Drone Cameras that are passing QC?

[Steve Tucker 29]

I have a Yuneec Typhoon H which uses the less than perfect CGO3+ camera.

I have submitted a few images to Alamy, all which have passed QC

[djmorgan 7]

I fly a drone - UAV the camera fitted is a GoPro, commercial drones can actually take a DSLR as their method of capture, not cheap but effective and the software and gimbles today are very sophisticated for keeping a camera steady in flight.

 

As to the off the rack phantoms and others not so keen on them, better to spend the money and get training and a licence to operate and put on proper image taking device into the air.

 

Video here of mine

Edited April 26, 2017 by djmorgan

[Steve Valentia 164]

I primarily shoot aerial photos and I can tell you this. Alamy is essentially not accepting photos from the Zenmuse X5. I've submitted photos taken with the stock DJI 15 mm lens as well as photos shot with an m.zuiko 17 mm and 60 mm. The photos always come back rejected with the explanation of "digital camera not suitable for alamy". Its been a bit frustrating. Especially because I contacted contributor relations to ask for clarification on drone photos they were accepting and they replied saying "We don’t review cameras, we make our decision by looking at the images we’ve seen from them". An answer that seems to contradict the rejection explanations I get. 

 

That's very helpful, thank you. I will check with member services, before I buy the drone, but it sounds as if I may be wasting my money. Much appreciated.

[Colblimp 1,373]

 

do you have to have insurance to fly a drone?

 

 

Not in Ireland unless you fly commercially and outside of the restrictions, then you need Public Liability Insurance.

Deleted

Edited April 27, 2017 by Colblimp

[fringelife 0]

I have a Yuneec Typhoon H which uses the less than perfect CGO3+ camera.

I have submitted a few images to Alamy, all which have passed QC

Well that actually sounds like good news to me because it gives me hope. Maybe my aerial photos just aren't up to Alamy's QC standards then. I just don't know why they would reply with "digital camera not suitable for alamy".   

[David_Buzzard 16]

I've seen some pretty nice photos from the DJI Phantom 4, but it is a pretty small sized sensor, so who knows.

 

One thing to keep in mind is that governments are bringing in new regulations in a big hurry.  I was looking at buying a drone, and then Canada announced a new set of very strict regulations.  Basically, you can't fly a drone within 9 km's of any place where aircraft land or take off, which with the amount of helicopter traffic in Canada, is most of the country you can access without a 4x4.  

 

I've heard a few guys say they're just going to sneak it, but recently a photographer got fined $5,000 CAN for filming from a drone without the proper permits, and his client got fined $25,000 CAN.  

 

Incidentally, there's now a big surge of used drones for sale around here.

[Justin Case 50]

I have used a Phantom 4 for about 4 months last winter.
I must specify that my main interest is video.
I stopped using it a few months ago because I found the quality of the image to be very, very poor, totally unacceptable.
So I decided to go for the new version, the Phantom 4 pro.
The new model is certainly a very, very big step ahead from the previous one, certainly much better and almost acceptable for footage in good lighting conditions. I would avoid to shoot anything contre jour: you get horrible flair, total lack of contrast and crazy chromatic aberrations.
I did upload a few selected images taken with the previous model to Alamy, they all got accepted, but I only dared to submit the very best ones.
These birds have sensational stability and flight capability, but the camera is still very weak: the P4 camera was a total joke; the one in the P4Pro is much better, but still just better than a mobile phone. Nothing to do with a good DRSL.
Hope this helps

[Steve Valentia 164]

The new model is certainly a very, very big step ahead from the previous one, certainly much better and almost acceptable for footage in good lighting conditions.

I did upload a few selected images taken with the previous model to Alamy, they all got accepted, but I only dared to submit the very best ones.

 

 

Thanks for that. Did you submit any still images from the P4 Pro to Alamy, and if so did they pass? if not, have you done any side by side comparisons of stills from both cameras?

[RedSnapper 1,045]

Phantom4Pro still image

https://fineartamerica.com/featured/aberystwyth-panorama-keith-morris.html

[wiskerke 2,698]

Phantom4Pro still image

 

https://fineartamerica.com/featured/aberystwyth-panorama-keith-morris.html

 

Brilliant!

It's a stitched image I presume?

 

wim

[Autumn Sky 164]

Few things are more annoying than drones when you are hiking and enjoying nature.   It is one of great evils of modern "technology".  Please refrain from using it in non-urban areas or in the mountains.

[RedSnapper 1,045]

two frames

 

km

[Steve Valentia 164]

Few things are more annoying than drones when you are hiking and enjoying nature.   It is one of great evils of modern "technology".  Please refrain from using it in non-urban areas or in the mountains.

 

Is it more annoying than having people tell you what you can do in your own part of the world in a free country?

[Justin Case 50]

 

The new model is certainly a very, very big step ahead from the previous one, certainly much better and almost acceptable for footage in good lighting conditions.

I did upload a few selected images taken with the previous model to Alamy, they all got accepted, but I only dared to submit the very best ones.

 

 

Thanks for that. Did you submit any still images from the P4 Pro to Alamy, and if so did they pass? if not, have you done any side by side comparisons of stills from both cameras?

 

I have not submitted to Alamy with the new P4Pro as yet.

I am still doing the first tests.

The 4pro has the possibility to shoot photo while filming, very interesting for me.

From the first few tests photo quality seems to be better than the P4: a bit more detail on the shadows, slightly wider dynamic range and less fringing. But still far below the quality of a good DSRL with good lenses.

After all the sensor and the lens are really tiny.

The best improvement is for video, as footage is much less compressed than in the P4.

I will update when I will start submitting to Alamy

[wiskerke 2,698]

two frames

 

km

 

Wow that's a really good quality!

 

wim

[har123 0]

On 6/4/2017 at 15:43, Autumn Sky said:

Few things are more annoying than drones when you are hiking and enjoying nature.   It is one of great evils of modern "technology".  Please refrain from using it in non-urban areas or in the mountains.

I completely agreed with you, it must be rectified. I got a website called  http://www.fitdrones.com/ where new programs are available for optimizing drones.

[Steve Valentia 164]

Since I started this thread, I have bought 2 drones, but only because I crashed the first one within 6 weeks. I reversed it into a cliff off the Island where I live, on the west coast of County Kerry and didn't even see it crash into the Atlantic, as I was too busy watching the screen. Lesson: Take someone with yo, carrying binoculars, to "spot" the drone and make sure you're not heading into obstacles (mine only had sensors at the front).

I got a discount on the 2nd one, same model - DJI Phantom 4 Advanced - so decided to buy it and fly more carefully. It will take longer to recover the outlay, given the crash, but I am selling images now and passing QC regularly. When used carefully, the camera on the Phantom 4 Advanced has excellent image quality.

 

Here are 2 images uploaded in the last couple of weeks, both of which have made it into the local and national Irish media.

 

 

 

Edited October 24, 2017 by Steve Valentia

[Patrick Cooper 5]

On 4/24/2017 at 12:19, Betty LaRue said:

I've been interested in drones for several years, but would absolutely hate to crash one. Especially if it broke the camera.

I don't know if I could handle the stress of it. I have enough of that already.

Betty

 

For this reason, I recommend people starting off with the cheaper 'toy-grade' quadcopters. These quads are definitely more challenging to fly but they will make you better pilots in the long run. They're good at developing manual flying skills and sharpening your reflexes. They're also generally very light weight so you can crash them over and over again with little worry about damage and learn from your mistakes. Then by the time you upgrade to a more expensive hobby-grade quadcopter, you'll have the necessary skills to get you out of tricky situations and regain control if necessary. Ive been flying these things for over three years and I'm glad I started with the cheaper, manual models. 

 

Quads like the Phantoms may be extremely sophisticated with regards to their autonomous capabilities but like all multirotors, they're not 100% reliable. Things can fail on occasion - like the built-in GPS. 

 

By the way, great photos, Steve. I especially like the last one with the birds eye view. 

Edited October 24, 2017 by Patrick Cooper

[Steve Valentia 164]

16 minutes ago, Patrick Cooper said:

Quads like the Phantoms may be extremely sophisticated with regards to their autonomous capabilities but like all multirotors, they're not 100% reliable. Things can fail on occasion - like the built-in GPS. 

 

By the way, great photos, Steve. I especially like the last one with the birds eye view. 

 

Thank you very much Patrick. The "trick" with the bird's-eye-view shot was to fly away from the ferry and wait for it to sail into the frame. Not as easy as it sounds (especially for a newbie pilot, like me).

I agree with you that buying a cheap (maybe a £50) drone and learning to fly it without GPS or any other safety devices is a good idea. It's not what I did, and I literally, paid the price. I would say to @Betty LaRue that worrying about losing your drone is pointless if you want to fly one.

 

Many of them crash and many get lost, it's a hazard of the hobby. That said, I heard of a photographer recently who lost a Canon 5D III, with a valuable lens and the tripod they were attached to, when the whole lot fell off a cliff. Gear breaks. Get over it and buy some more; is my philosophy.

Edited October 24, 2017 by Steve Valentia
correcting typos

[mickfly 397]

Great pictures Steve.
What are the rules and restrictions like in Eire?
In the UK and other places, it is illegal to sell images taken with a drone unless you have the CAA licence,  the cost of which put me off using a drone for commercial use.

[Steve Valentia 164]

9 minutes ago, mickfly said:

Great pictures Steve.
What are the rules and restrictions like in Eire?
In the UK and other places, it is illegal to sell images taken with a drone unless you have the CAA licence,  the cost of which put me off using a drone for commercial use.

 

I was reliably informed, by a drone school in Dublin, that there is no such thing as a "commercial license" in Ireland (as yet). The IAA requires you to register your drone(s) and then fly within certain "limitations" and boundaries, unless you have permission from them to go outside of those restrictions, for specific flights.

In order to get permission to fly outside of the restrictions, you need to pass a flying course, and submit a flight log to the IAA. If you fly within the restrictions, then there are no blocks to selling those images.

PDF download of IAA regulations

PDF of IAA FAQ's (covers commercial flying)

 

Edited October 24, 2017 by Steve Valentia

[Patrick Cooper 5]

9 minutes ago, Steve Valentia said:

 

Many of them crash and many get lost, it's a hazard of the hobby. That said, I heard of a photographer recently who lost a Canon 5D III, with a valuable lens and the tripod they were attached to, when the whole lot fell off a cliff. Gear breaks. Get over it and buy some more; is my philosophy.

 

Oh yea very true. Ive lost three quadcopters to flyaways. Ouch - with regards to the photographer who lost the camera gear over a cliff. That reminds me of another guy who was using his camera mounted on top of a super long, flexible pole to get a shot from the top of a cliff. He had been using this pole reliably over a long period of time but unfortunately on this occasion, the pole snapped and a section of it and the camera went down the cliff. 

[mickfly 397]

Thanks for the info Steve, it makes much more common sense reading than the UK versions .

 

I had a drone imported from the USA for me by a friend up north, paid for, gimble sorted, camera sorted, but I had to go and collect it and have some flight lessons from him as he had already had a fly away with a phantom and he didn't want me to crash or lose the aircraft.
It was a 3dr Solo, but, long story short, I decided the restrictions in the UK (and Spain) were too severe for me, and I didn't want to spend a massive amount on the CAA qualification which would allow me to make sales.
Maybe I'll re-assess in the future.