Helicopters/drones for filming

spencurai

Vanilla Gorilla
Location
WVC,UT
Get the car charger(it charges faster than the wall charger and is more useful) and a couple extra batteries...just throw it in a backpack, that's what it's meant for. Make sure you use the gimbal lock and clear dome for travel to protect the camera and gimbal....oh and read the manual...download the PDF from DJI and learn it back to front.
 

Greg

Make RME Rockcrawling Again!
Admin
The Mavic is awesome, so much further ahead than most other options out there IMO. I would dare say the Mavic is 10x better than the Phantom 2 that I started with, the technology, app, remote, and performance of the Mavic are simply incredible. I love mine!
 

sixstringsteve

Well-Known Member
Location
UT
My wife have me the go ahead to get a drone. I'm 99% sure it'll be the mavic. When did the mavic come out? Is there a new model right around the corner thatll be worth waiting a month or two for?
 

Jesser04

Well-Known Member
Location
Kaysville Utah
Come to Russ's and you can fly a couple if you'd like. I don't think they have anything coming out I had the same concerns. There isn't much I'd like to change on the mavic besides longer battery granted I've had it 24hrs. Once I flew a mavic then a phantom style drone there was no questions for me. I do wish there was laser tag flight mode it's would be pretty cool and risky to play games with other mavic capture the flag time stuff. The number one complaint is dji's customer service as I'm sure you've read I purchased the refresh and have come to terms that if something happens I won't have it for a month.
 

Jesser04

Well-Known Member
Location
Kaysville Utah
Refresh is an dji in house insurance similar to AppleCare you can get it fixed/replaced twice in 12 months for 79 the 129 dollars. From what I've read it'll take 4-6 weeks door to door.
 

sixstringsteve

Well-Known Member
Location
UT
Hm... we may need to schedule a ride to make that possible. :)

I've flown Russ' drone once. I'm really impressed with it. We had a mavic in our group with us on our paddling trip this past weekend and I loved the size. If autel could make a drone to compete with the mavic's size, i'd grab it in a heartbeat.
 

Greg

Make RME Rockcrawling Again!
Admin
My wife have me the go ahead to get a drone. I'm 99% sure it'll be the mavic. When did the mavic come out? Is there a new model right around the corner thatll be worth waiting a month or two for?

It came out last Fall, there is discussion about another model coming from DJI called the Spark that is 1/2 the size of the current Mavic but it sounds like it won't have as many features, but it's all speculation right now... but I have no idea what the timeline is for that, but I wouldn't wait for it. - https://www.theverge.com/2017/4/6/15214206/dji-spark-drone-leak-mavic-pro

I could see DJI releasing a Mavic 2 that has even more collision-avoidance sensors (current Mavic has them front & bottom), plus I'd imagine they'd improve other things like the camera, gimbal, etc, etc. But that's just my opinion. ;) I think you'd be incredibly happy with the Mavic, It's an amazing piece of equipment and at the leading edge of flying camera tech.

The portability of the Mavic is what sold me, with my Phantom 2 I had to pack around a massive box, the remote was huge, etc, etc. It wasn't easy to travel with at all. If you get the Mavic Fly More package you get 3 batteries, car charger Spence mentioned and a very nice leather carrying bag. All packed away, it's not bigger than a traditional camera bag which is great for portability!
 

sixstringsteve

Well-Known Member
Location
UT
That spark looks great for tossing in your camelbak on a quick ride. Since I'm more often the subject AND the videographer, simplicity of use would make the most sense for me. If it would work in follow me mode well, I'd snag it. I mainly want it for bike rides and hikes.

How many mbps does the mavic record at? Are you guys happy with the footage without having to grade in post?
 

Greg

Make RME Rockcrawling Again!
Admin
That spark looks great for tossing in your camelbak on a quick ride. Since I'm more often the subject AND the videographer, simplicity of use would make the most sense for me. If it would work in follow me mode well, I'd snag it. I mainly want it for bike rides and hikes.

How many mbps does the mavic record at? Are you guys happy with the footage without having to grade in post?

I wouldn't hold your breath for the Spark.... could be a year or more before it's released. And being so small, I don't know if it will be as stable as the Mavic. Who knows if it will have all the tech the Mavic has. Way too many things up in the air with it, IMO.

4K is 60 MBPS and 2.7K is 45 MBPS.

The footage quality is amazing, even with the videos that I'm uploading to YouTube and they get reduced they still look great, IMO.
 

sixstringsteve

Well-Known Member
Location
UT
Very interesting. If the spark had foldable legs, it would make the decision a lot more difficult. Even I would like more than 15 min flight time, for my uses, it'd be fine. The drone world is going to be incredible in 5 years.
 

Jesser04

Well-Known Member
Location
Kaysville Utah
Very interesting. If the spark had foldable legs, it would make the decision a lot more difficult. Even I would like more than 15 min flight time, for my uses, it'd be fine. The drone world is going to be incredible in 5 years.

If your using it for your YouTube channel I don't think 15 minutes flight time is enough. You'll spend 5 minutes in the air adjusting your camera getting ready to film.
 

sixstringsteve

Well-Known Member
Location
UT
Yeah, but I'll have a handful of batteries to swap out. Small size trumps a lot of features for me. I envision going on a bike and using the drone to get 3 or 4 shots over a couple hours.
 

Greg

Make RME Rockcrawling Again!
Admin
Yeah, but I'll have a handful of batteries to swap out. Small size trumps a lot of features for me. I envision going on a bike and using the drone to get 3 or 4 shots over a couple hours.

No reason you can't pack the Mavic with one battery in it, plus the controller and your phone to fly it all.
 

sixstringsteve

Well-Known Member
Location
UT
right. But if the spark had folding legs (which it won't), it'd probably be the better fit for me. Since it doesn't, the Mavic seems like the obvious choice.
 
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