Another drone option

svp

Well-known member
I gave up on drones. I still use mine on occasion when I think I can get away with it (mostly in rural areas) but I refuse to register it and the insurance is insane, not to mention the restrictions and requirements to perform a LEGAL flight to shoot something IF you have the waiver and are a licensed pilot, which you have to be to get the waiver to fly legal for commercial use. 500 foot rule and filing a flight plan 72 hours before a shoot. Plus if you are anywhere near a road you need to get a permit and have the road shut down during flight. All of the FAA rules are asinine. The FAA also gave police the power to stop ANYONE flying a drone, including the small toys, and asked to see their registration. Its still unclear what enforcement powers police have if they find someone flying an unregistered drone. I don't think they have the authority to arrest and confiscate the drone. I think they just make a report and file it with the FAA. That probably leads to a fine which would get thrown out if challenged in court. Anyway, the government found a sure fire way to shut down most drones in the U.S. since most people don't have the will or money to fight the FAA in court. Like I said, I'll fly from time to time on productions I'm doing script to screen but I no longer offer aerial video as a service anymore.
 

Focused

Well-known member
I wonder how many people will go under a structure like a bridge and the lily will just crash into it while "following"?
 

Alaska cameradude

Well-known member
Something similar....but much better (and more expensive) is
the 3DR Solo. Similar in that it can perform 'follow me' shots.
It also has a bunch of other 'smart' shots like 'orbit' (where you
set it to orbit the object of your choice), 'selfie' (where you set it
to start on a closeup of whatever object you want, and then to fly
backwards and upwards, to reveal said object) or 'cablecam' (where
you set virtual 'cable endpoints' in the sky and it flies as if it was on a
cable.) But the 3DR Solo quadcopter actually allows you to control it
if you wish as well. Of course you pay a lot more for this....and most
people will just go with the DJI stuff as they are beginning to introduce
this type of functionality as well. Probably everyone will have it before long.

As for Lily....I dunno. A quadcopter that doesn't allow you to control it....has
an automated 'follow me' function, and no collision avoidance built in?
What could POSSIBLY go wrong there??
 
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