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Jomax Drones

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Age
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Dorset, UK
Hi Guys

Ok , so I am about to embark on a drone career. I am semi retired (53) and I wanted to start a drone business. I am currently looking at taking a course to achieve my drone licences that are needed. Can anyone recommend a starter drone for mainly building surveys etc. I am contemplating the Mavic 3 or the matrice 300. I also wanted to know what’s the best lap top and software I should be looking at for extracting and editing the data I collect. I have recently researched a few drone company’s and some manage to number the photos for the client in the footage they take , so how is this achievable ?
Any help or advice would be very much appreciated as I would be thrilled to receive your opinions. I am looking at just part time as I wouldn’t be solely reliant on this as an income but it seems a fun way to have a Xx small business as I enjoy the outdoors as it’s really gripped my curiosity.
Regards
BH
 
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I would start with the Air 2S as your drone and I would put your Brain Power into Drone Deploy software as they work really nicely together.

This will allow you to step into a professional software for way points and mapping. Of course there are others that will do the same thing for less , but advise to start there.

There are some nice features with that level software that make getting a job done easier, even if its just taking a series of pictures.

Seeing your in the UK you might consider getting the Wet Suit for your Drone to be able to Negotiate the Rain if need be .



Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly in the Rain.
 
IF you plan on using 3rd party software you need to make sure that the drone you buy is supported by the software. Phantomrain suggested "DroneDeploy", a program I really know little about. But when I looked it up it did not indicate that it supports the Mavic 3 yet. DJI needs to release the SDK (software developer kit) so that 3rd parties can program for the M3. When that will happen is anyone's guess.

The Air2s is a formidable drone, but if there is a Mavic 2 Pro available for purchase I would highly recommend that one, if for no other reasons than it has a smaller, more full featured controller and a variable aperture which makes cinematic motion blur much easier than guessing exposure and ND filters. I also like the Go4 app it runs off of better than the more current DJI Fly app. But that's just me.
 
Hi Guys

Ok , so I am about to embark on a drone career. I am semi retired (53) and I wanted to start a drone business. I am currently looking at taking a course to achieve my drone licences that are needed. Can anyone recommend a starter drone for mainly building surveys etc. I am contemplating the Mavic 3 or the matrice 300. I also wanted to know what’s the best lap top and software I should be looking at for extracting and editing the data I collect. I have recently researched a few drone company’s and some manage to number the photos for the client in the footage they take , so how is this achievable ?
Any help or advice would be very much appreciated as I would be thrilled to receive your opinions. I am looking at just part time as I wouldn’t be solely reliant on this as an income but it seems a fun way to have a Xx small business as I enjoy the outdoors as it’s really gripped my curiosity.
Regards
BH
You can batch rename/renumber in a lot of photoshop type programs. I use photoshop after sorting out my images I open them in Bridge which is part of photoshop and just batch rename. Cheers Len
 
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IF you plan on using 3rd party software you need to make sure that the drone you buy is supported by the software. Phantomrain suggested "DroneDeploy", a program I really know little about. But when I looked it up it did not indicate that it supports the Mavic 3 yet. DJI needs to release the SDK (software developer kit) so that 3rd parties can program for the M3. When that will happen is anyone's guess.

The Air2s is a formidable drone, but if there is a Mavic 2 Pro available for purchase I would highly recommend that one, if for no other reasons than it has a smaller, more full featured controller and a variable aperture which makes cinematic motion blur much easier than guessing exposure and ND filters. I also like the Go4 app it runs off of better than the more current DJI Fly app. But that's just me.
THANKYOU so much for taking the time to reply. I settled on a Mavic 3 Pro but the Mavic 2 was a great contender. I understand a lot of the Drones seem to be preferred on Apple and that may suggest I need a AirBook or alike. I will research your comments and again THANKYOU for the advice !
 
You can batch rename/renumber in a lot of photoshop type programs. I use photoshop after sorting out my images I open them in Bridge which is part of photoshop and just batch rename. Cheers Len
Hi Len
Thank you for taking the time to help and I will research that to see what I can gather on PhotoShop. I really am not the Tech orientated but I intend to learn as much as I can before my GVC course
Again many thanks Sir !
 
I would start with the Air 2S as your drone and I would put your Brain Power into Drone Deploy software as they work really nicely together.

This will allow you to step into a professional software for way points and mapping. Of course there are others that will do the same thing for less , but advise to start there.

There are some nice features with that level software that make getting a job done easier, even if its just taking a series of pictures.

Seeing your in the UK you might consider getting the Wet Suit for your Drone to be able to Negotiate the Rain if need be .



Phantomrain.org
Gear to fly in the Rain.
Again , thankyou so much for taking the time to reply and I really appreciate your advice. As I say I know nothing about this industry but I am finding this forum very helpful. I settled on the Mavic 3 which arrives today and I am in the process of signing up for a course GVC and tuition. I don’t think for one second this is going to be easy for me but I am so far enjoying learning. I have met an alarming amount of Drone Pilots in the last few weeks that don’t even have an A1 , so I am assuming the industry is flooded with unregistered pilots. In my area of Bournemouth it was reported that no less than 7 drones were confiscated by the Dorset Police for flying in No Fly Zones during the Air Show !
I think that’s a different kind of stupid !
All the best
Barclay
 
THANKYOU so much for taking the time to reply. I settled on a Mavic 3 Pro but the Mavic 2 was a great contender. I understand a lot of the Drones seem to be preferred on Apple and that may suggest I need a AirBook or alike. I will research your comments and again THANKYOU for the advice !
Did you mean just the Mavic 3 (sans the pro term in the model designation as there is no such "pro" model). Or did you mean the MINI 3 PRO, where "pro" is in the model name?

As far as needing a tablet, yes the later Apple models will work, but don't totally discount Android. It just takes a bit more researach to see which ones work better. A lot of guys use the Tripltek 8" monitor- but it's a tank. It exceeds 600 grams (1.4 pounds). But it's bright, which is what draws drone pilots to it. Also, it's $800USD.

For a tablet, I use an iPad Mini 6, which weighs about 300 grams. It's not as bright at the Tripltek, but you'd be connecting it to a RCN1 controller, which is a brick by itself. There are earlier and less expensive iPads that will work with the Mavic +RCN1.

FWIW, I am not a fan of the RCN1 (standard) controller, which comes with every DJI drone as the standard offering from the Mini 2 up through the Mavic 3. With my Mini 2 set, I have found the RCN1 to be a challenge to fly smoothly. IMO there is some response lag as well as dead spots in the sticks. It's fine when flying in large open spaces, but the slower you fly in smaller spaces the more difficult it is to be precise because of the aformentioned issues that I've experienced. I've since added the Mini 2 Pro with the DJI RC (smart controller) and fine control with that setup improved significantly...

Since you will have to spend money for a tablet (or phone) to pair with the RCN1, I would suggest spending the extra money and buying the RC Pro smart controller. Yeah... $1200. But its got the built-in screen, a complete array of programmable buttons and presumably a better flying experience than with the RCN1. Again, that's just my opinion, especially because the RC Pro costs... and one of the reasons why I'm sticking with the Mavic 2 Pro (and Mini 3 w/DJI RC) for the foreseeable future.

That's my take.
 
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