A few months ago I was at a park here in Toronto. I spotted an older guy playing around with a beginner level electric RC airplane. The sight re sparked a dormant desire I have; to try flying RC airplanes.
Not long after buying a beginner level airplane, my Supercub LP (a great beginner if anyone is interested), I started pondering the possibility of throwing a small cheap low quality camera on there and getting some shots from above.
This developed into a full fledged pursuit of high quality aerial photography.
I purchased the amazing Kodak Zi8 and a 2.2 meter wingspan rc electric sailplane (The Parkzone Radian) inside the cockpit of which I mounted the Zi8. The camera and plane combined only cost me around $500 Canadian
Here is my first real attempt at aerial photography:
I’m not going to embed it so that you are sure to watch it in the best possible resolution. This was shot on the 720p 60fps mode (it even has a 1080p 30fps mode!)
Note: since taking this video I have decided to keep my flying away from highways and busy roads. In retrospect, I could have caused a serious accident.
Let me know what you think. If you like it I will keep posting them here as there will be many more to come.
I checked out that Zi8 pocket camera and it looks like a great deal for the price. I might have to pick one up. Do you have any complaints/issues with it, or would you recommend it to others?
With the Zi8 you have to basically take it for what it is. It pretty much is unanimously the best HD pocket camcorder there is right now.
The picture is quite clear and HQ considering what your shooting from. Some reviews online say it rivals 5000 dollar HD cameras which I think is not true. It is, however, very impressive for its size and price. Totally worth the cost.
Cons:
It adjusts to low light slowly
1080p mode is not so great with movement
because it is light, handheld is hard to keep steady
Pros:
It’s the size of an iPhone
Under 200 bucks!!!
no built in memory so you can use an SD card (I use a 16gb one which gives me around 3.5 hours on 1080p 30fps)
It has a 720p 60fps mode which is great for sports and slo mo.
Did I mention it is an HD camera for under 200 bucks. (buy from Amazon)
Pick one up, you won’t regret it. I can’t count the number of times I’ve busted this thing out on the street because something cool was going down. No longer will these spur of the moment shots be bad quality because I’m using a cell phone camera.
Oh, and don’t forget that having a pocket HD camera will allow you to take stunning shots while touring unsupported. This thing weighs less than my iPhone.
It’s only a matter of time before I catch something internet meme worthy!
it’s ok, they’re too busy worried about the unicycle on the road to worry about airplanes ; )
I was thinking more about restricted airspace!! : O in Atlanta at least, helicopters are flying that low all the time, and you have to have special permission to fly within the city. I don’t know what laws are about these planes, but it couldn’t be a good thing for a helicopter to make contact with an RC plane
That was great. It’s something I attempted back in the 1980’s with a time delay on an old Retina IIC still camera, but the weight was too much for the glider.
This would be fun to incorporate with a unicycle video. Overhead shots passing by someone on a coker, or capturing someone blasting down an open muni trail.
Wow that was cool! Nice to see some Toronto areal views. Now if you could somehow have the video transmitted to your laptop in real time that would be great, wouldn’t it?
That’s what I thought too. Maybe a helicopter would be better, though but it would be hard to not have the camera vibrating like mad. But I like the idea. Maybe I’ll get myself one of those cameras too.
Yeah technically flying RC in parks inside Toronto is against a bylaw but generally not heavily enforced. I just try to use my best judgment when it comes to the safety of the people around me.
There will most certainly be more videos like this that I will post very soon. I have several others from outside Toronto that have already been captured.
I use Final Cut Studio to do all my post production. I would highly recommend it if you have the means to obtain a copy.
If not, Final Cut Express is a good alternative for much less money. I’m not sure, though, if the new version of express can handle HD.
Incorporating into a uni vid would be ideal. This plane works well at low altitude also. Provided the wind speed is low, it could work nearly as well as a big jib arm. The kind they use at concerts or on TV sets.
For a small plane like the one making the video, I think the helicopter would mostly likely hear a noise (of rotor impact) and that would be it. Unless parts hit the cockpit, which would be freaky/scary/dangerous…
