Drone over RCL

[Darkwolfe]

Now, if only that drone looked like this.... [ATTACH]311538[/ATTACH]

 

That particular quadcopter has a story behind it that's a little strange.

 

The cat is real. Belonged to the copter owner and got hit by a car. Well, the owner (to me at least) is a little warped upstairs and decided to give his furry friend a most unusual afterlife.

 

A little oddball taxidermy work and you have a flying cat-copter.

 

More than a little weird.

[Esmerelda]

I had just posted a few YouTube videos on our role call (Allure 08/31/14) yesterday of this very topic.

 

Please keep in mind, you just cant't fly a drone anywhere that you choose. There are FAA rules that apply within the US and huge penalties if you don't. I don't think RC would let you board a cruise ship with one in tow unless you had an agreement with them beforehand. As far as the ones from land, well, let's just say numerous people have been arrested for flying these without permission. It's a very cool item indeed when utilized properly. The footage my son takes is absolutely breathtaking. He flies a huge drone professionally and has had to learn a lot about FAA rules and such.

 

Go to YouTube and search, there are many cool drone videos over some awesome cruise ships.

 

:p

[swim13]

Very, very cool! Royal could use some of this footage for a commercial!

[Ambiverol]

Wow, cool video.

 

So, do you believe that people should not be allowed to take photo of your ship from land? What if they use a tripod on one of the balconies from the condos as you leave port?

 

As for the contract goes, I believe that is also in place so that passengers can not sue the cruise line, if they end up being in the backdrop of someones travel blog photo.

 

Ahhh, the old straw man strikes again!

[loverofpv]

Awesome videos!

Edited May 5, 2014 by loverofpv

[tanzer22pilot]

You're kidding, right!

 

No, I am not.

 

Then again I just read on CC, where someone saw a passenger wearing there life jacket for a seven day cruise. So, what is "scary" to someone may not be scary to someone else.

[cruiserdudebobby8]

they look cool

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[SPacificbound]

I was waiting for the FLL police escort boat to think that it was a potential security threat and shoot it down.

 

Me too! :eek:

[UNV-IT!!!]

I'm am literally online trying to order one right now. Just have no clue what's good and what's not.

[tanzer22pilot]

I'm am literally online trying to order one right now. Just have no clue what's good and what's not.

 

Start here:

 

http://www.horizonhobby.com/products/350-qx-rtf-firmware-2-0-with-safe-trade-technology-BLH7800A

[Syrreal]

That particular quadcopter has a story behind it that's a little strange.

 

 

 

The cat is real. Belonged to the copter owner and got hit by a car. Well, the owner (to me at least) is a little warped upstairs and decided to give his furry friend a most unusual afterlife.

 

 

 

A little oddball taxidermy work and you have a flying cat-copter.

 

 

 

More than a little weird.

 

 

I know :). We were going to be in Amsterdam a couple of years ago and had heard it was going to be exhibited in the modern art museum and were hoping to catch it but the exhibit ended about a week before we got there.

[LA_CA_GAL]

If you enjoyed that video, check this one out.

 

This

will blow you away.

[Russ_MT]

I'm am literally online trying to order one right now. Just have no clue what's good and what's not.

 

Here's an entry level point if you want to send back video to the remote.

http://www.amazon.com/DJI-Phantom-Quadcopter-Integrated-Camcorder/dp/B00FW78710/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1399293907&sr=8-1&keywords=dji+phantom+2

 

If you have a GoPro camera, you can start here

http://www.amazon.com/DJI-Phantom-Aerial-Drone-Quadcopter/dp/B00AGOSQI8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1399294867&sr=8-1&keywords=dj1+phantom

 

Keep in mind once you get started, you will likely be spending more money on better hardware, gimbals etc.

The guy who recorded Allure in the ocean likely had $2k put into that setup. It's a lot of money to put up in the air over the ocean (because the quad copter sinks like a stone). That pilot was brave.

 

As mentioned, the payload on these copters is limited. The GoPro often taxes the machine largely. These copters typically have a 8 minute maximum duration flight time.

[mbjboyle]

Here's an entry level point if you want to send back video to the remote.

http://www.amazon.com/DJI-Phantom-Quadcopter-Integrated-Camcorder/dp/B00FW78710/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1399293907&sr=8-1&keywords=dji+phantom+2

 

If you have a GoPro camera, you can start here

http://www.amazon.com/DJI-Phantom-Aerial-Drone-Quadcopter/dp/B00AGOSQI8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1399294867&sr=8-1&keywords=dj1+phantom

 

Keep in mind once you get started, you will likely be spending more money on better hardware, gimbals etc.

The guy who recorded Allure in the ocean likely had $2k put into that setup. It's a lot of money to put up in the air over the ocean (because the quad copter sinks like a stone). That pilot was brave.

 

As mentioned, the payload on these copters is limited. The GoPro often taxes the machine largely. These copters typically have a 8 minute maximum duration flight time.

 

Russ, you beat me to it.:)

 

The clip was most likely filmed with a DJI Phantom quad copter. DJI has created one of the most popular, mass produced "drones" available at an affordable price point for photo/video/aerial enthusiasts. You are VERY correct that while the price point is low, users will most likely invest thousands (yes, that's "thousands" with an s) of dollars into this venture. This includes hardware, as well as software. Recently, several vendors have entered the "photo drone" consumer market, and as the technology rapidly advances several more are waiting on the fringe. However, the FAA is working to prevent much of this by introducing new legislation.

 

I would suggest that anyone looking into purchasing a photo drone check FAA regulations in their area, their bank account, and their available free time...

[Russ_MT]

Russ, you beat me to it.:)

 

The clip was most likely filmed with a DJI Phantom quad copter. DJI has created one of the most popular, mass produced "drones" available at an affordable price point for photo/video/aerial enthusiasts. You are VERY correct that while the price point is low, users will most likely invest thousands (yes, that's "thousands" with an s) of dollars into this venture. This includes hardware, as well as software. Recently, several vendors have entered the "photo drone" consumer market, and as the technology rapidly advances several more are waiting on the fringe. However, the FAA is working to prevent much of this by introducing new legislation.

 

I would suggest that anyone looking into purchasing a photo drone check FAA regulations in their area, their bank account, and their available free time...

 

Well said.

 

I have a DJ Phantom equipped with a GoPro. It has a relatively low entry price point, but quickly turns into an expensive hobby. It's a lot of fun to both fly this relatively sophisticated machine as well as get some amazing aerial footage. I'm always amazed at how well the GPS can keep the thing fixed. We flew it on Friday at our building lot and it was quite windy. The quad kept its position flawlessly in 25mph gusts.

 

However, to achieve better results, you end up buying gimbals and Point of View video receivers etc. It gets expensive. And yet the technology still can fail and there are all those sad accounts of owners watching $2,000 of hardware fly away by itself into the distance never to be found.

Every time I fly mine, I'm just a little nervous that it will fly off. I've gone so far as attaching a cellular GPS tracker to the thing to help me find it if it does.

 

The folks who enjoy this hobby are very concerned about scaring people with it. If that happens, surely legislation will be enacted to ban these. So most pilots are self policing and discourage flying over populated areas. As mentioned, they have very little lift and can barely get a GoPro off the ground. These are NOT the missile carrying machines like the military uses. They are quite noisy and can't really sneak up on you or peek in your window.

The FAA doesn't quite know what to do about them. It is illegal to use a drone for commercial uses. No matter how great the footage is, you cannot sell it to the cruise line or local TV station. You may, however, give it to them for free.

 

TV producers are using them more and more often. It's subtle, but if you see a shot of a house from above on HGTV's House Hunters, it's from a drone. The Amazing Race could not possibly get those fantastic shots without a drone. If you look carefully, you will notice many aerial TV shots in shows thanks to this technology. Hopefully, idiots won't ruin it by annoying people with them.

 

 

--Russ

[Russ_MT]

Michael,

I just checked out your Youtube channel. Very cool footage you got with just a pole and GoPro.

 

What kind of pole is that? Looks collapsible. I have a mono pod I was going to bring on Navigator, I wonder if that would work. You were quite brave to hang that over the side of the ship, but got very cool video and did a great job editing it all together.

 

I've seen some really nice time lapse GoPro video onboard ships also.

 

--Russ

[joepeka]

So, do you believe that people should not be allowed to take photo of your ship from land? What if they use a tripod on one of the balconies from the condos as you leave port?

 

As for the contract goes, I believe that is also in place so that passengers can not sue the cruise line, if they end up being in the backdrop of someones travel blog photo.

 

Doesn't really matter what I believe, and your questions are off point. You brought up the cruise contract and photographs, I only mentioned what the contract states regarding photography.

[DrD]

The stats for the phantom 2 say max range of transmitter is 500m, doesn't it seem like it went a lot further than that?

[Russ_MT]

The stats for the phantom 2 say max range of transmitter is 500m, doesn't it seem like it went a lot further than that?

 

The stock transmitter is rated to 1000m and best performance is direct line of sight.

http://www.dji.com/product/phantom-2/spec

He may have upgraded his transmitter to a more powerful one or he was dangerously close to the limit. My guess is that this guy has some money invested in upgrades.

 

Here's one that went 5000m ( 3 miles )

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyoTOm87U9w

[cruisinfanatic]

The stock transmitter is rated to 1000m and best performance is direct line of sight.

http://www.dji.com/product/phantom-2/spec

He may have upgraded his transmitter to a more powerful one or he was dangerously close to the limit. My guess is that this guy has some money invested in upgrades.

His setup is at least 5K

[CRUISEFAN0001]

That was truly one of the coolest things I have seen.....I have GOT TO GET me one of these...We back up to a state park and I can use this to track bears. I didn't realize the distance was so great on these.

I saw those in person at the Consumer Electronics show this past January.

 

Bring your wallet - they are not inexpensive for the models that have controllers with that kind of range. Those controllers alone can cost $5-$7K.

Edited May 5, 2014 by CRUISEFAN0001

[mbjboyle]

Michael,

What kind of pole is that? Looks collapsible. I have a mono pod I was going to bring on Navigator, I wonder if that would work. You were quite brave to hang that over the side of the ship, but got very cool video and did a great job editing it all together.

 

--Russ

 

Thanks for the compliment, it started as a hobby, but now my GoPro hobby is growing into quite the addiction...

 

I have a GoPole Reach www.gopole.com, and it has a wristband to safeguard against any unforeseen drops...:) Also, I'd recommend the GoPro clamp mount. It clamps nearly anywhere (unlike the suction cup) and it came in handy for a lot of shots.

 

I've worked with some of the "professional drones", and am still debating with myself about getting the Phantom before the FAA regulates them more stringently...

[UniPac]

I would love to fly around the cruise ship when i am onboard.

However, the fail-safe (in case of signal loss, low battery) works by gps... So if the cruise ship moves and the dji or whatever drone needs to return "home" it will be surprised as there will only be water and no cruise ship anymore :-) Godbye drone, goodbye gopro, goodbye brushless gimbal.

 

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

Edited May 5, 2014 by UniPac

[tanzer22pilot]

I would love to fly around the cruise ship when i am onboard.

However, the fail-safe (in case of signal loss, low battery) works by gps... So if the cruise ship moves and the dji or whatever drone needs to return "home" it will be surprised as there will only be water and no cruise ship anymore :-) Godbye drone, goodbye gopro, goodbye brushless gimbal.

 

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

 

 

As mentioned above, The FPV hobby makes cruising and other hobbies look cheap.

[Russ_MT]

Thanks for the compliment, it started as a hobby, but now my GoPro hobby is growing into quite the addiction...

 

I have a GoPole Reach www.gopole.com, and it has a wristband to safeguard against any unforeseen drops...:) Also, I'd recommend the GoPro clamp mount. It clamps nearly anywhere (unlike the suction cup) and it came in handy for a lot of shots.

 

I've worked with some of the "professional drones", and am still debating with myself about getting the Phantom before the FAA regulates them more stringently...

 

I just ordered a pole from Amazon for our Navigator cruise. Will be fun to get "selfie" shots like yours. Thanks for inspiring me. I may look at the clamp as well. Good idea. I was just going to use it snorkeling but why not for other stuff on the ship.

 

My Phantom doesn't have a brushless gimbal. This hobby gets expensive fast. It shoots some fun video without a gimbal though. I'm terrified of flying it over water. They sink fast. We have a sailboat and I'm excited to get some footage of us sailing from above. However, I need to figure out how to make the quad to float in the event of a catastrophe. It's a lot of fun to see your house, etc. from way up high. Like a HiDef Google Earth.

 

If you are on the fence, you are probably right about the FAA. No doubt some idiot pilots will spark some legislation soon.

 

--Russ