![\"\"](\"https:\/\/westerman.photo\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_1355_edit.jpg\")
<\/a>The\u00a0Douk\u00e9nie’s are nice people. I got to know the owners of this winery with my previous work. I’ve since lost track of them but drive by their place all the time as it’s on a road less traveled.<\/p>\n This corn field is on my regular running\/walking route. I give them shit because they use harsh chemical to treat their land. You can’t see any of that under the blanket of snow today.<\/p>\n Drone photography has really changed the way I look at the earth. The first time I saw my first photograph from the drone I knew it was going to be something that would take the world by storm.<\/p>\n Back then I had the DJI Phantom 1 which did not have a camera mounted to it. Instead, I mounted a then unknown camera to the bottom of the drone … my GoPro (the original).<\/p>\n I remember being in my living room seeing the picture for the first time and saying something like, “Oh My!” which got my entire family’s attention. They wanted to know what I was looking at. It was something like you see here.<\/p>\n Producing the photograph is skill. The equipment is pure science.<\/p>\n My “new” drone is the DJI 2. Even the DJI 2 didn’t have a camera so I bought a third party gimbal, wired it into the GPS of the DJI as well as into an OSD module.<\/p>\n The OSD, short for On Screen Display, superimposes all of the flight data into the video transmitter which I also procured and wired into the drone. All of this runs on 5 volts of dc power that I get from the drone itself.<\/p>\n Then I put my “new” GoPro 4 in the gimbal and tie that into the entire system.<\/p>\n When I fly the drone I have my FPV, or First Person View, goggles on my eyes and it is as if I am hanging from the bottom of the drone. It is literally like flying an airplane. I have the exact same instrumentation as an aircraft all displayed in front of me.<\/p>\n I control the drone with 2.4ghz DSS. The video downlink is 5ghz analog. It’s worth noting that the use of 5ghz downlink video is not something normally approved without a license. But I do possess the FCC license to do this.<\/p>\n This camera system that I created is not as fancy as the stuff you can buy today. Since that stuff wasn’t available when I built this I did what I could. It takes a photograph every 5 seconds as well as shooting 1080p 30fps video at the same time. So I get a little of both vs one or the other. But I do have to stay on my target for 5-20 seconds to get the photo I want. That is if I want it in high resolution and not from the video grab.<\/p>\n The video is not the latest 4k with all the latest technology. But for what I am doing with it I don’t need that either. For me and this system anyway, that is just a camera change. Not a drone system change. I just haven’t gotten around to swapping out the camera mainly because I don’t prefer GoPro cameras any longer as they are too expensive compared to all the other technology out there that can do just as well for 25% of the cost.<\/p>\n I’ve thought about buying a new drone over the past several years and, so far, I haven’t seen anything I’d prefer. There are smaller ones that fit in your pocket but don’t take better video or photos.<\/p>\n I think the next drone\u00a0I have will be much more sophisticated in the use of aerodynamics. Like quieter props. These are not quiet machines.\u00a0But they take awesome photos!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It seems like I just posted a blog on a snow storm! The last couple of days has been preparing for another n’easter to come in to the mid-atlantic area as two low pressure systems collide near my home. With the crazy weather brings some interesting photo opportunities; especially for black and white high contrast … <\/p>\n<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a>