

Welcome to the Forum!

Best drone ... to do what? Have fun flying? Take photos? Take panoramas? Take video? What kind of video? First person flying down a mountain? Orbit a medieval castle? Tracking yourself as you ride a mountain bike? In what wind conditions? Do you want to fly over crowds of people? Is portability a priority?

It's hard to recommend a drone without knowing what you want to use it for, so maybe you can narrow it down for us. :)
 
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Hello from the Crossroads of America faadpe.

Nice to meet you Jerry. 🤝


Best Part 107 school




And while you're there looking up Part 107 information, you should take the TRUST test and keep a copy with you when you fly.


Welcome to the Forum. :cool:

.
 
Welcome to the Forum!

Best drone ... to do what? Have fun flying? Take photos? Take panoramas? Take video? What kind of video? First person flying down a mountain? Orbit a medieval castle? Tracking yourself as you ride a mountain bike? In what wind conditions? Do you want to fly over crowds of people? Is portability a priority?

It's hard to recommend a drone without knowing what you want to use it for, so maybe you can narrow it down for us. :)
as I said in my intro. Commercial photograhy and video.
 
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Welcome to the Forum!

Best drone ... to do what? Have fun flying? Take photos? Take panoramas? Take video? What kind of video? First person flying down a mountain? Orbit a medieval castle? Tracking yourself as you ride a mountain bike? In what wind conditions? Do you want to fly over crowds of people? Is portability a priority?

It's hard to recommend a drone without knowing what you want to use it for, so maybe you can narrow it down for us. :)
as I said in my intro. Commercial photograhy and video.
 
Welcome to the Forum!

Best drone ... to do what? Have fun flying? Take photos? Take panoramas? Take video? What kind of video? First person flying down a mountain? Orbit a medieval castle? Tracking yourself as you ride a mountain bike? In what wind conditions? Do you want to fly over crowds of people? Is portability a priority?

It's hard to recommend a drone without knowing what you want to use it for, so maybe you can narrow it down for us. :)
as I said in my intro. Commercial photograhy and video.
 
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Reactions: Erk1024
Welcome to the Forum!

Best drone ... to do what? Have fun flying? Take photos? Take panoramas? Take video? What kind of video? First person flying down a mountain? Orbit a medieval castle? Tracking yourself as you ride a mountain bike? In what wind conditions? Do you want to fly over crowds of people? Is portability a priority?

It's hard to recommend a drone without knowing what you want to use it for, so maybe you can narrow it down for us. :)
as I said in my intro. Commercial photograhy and video.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Erk1024
Greetings. I am absolutely brand new at this drone thing. I am very experienced in flying airplanes, approx. 12,000 hrs. I am considering getting in the drone photo and video business.

I am wondering what is the:

Best Part 107 school
Best drone, (thinking of the DJI mavic pro 3)

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Jerry
Welcome from the UK!
 
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Reactions: LoudThunder
Greetings. I am absolutely brand new at this drone thing.
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Welcome from the Hampton Roads area of Virginia, USA. We have a Member's Map in the Upper Right of the Title Bar. Click on "Members" and then Click on "Member's Map…" Check it out and you might find some new flying friends.


Many of the other members have already offered you advice and I want to say, I did my training through Pilot Institute and I have never regretted it over the last three years and I have gone back to and updated my training without cost. Your enrollment is for "life…" well the life of the Pilot Institute… L 😆 L . . .

As has already been stated, what do you want to do, there are so many options: Photography, Videography, Infrastructure Inspections (Bridges, Towers, Windmills, etc…), Surveying, Post disaster Insurance Inspections, Crop Inspections, Agricultural Applications (Fertilizer, Pesticides and Herbicides), Media (Television and News Print), Facility and Event Security, and Small Package Delivery, just to name a few… And depending on your wants, needs and budget, there are many, many different drones to choose from… As the old expression goes, "Choose Wisely…"

As a New Drone Pilot, there are a couple of Legal Things you may need to do…

If you have not already done so, you will need to get your TRUST Certificate. You can get that at the Pilot Institute Web Site (FREE…). Your Drone will probably weigh more than 250-grams (0.55 pounds), and even while you are flying under The Exception for Recreational Flyers, you are required to register your Drone.

Link to the TRUST Certificate at the Pilot Institute Web Site (FREE…)


Link to the FAADroneZone (Optional Registration for Drones under 250-Grams…)


If you are considering acquiring your Part 107 License, here is a link to get you going…


Since you live in Georgia, there are specific laws and rules for you to follow, please check the link below for all the Rules and Laws that are in effect in your neck of the woods and it also links you to some of the Best Places to Fly in your area… Also, if you travel on vacation, visit friends, and relatives in other parts of the country, check back here so you do not run afoul of the law.


Even if you have flown Drones before, here is some Good Old Fashion Advice…

You paid a lot of money for that Drone, put your phone number on it. If your drone gets lost or stuck in a tree and it finally comes down when you are not around, give the finders an opportunity to contact you so it can be returned.

Now, for the Fun Part, But do not let the excitement of the moment get the best of you. When you are going out to fly, do it slowly and deliberately. Get used to a set procedure and even practice it.

There are so many things I could write but these are the highlights that I feel need mentioning.

Plug in your phone/tablet into your controller; turn on the Controller and DJI Fly App (if it does not start on its own…). On the Drone, open the front legs, then open the back legs, then remove the Gimbal Cover.

The Gimbal is the most delicate item on the Drone and banging or bumping can damage it. I also fastened a short "Remove Before Flight" ribbon to the cover so it's more noticeable and I do not forget to remove it…

Turn on the drone and watch it come to "life." Watching the Gimbal go through its self-check is almost like watching a puppy or kitten opening its eyes for the first time…

Place the drone down (preferably on a Landing Pad) while it finishes its self-test (collecting satellites, etc…).

Check your battery status (Phone, Drone, and Controller), check the Signal Strength, by now the Controller should have reported it updated the Home Point.

Lift off, 6- feet (2-meters) or so, hover a bit, check the controls (move the drone a bit forward, back, left, right, yaw left and right). By now, your Controller will probably report again, Home point Updated.

If you go out in a rush and race thru your start up and take off before the drone has finished it prep, it may update its Home Point over that pond or that old tree you are flying over and in your excitement, you'll fly the drone long past it Low Battery point and when it engages Return to Home and lands in the pond or in a tree; it will be all on you…

Now go have fun, learn to fly the drone by sight before you try to fly it out a distance depending on the video feed, FPV.

I would also advise you to use YouTube and watch a lot of the Videos on flying and setting up the Drone. When it is too dark, too cold, or too wet, you can "fly it vicariously" through YouTube. Also watch some of the Blooper Drone Videos and learn how not to fly your "New Baby."

Fly On and Fly Safe…
 
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as I said in my intro. Commercial photograhy and video.

Gotcha!

The Mavic 3 Pro is a great drone. It's what I'm using. It has a micro 4/3rds sensor, which has excellent image quality. It's the best image quality you're going to get without going with a pro level cinematic drone which are very pricey indeed. At some point (maybe on or around April of this year) it's going to get an upgrade to the Mavic 4?

The Air 3S is also a fantastic drone. It has just been updated and it's main sensor is a smaller 1" quad-bayer sensor, so slightly lower image quality. However the 70mm camera is the same 1/1.3" sensor at the Mavic 3 Pro. This drone is cheaper, faster, has better obstacle avoidance, and a better video transmission system. Awesome bang for the buck.

You can get great pictures out of all of those cameras if you bracket or do panoramas. Also plenty good enough for roof or construction inspections. Also both are very good in windy conditions, and are quite fast, have long flight times, etc.

If you're looking for portability, then the Mini-4 Pro is a great little drone with a good camera, and almost the same features as the bigger drones.

There is also the DJI Matrice which can do thermal imaging and RTK mapping. I don't know if that's useful for construction? But also an option.
 
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