Been there, drone that.

Now for the real answer. In my other life I have flown RC aircraft for some 40 years. Just got out of it recently by giving it to my nephew, but still have a couple indoor micro FPV drones I bug the cats with. Your idea has merit, but the “whirling blades near your face” factor while trying to play pinball can “put people off” to say it mildly. I could see camera rigs specially designed to give sweeping panoramic shots of the player while playing, say like NFL crazy type camera work... you know, just to increase the drama and watch the sweat roll down their faces in full 4k HDR glory.

Twice I've had mini drone racing in my business. They set up an obstacle course, a little higher than the pool tables. Quite a fun time. Some had cameras on them and the operator had the helmet on with viewer so he actually was watching what the drone saw and where it was going.

LTG : )

I'm starting to see some drones pop up in the pawn shops. This is where I start getting interested. But I know nothing of value about them. What brands are the good brands? What to avoid. etc. What kinds of paraphernalia can you use with them? What kind of camera. etc.?

I'm all ears.

I tend to ask what your budget is then send people towards DJI if they can afford $1500. They have some really nice turnkey setups in that price range and the camera it comes with shoots beautiful 4k (and now with telephoto) video.
Look up dji mavic pro 2... buy a bundle, go flying/filming. Requires an iPhone for fpv (first person view) flying, but I think you can use any smartphone. You can get FPV goggles to use if you want, but they get pricey quick. Most go with the hooded displays which are somewhat more comfortable and way cheaper. The mavics are way stable, easy to set up and fly. My friend who is a photographer but not an RC flyer got one from his wife for his birthday. He loves it. Hope this helped.

Contact these guys - http://www.guerrillafun.com/?fbclid=IwAR3C2ozYbUxnc02ys1FurCnB4ExYvseFuZhAmmsBkxTLaiO2rnaXaDMZFPA they held the races at SS Billiards. Mention my name. A different state, they may be able to help you find out more. Real nice people.

LTG : )

I think the laws have really put a damper on mid sized quads like the DJI brand for example. Anything over 250g is susceptible to very restrictive laws here in Canada. Although indoor racing with 'Tiny Whoops' seems to be very popular now.

Rob

I own a Mavic 2 Pro and enjoy flying it! Key to ownership is being considerate and responsible and following laws. On top of that, I also consider that neighbors and strangers tend to have unreasonable fears about being spied and sometimes freak out when they see them so I fly mine away from people and where I think people would object.

The technology in drones is amazing and sometimes I can't believe all I can do with mine! It can be a fun hobby if you have places to fly and use it responsibly.

They are great target practice for some folks around these parts!
Flyer beware.

Probably more of a quadcopter than a drone, but I enjoy flying the $59 ones with the camera. Very manual controls, but fun to fly and see what you can do with it. Still goes ridiculously high and takes video on SD card. Give it a shot to gauge interest

@toasterdog, the robot overlords are coming... this is a well done video... and it is very scary... like I have flown these and yes, they could actually do what they show in this film. That is NOT science fiction folks, that is exactly the state of the art... that video is only 15 minutes into the future by relative terms. This is going to get weird quick. That video is a roadmap of pure evil genius... if not the inspiration some nutjob needs to take the technology to this level real quick.

Do not skip this video, watch the WHOLE thing and go to autonomousweapons.org

We now return you to your regularly schduled Pinside meltdown....

I have a fleet of cheaper quads but don't fly them commercially, just for my own fun. I avoid doing a lot of photography, people are generally over-cautious or even aggressive toward a flying thing with a camera, understandably.

The most advanced controller I have can do mission planning on a google maps like interface and allow me to set GPS waypoints and perform large area photography coverage, etc...

I'd like to get into messing with software for control of multiple smaller drones at the same time.

In the last six months, we have started to use drones at my work.

I work at a land surveying and civil engineering firm, and we use a couple of drones now in our land surveying. We have a Phantom 4 we use for small jobs, and a larger Matrix 600 we use for big jobs. We are basically doing aerial photography to create topographic maps using the principles of photogrametry. We set ground control targets using traditional GPS surveying techniques, and then the drones fly a grid pattern over the site taking photos at set intervals. We then can post process all the photos with the ground control and get a point cloud. It has really cut down on the amount of time it takes us to do bare earth topo, plus having the high resolution photos to use as background images in our drawings works well too.

Being that I have flown RC aircraft for years, I was picked to be one of the auxiliary pilots (our surveyors are the main pilots). So I went out and got my FAA 107 license. I have flown a half dozen missions in the past few months, and it is fun. It seems like every time we take one of our drones out we spend as much time answering questions as we do flying missions.

Most recently I've been working with a friend on a fishing bait drop box for beach fishing but getting the bait far out. Even with a 14 foot rod I suck at casting far, so I'll slam some technology at the problem.

Work in progress....

pasted_image (resized).png

LMAO ! Some of my relatives used to attach fishing tackle to Clorox bottles and throw them into the pond. If they caught a fish they would strip naked and go swimming

Watched my uncle fish with a Clorox jug for catfish... you ever seen a clorox jug go under and disappear?!? Yeah... river cats can get huge...

I've owned 2 DJI camera drones and a Autel Robotics one too, they're awesome. Super easy to fly (although I flew my first into a tree or two and finally had a flyaway when I flew to close to large utility lines) Bye Bye $850 drone

After my first though I never even tipped another drone over. I've since sold all but a little palm size one (like the slaughterbot drones) Very maneuverable and quick.

I think you have to ask yourself if you want a drone for aerial photography or fly for fun. Lots of inexpensive options if you are just looking to have fun flying them.

Hahaha! We fish in the ocean so that little tiny boat would be gone faster than a school of finger mullet.

I know exactly what you mean. I've been flying RC for most of my life, and my dad is on the executive council of the AMA (Academy of Model Aeronautics). His district covers Washington, DC, which has had him involved in the interesting battle with the FAA.

The most recent drone restrictions were really a blow to all RC fliers, especially in restricted areas like the DC area.

Be prepared to get arrested then, Drones are considered aircraft and shooting one down will get you thrown in jail.

I've seen idiots flying RC planes crash them into things more than I've seen drones crash also. But hey, the hobby you enjoy is all good guys, other hobbies, idiots. LMAO.

I’ve been flying DJI drones for a few years now, my current is a Phantom 4 Pro.

It’s actually is kinda handy to have on the farm. Flying over fields, getting pictures of wet spots/drainage issues and getting a good look at crop conditions...

Hey, go for it, sure sounds bad ass talking about it. It's only a criminal record, right?

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3546718/Threatening-shoot-drone-federal-crime-FAA-confirms-craft-classed-aircraft-attacks-lead-20-years-jail.html

https://slate.com/technology/2016/04/faa-confirms-it-s-a-federal-crime-to-shoot-down-a-drone.html

Been flying a DJI Mavic Pro for a few years now. Hands down one of the best and user friendly dones out there. I have taken it on long range tests exceeding 4 miles out with no loss of video or connection. The technology in these new units is crazy.

IMG_0018 (resized).PNG

IMG_8770 (resized).jpg

As much as I hate the rules, flying in/over the populated areas, parks or out of field of view is now illegal here in Canada. Before the rules/laws were in place I would fly at night and do long range stuff too. It was fun to do at the time, but things are different now. It just takes 1 complaint and you can be in trouble.

But, anything under 250g is exempt from the laws so that still leaves room for FPV and Tiny Whoops...

Rob

I bought one at Costco and dove into all the laws and returned it. Many areas have them banned and checking all the laws got exhausting. Plus if you bring a drone anywhere people hate you.

Flying out of your line of sight is illegal in the states as well. As is flying over people or above 400ft unless you are scaling a building with it.

I've shot a couple down. It was just like sporting clays, only more satisfying.

When you really dig into these "drones as aircraft" interpretations, there is no way anybody is getting prosecuted for shooting down a Drone in your backyard.

Unless you're in Canada... They won't care about the drone in that case.

Rob

Folks, the FAA takes shooting at ANYTHING that is flying very seriously, including shooting a drone down on your own property. You see, back in the early days of flight, this was a problem with people shooting at REAL airplanes and REAL pilots, and they don’t want any lead bullets being shot at ANYTHING that is flying, because it could lead to people shooting at PEOPLE even if accidentally. People have been prosecuted for shooting them down. Actually bragging about it on a public forum is a good way to get attention brought on yourself, possibly even incriminating yourself... I Just want people to be aware. Commercial drone pilots, private aircraft pilots, and even commercial pilots who HATE drones will report incidents like this because any gun pointed skyward at an aircraft could be pointed at them who are flying behind the drone, or above the drone, or you get the picture. So lets not cowboy up and start plugging the drones just yet. Ok? Think before you shoot, not after.

I think part of the issue here is airspace over private property. Previous rulings have stated that private airspace rights only extend to the height of the land which you can use, some cases have set that at 500 feet. However the FAA has never put a hard definition of what 'private airspace' is. The 2016 FAA rules that created the 107 license that professionals operate under did not address airspace over private property. Because of this, I think there have been a lot of knee jerk reactions by local municipalities to try to limit drone operations without realizing that only the FAA can regulate airspace. I am hoping that soon there will be some hard rules from the FAA as to what constitutes 'Private Airspace' that will strike some kind of balance between privacy concerns and the right to operate over private property.

We bought a Phantom 4 specifically to shoot a few scenes in the Spooky doc. I was kind of learning as I went with it.

Then I had the brilliant idea of shooting a Nebraska blizzard.

We've had a lot of fun with them. They're easier to get up and running and filming than you might think (at least the DJI drones that I have experience with).
I still need to take the test and get my 107 license. There are a few tutorial videos around that will show you kind of what you need to know for the test.

I recently purchased a Mavic Pro just for travel adventures.

Still learning, So amazed at the kick ass tech !

Drone fishing wild and no doubt a big money spinner !

https://dronefishing.com.au/

I NEVER said drone pilots were friendly, law abiding citizens... I just wanted people to be aware that shooting at anything airborn with ANY weapon, paintball or otherwise, is not only frowned on by FAA, but vigorously investigated and prosecuted. Ask a pilot next time you see one if they want ANYTHING shot at them, be it paintballs or lead. You can shoot at anything you want to and talk about it or complain about it, but I am not the FAA. Take it up with them, or your congressman, I simply don’t care unless you are shooting at me.

There are a lot of these feelings floating around the AMA and old school flight clubs. The average age of the group flying model airplanes is going up, which means there are a lot less young people getting interested.

I personally think the best thing that model airplane flyers can do is embrace multi-rotor and start inviting those pilots to your clubs. Set up races for them, show them how to have fun with airplanes and helis too. Get them to join the AMA.

Doing the fun fly with the candy drop for the kids only gets you so far, and there is a reason you see drone racing on national TV but don't see pylon racing or some older white gentleman just doing laps around a flying field in his cub cadet or p-51. (I use those as examples because i've been that guy who owns those planes and flies them in laps around the flying field. )

I agree! While I haven't joined our local club in the past few years it's current membership situation is sad. We have a 800 ft x 50 ft paved runway, electric, don't have to mow it, and lots of flyover land. Dues are $175 a year which is cheap considering our facility. There was a good group of us out there that were younger but at the end of the day the older cats flying slowsticks and lawn chair jockeying couldn't get along with our group.

Skymac (resized).PNG

Yuneec Typhoon Q500 4K Drone

One of these is for sale in my town. Complete kit. Less than $400.00. To my untrained eye, $400.00 seems like an OK price.

I have never flown a drone before. My interest would be for the photography.

Should I just go get a cheapie? Or maybe step up a little bit?

I figure if I don't like I can sell it, perhaps.

Not really a good buy in my opinion. That drone is 399 New. Plus these models are very poor for video quality. Yes it is 4k but buying a drone is about how Stable it can fly to shoot those images and video. I have flown my DJI Mavic Pro in heavy winds and it corrects perfectly as if it was sitting still. Most people have bad first impressions of drones when they get the lessor models. Having Never flown a drone ever I had the Mavic pro in the air in 15 minutes (after a charge) safely and confidently flying routes. Good luck with your search, they really are incredible with what they can do now days.

I bought a DJI Phantom 3 a few years ago and absolutely love it. At first I set up a geo-fence to limit how far it would go until I got used to and comfortable with the controls. I've used it for taking photos around our farm, sunrise shots, sunset shots, etc. While the photo aspect is great, I just like flying it. With the onboard GPS, it is really easy to fly. Almost lost it about 2 years ago in a flyaway but regained control and got it back safely. Decided at that point to get a smaller drone to learn how to fly. Bought a Syma X5 and learned how to fly without relying on GPS or any other sensors. While the X5 has a camera, it's not that great. However, if I lose control of it and it flys away or crashes hard, I'm only out $40. Definitely like flying these things. Like pinball, it's another hobby.

My first drone was a cheap $50 selfie toy that got banged up and almost lost due to a couple of fly-aways, once into a neighbor's fenced back yard.

I just ordered this Yuneec Breeze from Walmart for $149. It looks like this will be a lot of fun and I can use the 1080p or 720p modes for videos with stabilization. You can even use it indoors for pinball shots. (You'd need a tripod to stabilize this drone if you wanted to use the 4K mode)

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Yuneec-Breeze-Drone-With-4K-Camera-Bluetooth-Controller-Included/902348798

Love this little drone. So much fun to fly indoors!

IMG_20190310_230725190 (resized).jpg