p.3 #1 · Official drone photography IMAGE thread. (Not primarily for discussion, see post #1)
Mathieu18 wrote:
How to trigger the GR? Also does the lens have stabilization? Took me till 1/800 to get steady shots with the 16mm, but the 16-50!did 1/250 consistently and even a good ratio at 1/60 or so.
As to that gadget, the camera is already hanging too much weight too low. Others are already searching how to keep it as high as possible... wouldn't want to dangle it more than necessary.
Matt,
Triggering would be by the time lapse function.
There's no stabilization, so yes, that could be an issue...but with balanced props, etc, perhaps not as much as it might be...esp in bright daylight with a higher shutter speed (the 2.8 lens helps with that)...need to investigate.
But, the GR can't be beat in sensor size vs weight.
Anyway, it's a hobby...fun to play around with it.
I'm still playing with it but at a basic level, I use a GoPro 1/4-20 mount, flip the camera over (using a NEX-5T currently A5000 & A5100 are same weight though) and plug in the HDMI out. I use Sony Time Lapse to take a photo every 6 seconds, 120-150 total shots in RAW+JPEG. I'd recommend the 16-50. I tried the 16mm pancake, but OSS is very helpful dealing with the craft's movements and vibration. I'm still working on a mount to flip the camera normal way up, but been having vibration issues. The other guy David has some thoughts at the end on 3DR Pilots, but haven't gotten to review yet....Show more →
You've piqued my interest in the 3DR Solo... I had been eyeing the Mavic Pro, mostly for stills shooting, but if I can put my RX100 II to use on one of these, all the better! These things seem like a pretty good first entry point for a drone at $250ish now. I'm assuming you are mounting the camera without the gimbal attachment (seems like that is just for GoPro integration/stabilization)? What do you think so far--worth it, or just go for a DJI?
p.3 #5 · Official drone photography IMAGE thread. (Not primarily for discussion, see post #1)
grahamgibson wrote:
You've piqued my interest in the 3DR Solo... I had been eyeing the Mavic Pro, mostly for stills shooting, but if I can put my RX100 II to use on one of these, all the better! These things seem like a pretty good first entry point for a drone at $250ish now. I'm assuming you are mounting the camera without the gimbal attachment (seems like that is just for GoPro integration/stabilization)? What do you think so far--worth it, or just go for a DJI?
I have a lightly used Solo that I want to sell . . .
p.3 #6 · Official drone photography IMAGE thread. (Not primarily for discussion, see post #1)
Haha, thank you, I will keep that in mind if I decide to pull the trigger. Why are you selling? Upgrade to something else?
Unfortunately, I noticed that my RX100 II can't install the time-lapse app though, so I'm not sure how I'd be able to trigger the shutter with this camera.
p.3 #7 · Official drone photography IMAGE thread. (Not primarily for discussion, see post #1)
What do you think so far--worth it, or just go for a DJI?
Graham,
If you really want to use a larger-sensored camera, Solo would be the way to go.
The Solo is a very capable drone. No one can beat the Solo's "smart shots", which let you define keyframes, that the Solo then flies very smoothly. But that's for video.
The reason the Solo is inexpensive, is that 3DR has abandoned the consumer drone space to pursue (with the Solo), the commercial drone space. That resulted in huge discounts on the Solo.
So it's not a "starter" drone.
Anyway, the Solo is the answer for a bigger-sensored camera.
That said, the DJI products are very polished... Very user-friendly, but it's very difficult to mount another camera.
p.3 #8 · Official drone photography IMAGE thread. (Not primarily for discussion, see post #1)
Graham,
I have an RX100 V1... And yeah, the V1 and V2 don't do time-lapse (cause of course it's not built in, and only the v3 and higher can do the optional Sony apps).
It SUCKS that Sony didn't put a time lapse function into the V1 and V2... It's just so Sony to do something like that.
Anyway, the only method I've seen is to use a rubber-band-type setup to hold the shutter down.
--
Bill
grahamgibson wrote:
Haha, thank you, I will keep that in mind if I decide to pull the trigger. Why are you selling? Upgrade to something else?
Unfortunately, I noticed that my RX100 II can't install the time-lapse app though, so I'm not sure how I'd be able to trigger the shutter with this camera.
p.3 #9 · Official drone photography IMAGE thread. (Not primarily for discussion, see post #1)
Thanks, yeah I was thinking about the ol' rubber band trick. I don't have my RX100 II in front of me to test, but a little googling suggested that this results in about 1 shot every 2 seconds (RAW+JPG) once the buffer is full. May depend on the card used. So that's 600 shots in 20 minutes of flying, which would about fill up a 16GB card. I suppose video should work fine as well.
p.3 #10 · Official drone photography IMAGE thread. (Not primarily for discussion, see post #1)
Nope... without a gimbal the video will be... terrible. Also not level, you don't realize how much the drones fight the wind and load till you look at a fixed camera.
With stills I'm always using pitch and roll to level horizon and frame shots. With the heavier load I'm getting about 18 minutes as well.
grahamgibson wrote:
Thanks, yeah I was thinking about the ol' rubber band trick. I don't have my RX100 II in front of me to test, but a little googling suggested that this results in about 1 shot every 2 seconds (RAW+JPG) once the buffer is full. May depend on the card used. So that's 600 shots in 20 minutes of flying, which would about fill up a 16GB card. I suppose video should work fine as well.
p.3 #12 · Official drone photography IMAGE thread. (Not primarily for discussion, see post #1)
wsalopek wrote:
Howdy fellow FM-ers...
I have been a general aviation pilot for a few decades, and have very much enjoyed the view from up there. But taking pictures thru the usually scratched windows didn't work well.
On commercial aviation flights, I typically have a camera nearby and my nose sometimes pressed up against the window. Yeah, I'm a lost cause.
Anyway...
When "drones" came along a few years ago, I saw a way for my flying and photography passions to merge, without having to hire a helicopter for $1000 an hour. My love of flying and photography could come together beautifully in one fairly small package that can be put in a backpack and taken pretty much anywhere.
So...
I decided to start this "Official Drone Photography" thread. I'll post a couple images here right now, and invite others to do the same.
Rules? Well, let just say it should be a shot that practically speaking, couldn't be taken with anything other than a drone. But let's just have fun with this. Try to give fellow FM-ers who have seen those "buzzy toys" flying around, a taste of what they can do photographically, in the spirit of FM.
The drones I use are a home-made hexacopter (6 blades), as well as a DJI Phantom 3 Professional, as well as a 3DR Solo. The Hexacopter and the Solo use a GoPro, which in my case, is a Hero 4 Silver.
As decent as these small sensors can be sometimes, esp for posting to the web, and while of course subject/lighting/composition are king, I'd like to start flying with a larger sensor at some point...an RX100, GM1/5, or even better, a Ricoh GR2...those cameras chosen for a combination of image quality vs size/weight, so I don't have to build or buy a larger drone, which wouldn't be nearly as easy to travel with as the Phantom and Solo.
p.3 #13 · Official drone photography IMAGE thread. (Not primarily for discussion, see post #1)
grahamgibson wrote:
Gotcha, yeah I guess even camera stabilization can't adjust for so much wobble. Is it possible to mount a non-GoPro on the gimbal and have it work?
Not to my knowledge. The gimbal is very GoPro specific, doesn't even work with the GoPro 5's. Plus weight is a big issue. I happen to have a 4 Black and can live with that for video while using the NEX-5T or A5100 eventually for stills.
p.3 #14 · Official drone photography IMAGE thread. (Not primarily for discussion, see post #1)
grahamgibson wrote:
Gotcha, yeah I guess even camera stabilization can't adjust for so much wobble. Is it possible to mount a non-GoPro on the gimbal and have it work?
Graham,
No, it's not really possible to mount a non-Gopro camera on the Solo's gimbal...I mean, not without a lot of tinkering, and even then I'd say very difficult.
I really think that the Solo can be used for stills with RX100 and NO gimbal...yes the framing will be more difficult, etc, but if using a wide angle setting, of say, 28mm equivalent on the RX100, framing wouldn't be super critical.
You'd probably be better off with an RX100-specific gimbal, mounted to a completely different drone. Here's an example of an RX100 gimbal:
p.3 #17 · Official drone photography IMAGE thread. (Not primarily for discussion, see post #1)
k-h.a.w wrote:
Excellent Bob. The Mavic Pro is like magic. .
K-H.
Thanks! My favorite things about this drone is its portability. Once the 'wings' are folded, it easily pack into a backpack with other gear. Now I can carry a camera and drone together when I travel.
p.3 #18 · Official drone photography IMAGE thread. (Not primarily for discussion, see post #1)
Beautiful Bob. I especially like the "low" shot of the boat houses.
Bill
rji2goleez wrote:
A few this morning from the Mavic Pro. The dynamic range of this lens is no where near my Sony but it sure is nice getting a different perspective!
Yeah, I'm a lost cause. 
