Your guide to Cameras and Camera Equipment - page 6-7

Drones are used in wars and covert
operations worldwide, by many countries.
In the collective imagination they are still
strongly associated with the military or
crazy delivery systems developed by
Amazon. They are used to survey, to fight,
to police, to study hurricanes and fight
forest fires, and now, they are also used to
film. The same technology that allows the
US to spy remotely also allows directors to
capture some mesmerising aerial footage
for their movie or TV show.
As drones become increasingly available
on the commercial market, amateur and
professional filmmakers are adopting
them to create footage that would have
previously been impossible without a
big budget and a helicopter. With the
capabilities of showing the world from
new, unseen perspectives, drones are
capturing spectacular innovative shots,
from bird’s-eye-view flights through your
favourite city to aerial shots of surfers
riding giant waves.
In recent years, drones or UAVs as they’re
also known (unmanned aerial vehicles) -
the more PC term used by flyers wishing
to distance their hobby from combat use
- have taken off in the film industry. For
David McKay, award-winning cameraman
and director of specialist aerial filming
company Tenthirteen, camera drones
are “another tool in the box”, one that
enhances the cinematographer’s creativity
and their shot selection plus provides
a new perspective, angle, feel and
atmosphere to the shot.
Yet, despite current trends, camera
drones in their current incarnation haven’t
been around for long. In 1988 Emmanuel
Previnaire created and won an Academy
Award for Technical Achievement for his
Flying-Cam: a motion picture camera
mounted on a remote controlled miniature
helicopter. Today’s camera drones all
follow in the path of Previnaire’s invention.
But in the last three to four years the
industry has witnessed an explosion
in technology, choice, stability and
endurance, increasing options manifold.
From drones that secure GoPro C300 to
heavy lift ones that can pick up 2K, 4K
and 6K recording devices, camera drones
now come in a variety of models. The DJI
S800 EVO for example, a heavy lift model
used by companies such as Tenthirteen
are amongst the most specialised models,
supporting fully stabilised images using
the latest brushless gimbal technology.
The future of aerial filmmaking
For many, unmanned drones are the
future of aerial filmmaking. For TJ
Ducklo, spokesperson for the Motion
Picture Association of America (MPAA),
Hollywood’s lobbying arm, as well as
allowing for creative aerial shots, they also
offer “an innovative, safer and much less
expensive option for shooting compared
to a full-sized manned helicopter”.
Melanie Hinton, spokesperson for the
Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems
International (AUVSI), the drone industry’s
lobbying arm, agrees. “With the ability to
fly in dangerous or extreme conditions and
for lower costs than manned flight, UAS
are often a safer and cheaper alternative
for many businesses that currently rely on
manned aircraft.”
At a fraction of traditional production costs
that can mount for aerial photography,
drones can capture swooping shots,
360-panoramas, chase scenes and
other ambitious action sequences. With
drones, suddenly high definition aerial
footage is easily achievable without the
high fuel costs, steep rentals and hiring
costs for pilots that make helicopters so
prohibitively expensive. Their size and
agility enable camera operators to fly
them into spaces where human and full-
size aircraft can’t follow – they can track
a motorbike over a sustained distance,
hover over water or fly through windows
and doors.
On top of this, drones can be used in pre-
production to prepare shots and look for
possible camera positions. They are quick
DAP advert_Layout 1 29/05/2014 10:56 Page 1
Drones & Aerial filming:
Drones are often associated with modern day warfare but in fact the technology is a gift to camera
operators and directors worldwide. Emily Wright takes a look at the current controversy surrounding
the flying gadgets and discusses how the British film and TV industry can benefit.
Drones: A
filmmaker’s
dreambut
lawmaker’s
nightmare
By Emily Wright
Left: DJI S1000 multirotor for Canon 5D,
GH4
Above: The team at DAP Facilities prepare
for a shoot
Cameras and Camera equipment
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