What did you guys buy a mavic for?

[MavicNewb]

Just curious to see if people bought the mavic as an expensive toy because they like flying drones and being able to shoot 4K videos and photos was a huge bonus for a hobbyist that is getting into video/photo or did people buy the mavic to use a professional tool like a DSLR where it would only see daylight on special occasions or trips?

I personally bought the mavic as an expensive toy and being able to shoot high quality videos and photos was a huge bonus due to me wanting to get a feet wet in video production/editing for fun in my free time, and not to mention the super small form factor.

 

[JoostGT3]

More or less the same as you: I used to Paraglide, and after a serious accident decided to stop. Ever since I have been interested in flying fpv, with the desire to also record footage and shoot photos, as one of my other hobbies is photography.

As it seems, I get a real kick out of flying the mavic and also in getting the shots how I imagined them. FPV I havent done yet, but probably will, still seems really awesome to do.

 

[Kilrah]

For everything.
The flying, the imagery, the performance, the design,...

 

[Former Member]

I bought mine to cannibalize so that others may live.

 

[Advexure]

I got my own Mavic for traveling, have been tired of lugging around Phantoms and other larger drones over the years. Mavic has been an absolute game changer in that sense.

 

[droneworx]

I got my own Mavic for traveling, have been tired of lugging around Phantoms and other larger drones over the years. Mavic has been an absolute game changer in that sense.

This.... I travel a lot for work, and i like to video my work adventures, and the P3P was just getting to be too much to lug around.

 

[Zoso]

I got my first one for use with Home Inspecting, I hate heights so using the Phantom 1 with FPVG was perfect for inspecting roofs, evestroughs, chimneys etc .
The Mavic was for the awesome photo/video ability and its size and intergrated use with my IPhone & Ipad .

 

[Mjonesy758]

Bought mine to just fly its my first drone so learning on it and it's a blast

 

[Jim747]

I'm a licensed pilot with instrument rating but stopped flying when my co-owners moved away and we sold our airplane. I still have a love for flying and considered a drone for a few years but we travel in a camper van motor home with limited storage space. The choice was easy when the foldable Mavic became available. Sure wish I would have had it last summer when we spent two months traveling to Alaska.

 

[Jim747]

I'll say for travel but I'm a licensed pilot with a lot of time in the air. We sold our airplane when a couple of co-owners moved away but I still have the urge to get off the ground.

We travel in a camper van motor home. It has limited storage space so it was an easy decision when the Mavic came along. Sure wish I would have had it when we spent two months traveling to Alaska last summer.

 

[ajoy]

I bought it to shoot landscape images (not video), esp. when I travel to places where I may not be back or by the time I get back there, the entire landscape might have changed. Not at all an experienced pilot, so taking small baby steps in learning to fly this thing and still get reasonably good images that people would buy.

 

[BorisTheSpider]

I bought it primarily to shoot video, but I since bought a basic quad as well and do find flying them enjoyable, however if it wasn't for the camera capability I probably would never have bought a drone at all.

I'm probably a prime target for a P4P, but I don't think I can get over the portability side - I spent years lugging a heavy DSLR around and eventually switched to smaller cameras which I take better pictures with, so going the opposite direction with drones is a big ask - I think working within the limitations of a smaller system is the way to go for me.

 

[ed1nh0]

I almost voted for "As a toy and shooting video and photos was an added bonus" but I changed to "Other" because I did purchased my Mavic to use as a flying camera.
I was really wanting to try some aerial footage.

[Edit]
I almost forgot! The tiny size and portability were the decisive arguments.

 

[Lone Wolf 58]

I bought mine primarily to fly around. Was very interested in FPV. The range and flite time impressed me. It was also the most resent DJI drone to be released and at the top of my price point. Watching YouTube vidios of all the features sold it over say a P3. Seemed easy to fly compared to other cheaper drones I have owned. Was also interest in the Vidio aspect not allot but thought it would be nice.

 

[draxler_17]

I bought mine coz I want to have album of aerial photographs but mavic is more enjoyable on taking videos so... my dream fulfilled and gave much more.

 

[Bergumbira]

I'm a life long photograph and video producer for small and middle range business . I use to rent and board helicopters at mad price for customers and not get really great shooting (vibrations). When drones started being affordable few years ago they was way too big, way to short in flight duration and pain in the *** to fly while shooting photo and video.
The Mavic pro was a game changer: price, size, capabilities, video stability, automatism... I'm not sending it out of sight, nor racing. Perfectly circling automatically a place it's one of the main feature for me. It's my first drone ever.

 

[Peregrine]

Bought mine so that I could get smooth footage in small, confined spaces, more than lofty, aerial shots. I like to sneak it through the branches of trees, and follow stream beds etc. Lots of slow ground skimming too. It's almost like having my very own Dragonfly, with 4k hawk's eyes

 

[tjshelton]

I got mine because the camera you have with you is always better than the one you left at home...

 

[Fearless Flight]

I fly RC planes and heli's but when we decided to build a house a drone was a no brainer. I have taken tons of cool shots as construction moved along.

 

[WEOTN]

All the above!

Decades ago I was excited to become a pilot, until the cost of airplane rental/ownership in the cold light of my income set me straight. So I got into hang gliders, then I met a mountain in Utah. All that broke was my leading edge and reckless spirit. Never go flying in the mountains when you live in the flat lands!

I got married and had other thoughts until my wife passed away and I'm left to recreate my life as a bachelor again (no kids). Motorcycles were easy, bug the flying bug bit me again hard when I saw videos from rcexplorer.se. Been building one ever since but haven't gotten around to finishing it, as each time I set down to it, I see the tech has advanced. I liked the DJI Phantom, but it was beyond my budget.

My finances have improved, and I'm getting a really nice tax return so thought about FPV gear. Then a colleague tells me he bought a Phantom 3 on Amazon for ~$500! Huh? I just had to go look, and got quickly hooked on the idea of a P4P, and was about to click on the buy button, when I figured I should see what else they have since it's advanced so much in the last 6 years.

Da ta Dah! Mavic!!! Holeeeee, I can carry that on my motorcycle and get some great shots up on Lake Superior like I've always wanted! It's $500 less than the P4P so any extras would already be 'paid for' sort of. The fact that many Phantom pilots haven't flown their Phantoms since getting the Mavic was telling. The fact that the videos shared by Mavic pilots just blew me away, and that it's so sophisticated even a rank beginner stands a chance of flying it safely while learning, pretty well clenched it.

Been flying for only a week and I'm already feeling like a sky junky. Is that possible? Chores at home are stacking up while I look at Google Earth for nice places to fly. Yesterday I called the local airports to let them know I'd be flying in my yard, and that was surprisingly easy! They appreciated the heads up, when I feared objections. It just gets better as I learn.

So my expensive toy is more like a lifelong dream fulfilled, and as I compile more "footage" (archaic term from when actual film was used in movie cameras that came in 25' rolls, required a dark room to flip it over to use the second half even, then weeks of waiting for the processor to return your flim to see if you did it right...) I'll be brushing up on editing tools long forgotten.

As all these facets grow to fill and fulfill my life, it will become more of a lifestyle and less a hobby toy. It's all for the joy of living in this beautiful world we occupy.