Still shot drone

[Uberbeast125]

Hey guys I'm new to the drone world and doing some research for my company.

I am looking for pretty minimal function, but not sure which direction to look in.

I want to photograph a jobsite from birds eye view. Ideally I would stand in the middle of the job site, send a drone up 200', snap a picture, and bring it right back down.

The thing I am most interested in is high still photo quality. Something that I'd be able to zoom way into and still have some clarity.

If the picture was as decent as a Samsung Galaxy S7 I could make it work. Ideally it would be a bit better.

Can anyone recommend a direction to go in?

Price range is ideally under $1000, but I could go higher. Having a case or being compact would be another bonus. The maveric seems like a sweet setup, I'm just not sure that the camera still quality would be as good as I need it.

 

[flockshot]

Phantom 4 Pro with 20mp equivalent is the next step up. Current new model $1499

 

[Philsmith76]

Hello. I’d recommend the phantom 4 pro.

Since is related to a company will you be the pilot in command? Do you happen to have your 107 certificate?

 

[LarBear360]

Hey guys I'm new to the drone world and doing some research for my company.

I am looking for pretty minimal function, but not sure which direction to look in.
certification
I want to photograph a jobsite from birds eye view. Ideally I would stand in the middle of the job site, send a drone up 200', snap a picture, and bring it right back down.

The thing I am most interested in is high still photo quality. Something that I'd be able to zoom way into and still have some clarity.

If the picture was as decent as a Samsung Galaxy S7 I could make it work. Ideally it would be a bit better.

Can anyone recommend a direction to go in?

Price range is ideally under $1000, but I could go higher. Having a case or being compact would be another bonus. The maveric seems like a sweet setup, I'm just not sure that the camera still quality would be as good as I need it.

A Phantom 3 Pro would work. $599 refurbished if you can find one.

Technically, you would need an FAA Part 107 to pull this off. Consider hiring a professionally licensed pilot if you're only looking for a few shots.

 

[$gambino$]

Hello. I’d recommend the phantom 4 pro.

Since is related to a company will you be the pilot in command? Do you happen to have your 107 certificate?

Why are u asking op questions irrelevant to his question? I wouldnt even answer those questions.why do u guys get into the 107 stuff so much and try to pry info out of people asking totally different questions. If He wanted to ask about 107 etc he would....to the op p4p would be a good choice

 

[Uberbeast125]

Hello. I’d recommend the phantom 4 pro.

Since is related to a company will you be the pilot in command? Do you happen to have your 107 certificate?

I do not, but if The company does follow through with the purchase I'd be the piliot.

I would be getting the certs necessary and registering with the faa

 

[Uberbeast125]

A Phantom 3 Pro would work. $599 refurbished if you can find one.

Technically, you would need an FAA Part 107 to pull this off. Consider hiring a professionally licensed pilot if you're only looking for a few shots.

Thanks for a good alternative option.

I see that many drones are the drone, gimbal, camera package. Would it even be worth it to try to buy a drone with a high def camera separately?

 

[Paul2660]

Anything like that will cost into the 5K range, as the Inspire and camera and gimbal are sold sep. You could of course find a used Inspire 1.

As for stills, I would look at the P4 Advanced (based on price point) as the camera in the P4 is 20MP and has quite a amount of Dynamic range. You can capture very nice stills with this unit, stability is excellent and you can control both the shutter and aperture. The P4 also offers a mechanical shutter, over ES and again for anything moving this is a better option as the effect of rolling shutter will show up not only on video but stills (when your subject is moving or something in the subject is moving)

I would also look to the Mavic PP, 12MP camera which only offers shutter speed control and only an ES shutter. But it can still take impressive stills and is the only Drone I know of that offers Portrait orientation (by moving the sensor inside the gimbal, not rotating the gimbal). For many applications, I prefer this orientation (panos for example).

Both platforms have OK jpg engines, the one on the Mavic has excessive noise reduction issues, so lower light images will tend to have too much applied. However I only shoot raw with both and no problems.

Paul Caldwell

 

[LarBear360]

Thanks for a good alternative option.

I see that many drones are the drone, gimbal, camera package. Would it even be worth it to try to buy a drone with a high def camera separately?

The cameras on these Phantoms are impressive, not to mention the settings can be manually controlled on the ground.

There are rigs out there that let you bring your own camera, however, now you're getting well into the thousands in terms of price.

 

[Uberbeast125]

Thanks guys, those last couple post were exactly what I needed to hear.

 

[Uberbeast125]

Hello. I’d recommend the phantom 4 pro.

Since is related to a company will you be the pilot in command? Do you happen to have your 107 certificate?

Question about the 107 cert now. If the drone was company owned but using it internally is the 107 required?

I.e. we are not using in to to make money or as a service to another company. We are just using to to take shots of our buildings for our own magazine.

 

[Philsmith76]

Hi. It’s best to refer to the FAA faq Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Frequently Asked Questions for your answer. The company could own the aircraft but the pilot in command would need to either be operating as hobby or 107.

They define hobby as “pursuit outside one's regular occupation engaged in especially for relaxation” so the pilot in command would need to determine that.

 

[barefootbeachcombing]

Question about the 107 cert now. If the drone was company owned but using it internally is the 107 required?

I.e. we are not using in to to make money or as a service to another company. We are just using to to take shots of our buildings for our own magazine.

Yes. It would still require a Part 107 certification since this type of work would not be classified as hobby or recreation use.

 

[DOC 1500]

It's called furtherance of business.