Chasing prairie dogs is hard...

[spencurai]

I'm ordering the FPV goggles next...this is too hard to do without seeing what the camera sees!


[video=youtube_share;os7w1we5JEw]http://youtu.be/os7w1we5JEw[/video]

 

[Spork]

That was cool. I'm surprised you got as close as you did to them.
Trying to figure out what you had running...
DJI phantom 2 = Quad rotor?
Zenmuse H3-2D = platform the Hero is on?

 

[spencurai]

Yeah the phantom 2 is a quad rotor and the zenmuse is the 2D stabilized gimbal hanging from the bottom of the craft. I have tilt control through my radio and the gimbal just keeps the gopro flat and level regardless of what the craft is doing.

 

[muleskinner]

That's pretty cool! I'm ordering a phantom 2 this week along with the fat shark predator v2.

Any recommendations?

 

[rockdog]

Dang, that was pretty cool Spenc. But who's inside watching those gauges? Hmm, busted! Now if you could just figure out how to mount a gun in tandem with the camera. The farmers out there would pay you to play in their fields

 

[spencurai]

That's pretty cool! I'm ordering a phantom 2 this week along with the fat shark predator v2.

Any recommendations?

As to where to buy or what to buy?

IF you are just going to be doing fun FPV flying, there are better platforms out there than the Phantom. Few platforms will give you the flight times of the phantom 2 doing gopro filming without dropping some serious coin. If you are new to quad rotors, get a 100$ quad to learn on first then give it to your kid. Once you're comfortable with flight controls then take the phantom out and fire it up. I left the gimbal and gopro off for a couple weeks so I could enjoy the 20+ minute flight times because as soon as all the gear gets strapped on, you are pushing your luck with 15 minutes flight times. It's painful to buy those extra batteries but do it anyway because you'll not be pleased with flying the thing 20 minutes every couple of hours. I'm considering a couple more batteries and another charger but I've not blown through all 3 of my batteries rapid fire since I've been filming as I usually review the flight and then go fly the next battery.

Dang, that was pretty cool Spenc. But who's inside watching those gauges? Hmm, busted! Now if you could just figure out how to mount a gun in tandem with the camera. The farmers out there would pay you to play in their fields

The gauges watch themselves these days and I'm trying to avoid a visit from the feds for weaponizing a drone

 

[rockdog]

I don't think the farmers would rat you out to the Feds! Well, maybe not if you shot enough dogs. I didn't know the gauges watched themselves these days. It's been 35 years since I was in a wellhead control room in the middle of the great salt lake. Damn, I'm old!

 

[spencurai]

I don't think the farmers would rat you out to the Feds! Well, maybe not if you shot enough dogs. I didn't know the gauges watched themselves these days. It's been 35 years since I was in a wellhead control room in the middle of the great salt lake. Damn, I'm old!

Did you work with a guy by the last name of Reed from southern Utah? His son is the wellsite leader out here and said his pops did work on the GSL. I can watch gauges from my phone these days

I'm headed out into the desert to find more filming locations...stay tuned! Going to look for wild horses, crazy rock formations in Fantasy Canyon, and maybe some cliff flying by the white river.

 

[Skylinerider]

I think Fantasy Canyon would look very cool as a fly-thru.

 

[sixstringsteve]

I think Fantasy Canyon would look very cool as a fly-thru.

Kinda like this?

[video=youtube;Hsul-ePjlnA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hsul-ePjlnA[/video]

 

[sixstringsteve]

Killer footage spencurai. I've never seen heli footage so clean and crips without wobbles. This might be the footage I needed to push me over the edge to buy a copter. Did you use any image stabilization in post production?

Do you need a special license when flying FPV? I thought I heard something about that.

 

[Skylinerider]

Kinda like this?

Very much like that yes

 

[rockdog]

Did you work with a guy by the last name of Reed from southern Utah? His son is the wellsite leader out here and said his pops did work on the GSL. I can watch gauges from my phone these days

I'm headed out into the desert to find more filming locations...stay tuned! Going to look for wild horses, crazy rock formations in Fantasy Canyon, and maybe some cliff flying by the white river.

That was so long ago I can hardly remember any of there names. I was a roustabout. I mostly worked on the production barge where they were pumping the wellhead. Hell there's oil under there at almost every place they drilled. It was high sulfur, and they were trying to figure out how to get it to shore. The EPA wouldn't allow it to be piped so they were moving it to shore in big transport barges. I guess it wasn't worth it.

 

[spencurai]

Killer footage spencurai. I've never seen heli footage so clean and crips without wobbles. This might be the footage I needed to push me over the edge to buy a copter. Did you use any image stabilization in post production?

Do you need a special license when flying FPV? I thought I heard something about that.

Kinda like this?

Lol that guy got a lot of the same shots as I did today that I'm just downloading from the camera. That guy is REALLY good and had some excellent weather conditions. I would bet a dollar he shot it with almost exactly the same rig I have as I can see some tell tale prop balance issues in his footage that I get from time to time...it's subtle but it's there. The big difference is his FPV setup...it is a matter of luck to get good shots when you can't see what the camera does in real time. He either ran a few of those shots backwards or he is an incredible pilot...I would venture a guess at a little of both.

As for a special license, it is my understanding that if you can see the rig, you don't need a license. When you leave your line of sight then you are in violation. To be 100% legal one must have a spotter if you are wearing FPV goggles which isn't a bad idea because it's really hard to judge distance through the lens of a gopro.

The stability comes from the gyro stabilized Zenmuse gimbal I have on the bottom of the rig...it's pricey but it's worth it!

That was so long ago I can hardly remember any of there names. I was a roustabout. I mostly worked on the production barge where they were pumping the wellhead. Hell there's oil under there at almost every place they drilled. It was high sulfur, and they were trying to figure out how to get it to shore. The EPA wouldn't allow it to be piped so they were moving it to shore in big transport barges. I guess it wasn't worth it.

Yeah it's out there but nobody wants to deal with the super salt water anymore I guess.

 

[spencurai]

The latest practice session. I found the horses and really windy conditions at fantasy canyon that almost claimed some props. I also came across an open gate on some private property and got some good footage before the cabalero sheep herders could get me! I left a case of coconut water at their camp as a thank you

[video=youtube_share;c2jQARI29ZY]http://youtu.be/c2jQARI29ZY[/video]

 

[muleskinner]

That's some pretty cool footage. Have you bought a FPV system yet? I ordered my copter last weekend, but I wasn't sure which FPV to get. It looks like most people recommend the Fatshark Predator V2, but I'd rather spend a little more money if there is a big difference in units.

Also, how is the antenna range? I see some people going with bigger/better antenna's, is it necessary?

I ordered-

DJI Phantom 2 w/gimbal
4 extra batteries
8 extra props
1 hard case
1 gopro black
3 gopro batteries
chargers
battery tester

Lets see some more videos!

 

[spencurai]

I got the fatshark attitude v2 with the DJI iOSD so I can have telemetry displayed. I used the 250mw transmitter that came in the attitude kit and soldered everything together. I have done a couple flights to get used to the FPV...you have to be really careful as you can't tell how far away you are from things through the gopro lens.

When you get the phantom, TAKE OFF THE GIMBAL and LEARN HOW TO FLY!! The gimbal is relatively fragile and you get only a few wrecks before it gets destroyed which is 370$ to replace. Once you have learned to fly line of sight, then hook everything else up. You will crash, fly only in grass parks so you're air frame doesn't take such a beating. Don't fly around kids and other people because A) if you hit them with that thing they will be SEVERLY injured and B) EVERYONE wants to come and talk to you, these things take an incredible amount of concentration to fly and people talking to you is a great way to crash.

If you follow the DJI training guide you will get the gist of things relatively quick. If you have any questions give me a call 801-648-9499 -Spence

 

[muleskinner]

I got the fatshark attitude v2 with the DJI iOSD so I can have telemetry displayed. I used the 250mw transmitter that came in the attitude kit and soldered everything together. I have done a couple flights to get used to the FPV...you have to be really careful as you can't tell how far away you are from things through the gopro lens.

When you get the phantom, TAKE OFF THE GIMBAL and LEARN HOW TO FLY!! The gimbal is relatively fragile and you get only a few wrecks before it gets destroyed which is 370$ to replace. Once you have learned to fly line of sight, then hook everything else up. You will crash, fly only in grass parks so you're air frame doesn't take such a beating. Don't fly around kids and other people because A) if you hit them with that thing they will be SEVERLY injured and B) EVERYONE wants to come and talk to you, these things take an incredible amount of concentration to fly and people talking to you is a great way to crash.

If you follow the DJI training guide you will get the gist of things relatively quick. If you have any questions give me a call 801-648-9499 -Spence

Cool, I have the attitude on its way. Are you FPV'ing through the gopro with the gimbal? That seems like it would be extremely hard to fly?

I've been practicing out here in the desert with a cheap copter for a couple weeks, I hope it's easier to fly than this thing is...

I'll probably be calling you when it all arrives

 

[spencurai]

Cool, I have the attitude on its way. Are you FPV'ing through the gopro with the gimbal? That seems like it would be extremely hard to fly?

I've been practicing out here in the desert with a cheap copter for a couple weeks, I hope it's easier to fly than this thing is...

I'll probably be calling you when it all arrives

The phantom is a lot easier to fly in theory. It is fast, nimble, and expensive to repair if you yardsale it but you will be pleased with it! Keep it in phantom mode before you switch to Naza mode so you can get used to how it feels. Once you are in naza mode DO NOT EVER enable full manual. Flips with an expensive quad are dumb. Attitude mode is fun as it self levels but at full speed it tends to slowly lose altitude and you can smack into the ground at full speed if you're not careful.

Very very cool. A few times you come close to the ground but I don't see any dust kicked up. Was that just the terrain or do these things kick up very little dust by design? This would be an awesome thing to have at Speed Week.

It kicks up dust...if you put it over your head it moves a LOT of air. I will be at speedweek for sure!

 

[spencurai]

Learning obstacle avoidance and flying some cool stuff!

[video=youtube_share;9OHS7SaMUlo]http://youtu.be/9OHS7SaMUlo[/video]