A problem today is most photography events don’t benefit from a drone perspective. People may be unaware of how to set up drone events. The “horseless carriage” of today has negative perceptions causing drones to be banned in national parks. But city or county parks may welcome the publicity of their beautiful location. There are laws for safety, harassment, or invasion of privacy. It has only a wide-angle view, and most people find my drone amusing. Some may think drone photography costs thousands of dollars, even though it is quite cost-effective.
What happens is that we have more boring, mediocre photos. I know, because in my photojournalism training, I learned to take pictures from low down and high up perspectives and to vary the shots in order to become more interesting, and even breath taking.
One experience recently was a real estate property in the mountains that could not properly be shown from the ground. By flying my drone in the circular point-of-interest mode, tripod mode, and reveal mode, the house could be seen from above the trees and in relation to the valley location below.
“We’ve spent the last 100 years taking images at ground level, so as soon you change the perspective slightly, everything looks different, everything looks beautiful,” Romeo Durscher, an aerial photographer and director of education at DJI, told TIME magazine. “I know my home country of Switzerland so well but when I revisit places I have photographed for years with a drone, I am rediscovering everything.”
Stitched panorama of Pacific Southwest Railway Museum in Campo, CA
TIME (http://time.com/4525267/drone-photography/) pointed out that because of reports of drones being used for spying or smuggling contraband into prison, many still view them with suspicion. But beyond taking beautiful pictures, they are also being used for conservation work, wildlife protection and even search-and-rescue missions. Hexacopter drones are employed by scientists to monitor the health of whales, not just by photographing them, but by collecting water droplets from their spout to bring back to a lab for analysis.
“Once you know drones can help save lives,” says Durscher, “it is much more difficult to argue if it’s good technology or bad technology.”
“Today, the latest marketing weapon in real estate is the use of dramatic camera drone photography, to show the lot, the neighborhood, and the beautiful view,” points out one real-estate photography website (https://imrealestatephotography.com).
“Though drones are primarily used for landscape and cityscape photography, I’ve begun to see them slowly make their way into the engagement and wedding photography field, where the unique perspective they afford can offer a way of taking in the extravagance of a wedding day that no other means can,” said Alex Cooke (https://fstoppers.com/aerial/wedding-photographer-takes-gorgeous-video-using-drone-137941)
“The biggest selling point of using drone photography for outdoor events is that for the price of a ground set-up–or cheaper–anyone can get regular footage and the additional aerial perspective,” says Matt Austin, owner and operator of Aerial Imaging Resource. “The difference between just zero and 50 feet makes a world of difference.” (http://www.specialevents.com/blog/4-things-you-should-already-be-using-drones-special-events)
