Kite with a camera attached

[Deleted member 103366]

Recently I saw a UFO or a prehistoric 2ft dragonfly in the air not too far from me, seriously it looked like a dragonfly or the ship from Lexx. https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lexx_tv.jpg
Anyway I sent a drone up to have a look and it became obvious it was a kite, it was blooming high, easily 200ft whilst my drone was having a looksee and it went higher later.
I didn't hang around as I didn't want to hassle the flyer but it got me to thinking, kite and a camera, kite and a camera??????

I am just curious, has it been done and what rules would govern it?
Truthfully I wouldn't have been surprised if this went well over 300ft high at times, so it's getting close to our ceiling etc. etc.

 

[Lastrexking]

It would be good with a 360 camera, but not sure if a kite would handle that much weight?

 

[Drone Master]

This is how I started doing aerial photography back in the early 90’s.
I used a 35mm canon Espirit film camera in a rig that I designed to hang 10 ft on the line below a 12 ft delta wing kite. Believe it or not, I still have the kite and the kit.
No need for it now since the drone world came about.
You can check out some of my pics. Keep in mind that there were really no rules back in those days when it came to flying kites.

Eye In The Sky / Scope On A Rope

 

[THE CYBORG]

It would be good with a 360 camera, but not sure if a kite would handle that much weight?

Depends on the Kite

 

[Lastrexking]

Depends on the Kite

Whaaaaaaat? My bum was tight watching that.

 

[JackL]

My Garmin 45 dash cam is so small and light I have been thinking of mounting it straight down on my drone. It would work awesome with a kite I believe.

 

[Deleted member 103366]

I thought surf boards were meant for the water!!!!! WOW

 

[Paul B]

Totally barking! But great vid!

 

[Meta4]

I am just curious, has it been done

KAP history

NOVA | Spies That Fly | Eddy's Surveillance Kite (USA) | PBS

 

[Dale D]

Depends on the Kite

Some people just have a death wish.

 

[b52danno]

KAP, kite aerial photography has a long history. Look it up, interesting. I started shooting from above by climbing trees and also throwing the camera in the air with the self timer just ready to run out. Rarely an ok selfie. Lots of wasted film.
kites were great. Started just tying it in below then got into it with proper setups. There was a way cool setup, can’t remember the name, French, started with a P, that was a plate you attached camera to that had tiny pulleys on it and a complicated string threading that went up and attached to kite line in two places a few feet apart and kept the camera LEVEL. Even later had a battery operated rotating plate to get shots in every direction. A huge advantage over guessing the direction of camera before launching kite.
Any small camera with an interval timer, 1,2,5,etc, seconds timer worked. The first GoPro came out when doing thi. I bought it but disappointed. Too wide angle and quality not there. My favorite was a small Ricoh Caplio 100. With a 1” sensor ! And some zoom. Nice.
Really had to think about what you were doing and pick the days and spots, hope for wind later when good light and imagination in composition. It was like Christmas morning getting back home and viewing what you got on the computer and scrolling through.
Trash, trash, trash, MASTERPIECE!

 

[b52danno]

Picavet !

 

[charliej]

Recently I saw a UFO or a prehistoric 2ft dragonfly in the air not too far from me, seriously it looked like a dragonfly or the ship from Lexx. https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lexx_tv.jpg
Anyway I sent a drone up to have a look and it became obvious it was a kite, it was blooming high, easily 200ft whilst my drone was having a looksee and it went higher later.
I didn't hang around as I didn't want to hassle the flyer but it got me to thinking, kite and a camera, kite and a camera??????

I am just curious, has it been done and what rules would govern it?
Truthfully I wouldn't have been surprised if this went well over 300ft high at times, so it's getting close to our ceiling etc. etc.

As a part of my military studies I did a research into 'Kite as a battlefield surveillance device had weeks of great fun flying kites with cameras suspended. Even had triple kites to take more weight. The main problem was I didn't have the now how for a wireless connection between operator and camera. The biggest problem was what happened if the wind was in the wrong direction. Anyway had many happy hours flying all sorts of kites given me by manufacturers who thought a big military contract was in the offing!

 

[Cymruflyer]

Recently I saw a UFO or a prehistoric 2ft dragonfly in the air not too far from me, seriously it looked like a dragonfly or the ship from Lexx. https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lexx_tv.jpg
Anyway I sent a drone up to have a look and it became obvious it was a kite, it was blooming high, easily 200ft whilst my drone was having a looksee and it went higher later.
I didn't hang around as I didn't want to hassle the flyer but it got me to thinking, kite and a camera, kite and a camera??????

I am just curious, has it been done and what rules would govern it?
Truthfully I wouldn't have been surprised if this went well over 300ft high at times, so it's getting close to our ceiling etc. etc.

Kites have been carrying cameras almost since the time that cameras were invented. Kite photography has been a very popular thing for many many decades. Kites can carry quite a lot of weight. Hundreds and hundreds of years ago, the Chinese used to send people aloft using kites.

In fact there are no laws governing the use of tethered cameras, which is basically a kite carrying a camera. So you can get away with aerial photography using a kite on a string where you would not be allowed to do it with a drone.

 

[Deleted member 103366]

In fact there are no laws governing the use of tethered cameras, which is basically a kite carrying a camera. So you can get away with aerial photography using a kite on a string where you would not be allowed to do it with a drone.

Good stuff, I remember reading of Chinese ancient and not so ancient people carrying kites, which is also stirring memories of RN or some Navy's use of them.

Re the quote, yet are not tethered 'RC' aircraft governed in the UK?

 

[Cymruflyer]

Good stuff, I remember reading of Chinese ancient and not so ancient people carrying kites, which is also stirring memories of RN or some Navy's use of them.

Re the quote, yet are not tethered 'RC' aircraft governed in the UK?

Tethered things such as a balloon on a string or a kite on a string, do not have the same restrictions as drones do, regarding limiting what and where you can fly them. Of course I mean within reason. You cant go flying a kite by an airport of course.

 

[Deleted member 103366]

Lol image the headline, "Gatwick closed by a kite".

 

[Cymruflyer]

Lol image the headline, "Gatwick closed by a kite".

Would never happen, they would blame it on a drone!!!!

 

[Deleted member 103366]

Ooooooooooo

 

[GB1Yorkshire1]

It would be good with a 360 camera, but not sure if a kite would handle that much weight?

The idea of useing a kite for observation predates balloons (it was mentioned in the famous book The Art of War) The Chinese sent up observers using very large kites with teams to operate them (it never said how they got back down) so a camera should work!
As for height I don’t know of any limitations except thunderstorms
(See Mr. Franklin)