Check out this very interesting video by CNN that shows an inside view of how military operations with drones are carried out:
Taking Flight: Drone Photography & Video with Jeff Foster
This Monday on Treasure Island CreativeLive (founded by well known photographer Chase Jarvis) is broadcasting a live-streaming workshop with Drones to teach the world about safe and effective flying techniques for Drone photography and video.
Here is some info, make sure you check out the official website for full details
Capture stunning aerial shots
Aerial photography and videography captures some of the most stunning images out there, but the tools, techniques, and gadgets used to capture the action are often confusing and difficult to master. Join Jeff Foster and special guests for an exciting and highly informative class and get a running start at unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) photography.
In this course, you’ll learn how to capture stunning aerial shots with an impressive range of aerial gear – including; 3D Robotics multicopters, DJI multirotors, GoPros, DSLRs and more. You’ll get an introduction to the best tools for beginners and see demonstrations of the sophisticated gear used by the most in-demand professional photographers and filmmakers. You’ll learn essential skills for controlling a UAV flight; basic flight controls, necessary equipment for successful shooting, planning and lining up the perfect shots, flight prep and safety, waypoint navigation and more. You’ll gain an understanding of the production and post-production techniques unique and essential to aerial photography – including how to stabilize video, create stunning panoramic photos, and remove lens distortion in your photos and videos.
If you’re ready to explore this wonderful world from a new elevated visual perspective, then this is the course for you!
Guests include:
Colin Guinn – 3drobotics.com
Mark Johnson and Romeo Dursher – www.visual-aerials.com
Stephen Wheatcraft – www.aerovisionpro.com
Peter Sachs – dronelawjournal.com
Russell Brown – russellbrown.com
Drone Life launches the Drone Configurator
Drone life has now launched the drone configurator, that allows to locate the ideal drone on the market based on a number of requirements. Here are a few words about this new tool, from Drone Life:
“Commercial drones are gaining in popularity every day. As more people understand the infinite possibilities this new technology presents, the demand for accessible drone hardware, software and services will increase exponentially.
In order to help consumers find the right drone, Dronelife has created the first drone product configurator!
Whatever your needs, whatever your budget, we want to connect you with the aerial system that fits your particular personal or professional needs.
The new tool is accessible by clicking on the Products tab on Dronelife.com or by going to droneconfigurator.com.
If you know the drone you are looking for, you can easily find it by sorting our database by manufacturer.”
Here’s what the tool looks like right now, click on the image to go to the web site:
Interesting thermal video with the Optris PI450 Camera for Drones and UAV’s
The Optiris PI450 camera, with it’s 320 gr of weight including lens, is perfectly suitable for video thermography with drones.
Here are some technical specifications, and a very interesting video taken from a drone, that shows how an house can look like in thermal imaging. Continue reading Interesting thermal video with the Optris PI450 Camera for Drones and UAV’s
Knocking down drones with footballs
It can be done. Proof in the photos below, from a video (that I can’t locate unfortunately) by Conor Fernandez from Barnstable County, Massachusetts.
Nearly there…
Source: DailyMail
How to build a Mobee micro drone (not really easy to DIY)
Check out the construction process of the Harvard Monolithic Bee (Mobee), it’s fascinating.
Unfortunately not really something you can build at home. Nor can you buy it at a local shop. Oh well…
“Such bee-sized flying robots have low material costs and could be made in large numbers, and their small size lets them maneuver in confined spaces, Fuller said. They could have a lot of applications in remote sensing and in search and rescue operations, and could also act as “robobees” in assisted agriculture, pollinating flowers and fighting pests, Fuller said.
The researchers are working in parallel on the many different technological advances required to make these fly-sized robots fully autonomous and wireless. For example, they are working on providing it with a lightweight onboard processor, and a small, high-energy power source so that it is no longer tethered by wires.
They are also working on making the vehicles faster to produce and more durable. At the moment, it takes several days to make each robotic fly, and each vehicle can only fly for a matter of minutes before it has to be discarded. “We’re talking five to ten years before some sort of commercialization,” Fuller said.” – Source
Here you go with the video:
Yacht in flames captured by quadcopter
A spectacular yacht fire in San Diego, California, was captured by Kurt Roll with it’s quadcopter and shared on youtube.
Here you go with the video:
Drone news summary video
Here’s a video from today.com that nicely summarizes some recent personal drones news:
Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
Pilot looses control of big multirotor during a video shooting session in Treviso, Italy
During a planned video session aimed at capturing the “Duomo di Treviso”, the big multirotor starts to drift slowly in a random direction. The pilot, apparently unable to control it through the radio link anymore, likely for a radio interference, first tries to control it manually, but then the situation gets out of control.
Here you go with the video:
Damages to the drone are estimated at 10.000 euros, while damages to the bar external premises are in the order of 4000 euros.
Sources: YouReporter, Corriere
Stay tuned on the Personal Drones blog for the latest multirotor and quadcopter news!
How to create stunning images from drone video with HDRInstant
I am glad to publish the following press release from HDRInstant
Create stunning images from drone video
Have you ever filmed with your drone and wanted to create a great image from your video? Now you can with HDRinstant.
HDRinstant is a program that allows you to transform your drone videos into fantastic looking images. Before our technology, you had to resort to getting still grabs from videos. These were often of poor quality, contained lots of grain and lacked in detail. Now with HDRinstant, you don’t have to settle for poor images. You can create HDR (High-Dynamic-Range) images from your video.
HDR images contain stunning color and high detail and better represent what the human eye can see in a scene. Not only can you get fantastic aerial views with your drone but you can turn them into something truly amazing with the software. Simply choose your favorite moment in the video and let your creativity flow by making an HDR image from it. You can choose your own settings to create something natural or surreal.
HDRinstant works by using image stacking and morphing technology. Watch this short video of what it can do
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwl8y_Jkb5U
The software lets you start with this:
And transforms it into this:
Continue reading How to create stunning images from drone video with HDRInstant