To reveal the beauty of our planet from high above, drones are used for their ability to capture stunning aerial photography. To be fair, aerial photography has been around since the mid-19th century when the cameras were launched into the sky using kites, rockets and balloons.
Due to the introduction of drones in the 21st century, the process has become so much easier and straightforward. The hobby of aerial photography has been exploding in popularity all over the world, and you definitely need to know everything about it.
The Secret Of Drones And Aerial Photography
#1. The Technology
Technology is the sole reason why drones have come too close to being the ideal devices to do aerial photography with.
- A regular DJI Drone comes with extensive controls, either auto or full manual. There will be an option to capture footage or photos in RAW format, which is very useful for tweaking later on with photography applications. Drone cameras nowadays also come with a time-lapse feature that helps to capture the ideal picture.
- You can connect your smartphone to your drone’s handheld unit for remote control. This will help you see the drone footage and therefore click the best pictures at any given moment. You can also make adjustments on-the-fly as well.
- The stability of drones is not an issue, as it can hover around one spot with increased security like an aerial tripod. You can take your hands off the remote control, and it will stay at the same place as you had put it.
- Drones come with failsafe flight options, which allows the drone to go back home in case it is running low on battery. When the drone detects low battery, it will automatically go to Return-To-Home (RTH) mode, ensuring that you know when to click photos and when to stop. Even if the connection between the remote control and the drone system is lost, it will also come back to its home point.
So, in case you lose sight of your drone in the sky, you can always be sure that it will come back with your aerial photographs, safe and sound.
#2. The Features
Nowadays, drones come with a host of features, that make all the more easy to click your choice of brilliant photos.
- Smart Mode – This mode is made or beginners, who have just bought their new drone and thus are learning to fly it. This innovation is introduced so that newcomers can get the most out of their aerial photography.
- For example, during a windy day, your drone will be using a stabilisation feature that will help you to click blur-free videos and photos. The photos will not look blurry, as if there has been an earthquake or any other natural calamities.
- Tracking Mode – These drones come with their respective ‘follow-me’ options, which will always allow the drone to keep you in the picture frame. This is activated with the use of your smartphone’s GPS. This option is flawless for those who want to click aerial photos of themselves.
- Geofence – It is a feature that will restrict your drone to a certain altitude. It will act as an invisible jail and can help you take constant footage or photos of a particular area, without any alterations in height.
#3. Support For Aftermarket Cameras
There are two common types of drones nowadays – either having an onboard camera, or you can attach one for yourself. The built-in cameras of drones might not have the exact picture or video resolution that you’re looking for. Furthermore, the built-in camera might not be powerful enough as well.
Times like these are when you can attach your mirrorless or DSLR cameras and even ones from GoPro too. This will aid you in capturing brilliant photos or videos without any loss in quality. You can also be able to tweak the image quality as you’d do with your regular camera usage.
While doing aerial photography, you also have to be aware of the weather conditions and take into account the wind forecasts too. Ensure that you find calm weather conditions, before attempting to shoot photos or videos. Aerial photography is all about the lighting condition of the landscape and surroundings.