So, you've got a drone, you've got a license, you've booked a gig so what do you need to do now? In this blog, we look at the five most important drone safety considerations you need to have before you think about flying a drone for work. Everyone thinks production location planning is an easy task. You find somewhere perfect and you just send the drone up and go for it, right? Maybe in an ideal world - but this isn’t the case when it comes to flying drones commercially for production. It’s especially true when it comes to selecting a location where a drone can legally fly.

If you are planning to use a drone in your production to get some outstanding shots of the location, or just to add a unique perspective to your footage, here are some crucial things you need to consider before you take to the skies.

Safety first is a good phrase to live by when out on a production. Yes, getting an epic shot or piece of footage is crucial but not if it means sacrificing your drone safety! Let's be clear, drones in the wrong hands are dangerous - but, big BUT right there, drones can be safe and awesome when you have a smart drone operator.

It may seem like a bore or a touch pedantic but an expert drone operator will consider all these things before they set their drone soaring. If you have a drone safety savvy operator you will not only get amazing shots but you won't have to risk your neck for them either.

 

drone photography

Image by LA Media 

You Must Respect the Drone Danielson!

Take the wise words of Mr. Miyagi to heart! A typical misconception about drones is that they can go anywhere, right? True, to an extent, yes they can physically go most places, drones are very versatile and nimble but unless you want to find yourself in hot water with the law, here are key considerations for drone safety every production manager should consider before the day of the shoot. Just because you can fly it doesn't mean you should!

Cowboy drone operators will risk it, but if the CAA is notified you could find yourself under investigation for reckless flying or worse charged by the police for endangering the public. Drones are a serious piece of machinery, just because some can be bought cheaply as toys you shouldn't lower your guard when operating one as they can do damage.

Do you have production control over the required drone flying area?

The law is quite specific about this and covers people, property, and roads. If you have full control of these elements then you should be good to go flying. Make sure that you get a completed risk assessment form from the drone pilot in advance of your flying date. If you do not have full control then you will need a control method statement from the drone company. All drone flights should be operated within areas that are under the control of the production or which have been made safe using the practices suggested in the control methods statement.

 

drone photography of rail bridge: Drone safety tip, ensure you have correct permissions

Image by LA Media 

Buyer Beware: Is it legal and am I liable?

The drone company should advise you regarding the legal requirements of any flying you intend to undertake and investigate the nature of the airspace you are intending to fly. The drone company should make all relevant contact with CAA, NATS, and any air traffic control (military and civilian) that may be operating in the area you intend to fly and keep you informed regarding any issues.

IMPORTANT: One-man operations will often ask for production assistance when implementing control measures in a flying zone. Be aware that compliance with this request can create an insurance liability to the production.

Cleared for landing?

Does your location have safe landing and take-off areas for the drone operators to use? More importantly, is there an area that can be considered an emergency fly away zone should it be required? The drone company will advise you as to the suitability of any areas you might suggest for these purposes.

 

drone photography of Orkney

Image by LA Media 

Best laid plans

Where possible, and affordable, it is advised to take the drone operators out on a location recce with the production Director, DOP, production manager, and health and safety adviser.

Houston, we don’t have a problem!

It is critical when flying the drone that any pilot has ‘Line Of Sight’. They must see the drone clearly at all times when flying, no excuses! So, when considering locations it is important to anticipate any possible obstructions to the pilot's “Line Of Sight’. Obstructions can be as simple as trees, other buildings, a change in the ground levels when flying low and, most commonly, distance from the pilot.

This may seem obvious but it is worth saying, Drones become very small as they fly away from the pilot and even, therefore, become riskier when, and if, the drone disappears into the background they are flying against. Crossing in front of bright sunlight for example will be very challenging for most pilots.

 

drone photography of Edinburgh castle

Image by LA Media

 

Although this may seem a little scary, if you are working with a good and reputable drone operator they will help you through this experience and make it as straightforward as possible. If you keep these 5 key drone safety considerations in mind when picking your location you will avoid some of these easily made mistakes.

Check out the rest of our website to see some of the drone projects we've worked on and if you have any questions e-mail us at louise@lamedia.co.uk or just give us a call on 0131 622 0220.

If you enjoyed this blog don’t forget to follow us on: TwitterFacebook, and Instagram for your daily dose of media & drone chat!

Wishing you happy and safe flying!

 

 

 

 

LA Media has been flying drones for the last seven years. We’ve flown for Netflix shows, like The Crown and The Witcher, feature film productions, high-end commercials and have done lots of work for television broadcasters from all around the world. Check out our drone reels at lamedia.co.uk or visit our YouTube channel to see what we do.

 

large drone and various screens for viewing in remote location

Now we are putting together a new drone set-up for 2021. It's a great and exciting project and our new package is the result of our extensive experience. We believe it will help keep us at the top of the drone tree and that it could also help you to get started.

Details of our new drone setup will appear in the following blog but meanwhile here are some of the things you should consider if you are about to go out on your own.

Buying a drone

Buy the drone you need (not the one you like). Spend a good deal of time considering what you want your drone set-up to do before you spend any money on it.

high end filming drone set-up

Creative filming, survey work, health and safety inspections, area mapping, emergency services… it's your decision. Remember - it will be an expensive disappointment if you buy a drone not fit for your purpose. 

Tell any retailer what you need it for and they should have the expertise to steer you in the right direction. Spend a lot of time looking at reviews of the drones you are considering and listen to what is being said. It costs you nothing but time and it all helps you make the best decision.

Octocopter drone sitting on grass

 

10 Things to consider

1. Camera - what camera does your drone carry? This will determine the quality of the picture you can offer a client and establishes the size and power of the drone you need to be flying. 

2. Interchangeable lens system - does your drone camera offer a choice of lenses? This is about being able to give a variety of choices to your client when it comes to shot options.

3. Flight time - how long can your drone stay in the air? Clients like to fly all the time so you must give consideration to flight durations and establish how many batteries you will need to buy should you want to fly a typical eight-hour day and include them in your drone set-up accordingly.

4. Recharge to recycle - will you need to recharge/recycle flight batteries during a shoot day? If the answer is yes, how will you do it? Adding a portable generator to your drone set-up is a great way of doing this but often requires a second person to monitor and operate it and can also be expensive.

5. Viewing the shot -  how will your client view the shots you are flying? While it can be a simple as looking over your shoulder at your controller device e.g. your phone, you may want to consider other means such as an HDMI cable feed from your controller (if it has one) to a separate client monitor. More spending for you but makes for happier clients.

6. File types and formats - what file types and formats can your drone camera deliver to the client? Often overlooked as a detail until the end of a day's flying it is an issue that can cause you real problems. The data transfer time of your shots should also be built into your flying schedule. You should know what file type is best suited to the client's post-production workflow and will the client bring you a drive to dump things onto or are they expecting you to supply one? You should ask all these questions before the flight day. The more file types and formats your drone can deliver the better for both you and your client.

7. Data Cards - always have plenty of spares as you may need to change them out if they get filled up. It's also good practice that before you perform any risky flight, such as over water, put a new card in. This makes sure that you do not lose any data in the event of a catastrophic incident occurring.

8. Take-off/landing pad - this is a great part of your health and safety protocol as it is easy to see and therefore those around you can avoid it without difficulty. It also gives you a dust-free platform and a safe flat surface when you are on ground that is uneven or overgrown - a most frequent occurrence on shoot days.

9. A Table - this may sound like a flippant tool but from our experience, it is a vital and practical part of a professional presentation. When it comes to how the client views your overall operation a good table provides you with a safe and clean working surface for your gear and it stops you from getting onto your knees and scrambling about in the mud.

10. Spares and parts - these will save your sanity on any shoot. I can guarantee you that things will break, go wrong, or just get lost when you are out flying. If you can afford it, as part of your drone set-up, you should always have a full set of spares and the tools you need to fit them with. Most pilots are now operating with a second, and even a third, back up drone, just in case.

 

Vulcan UAV Drone with remote controllers and camera attached

 

If you have any questions, or just want to learn more about what we do, e-mail us at [email protected] or check out the rest of our website.

There are those who would say a drone is always a drone, but in my opinion, if it isn’t flying then it's not doing what a drone should do.

DJI has developed and built an amazing array of aerial technologies for cinematographers to fly while at the same time they have developed spectacular cameras for these drones to carry. It seems rather shortsighted not to use these incredible cameras simply because the drone is not being flown.

drone flying over woodland, mountains in background

Recently we took the propellers off a DJI Phantom 4 pro, stuck it through the window of a car, secured the Phantom rig with safety tethers, held the rig by hand, and managed to get some fantastic, high-quality footage from its camera as we drove around the City of Dundee. Shots that, legally, may never have been flown.

Another occasion was a marketing company's request for high-quality stills showing the views of Edinburgh Castle from one of their city centre properties on George Street.  Sounds like a job for a drone but the challenges of the shoot lay in the fact that the location property was in the centre of Edinburgh. Interior work going on meant no access to the building's windows to shoot through and the client wanted high quality, printable views of Edinburgh Castle as seen from the varying heights of the six floors of the building involved.

A simple job that almost any drone could execute quickly and effectively. The drone would provide the remote camera control, stabilized pictures, and wireless viewing on the ground of the pictures being taken and most importantly a drone could be flown quickly and accurately to the various floor heights from which we wanted to take our pictures.

However, following an on-site visit, it was clearly evident that the location of the building meant that it would have been totally illegal and unsafe to fly a drone. So, we just had to come up with another feasible way of doing things while still taking advantage of everything else the drone and its camera proposition offered.

We decide to use our Inspire1 with its X5R camera as it provided solutions to most of the challenges we were facing. But in order to use the drone, but not as a drone, we had to come up with a way of getting the Inspire 1 up and down the exterior of the building safely, without flying it and taking our shots as we went along. The following is a brief step-by-step for what we came up with:

1. Take the props off the Inspire 1

2. Create a hanging harness to carry the Inspire 1

3. Put a secured jib arm on top of the building involved

4. Purchase lots of mountaineering ropes and belays

5. Feed this rope from the top of the building to the ground via a pulley system mounted on the head of the Jib

6. Connect the Inspire 1 hanging harness to the rope with more belays

7. From the top of the building, using the rope - pull the Inspire 1 up to the heights required

8. Take your picture when at the correct height

9. Repeat at the next height and so on until all shots have been acquired

10. Lower the Inspire 1 hanging harness back to the ground

11. Deliver shots to the client

 

This is a brief summary of our solution and I will not bore you with the in-depth details of our particular solution as there were many. Things I have assumed that any reader of this article should understand would require attention before executing this particular solution - hazard assessments, weight loading of ropes, breaking strains of belay fittings, communications at a distance, personnel involved, traffic control, anchoring points, overall health and safety…it is an unfinished and lengthy list.

The point I am trying to make is that when you look at a drone you should think of it as two parts: one - a flying platform, the other - simply a camera. Once the propellers are off the flying rig it can be held, mounted, or placed almost anywhere you would a traditional video camera. These cameras and lenses are expensive, so come on guys and gals let's make the most of them!

 

Visit our website lamedia.co.uk and if you have any questions or think we got something wrong or simply want to let us know what we missed... e-mail us at louise@lamedia.co.uk or give us a call on 0131 622 0220

Woohoo, it’s one day till the Euro Cup FPV Racing Championship in Ibiza, which takes place October 7th – 9th 2016. This is one of the biggest FPV events in the Drone Racing calendar. It is also a qualifier for the FPV World Championship, which will be held this year in Hawaii. 250 of Europe’s best pilots and teams will gather in Ibiza to take part in this awesome event. The pilots will be competing for a shot at the 4 Euro Race Cup Titles: Individual Drone Race Cup, Freestyle Cup, Team Relay Cup, and the Drag Race for the Euro 2016 Manufacturers Cup.

About 2016 Euro Cup FPV Racing Championship

The organisers of the event have even set up an Olympic-style village, called ‘The Champions Village’ where the pilots can stay. The village will become the centre of operations and where the after-show celebrations will take place with live music, food, and FPV fun! It will be a base where the pilots can meet up, share tips, swap crash stories, and set up for the participants, guest star FPV racers, and the FPV Stig. It is going to be FPV Racing paradise. Even the amazing and legendary Rotor Riot Team will be in attendance.

We are pleased to announce, that this year, for the first time, Scotland will be represented by a Scottish team at the Euro Cup. Due to the success of the FPV Scotland Go Fund Me page, Scotland’s first team will be making the pilgrimage to Spain to compete in FPV Drone Racing. The Scotland team was selected from the winners at the inaugural Scottish Open Championship which was held outside of Dundee this year. The five-man team have high hopes of Scotland making its mark in the FPV world.

Euro Cup FPV Racing: Drone facing a sunset

 

To see the first Scottish FPV Open Nationals and to meet the pilots click here.

Stay tuned and we will keep you updated with their progress. Thank you for reading!

 

Don’t forget to follow us on TwitterFacebook, and Instagram for your daily dose of media chat!

Visit our website lamedia.co.uk and if you have any questions, e-mail us at [email protected] or give us a call on 0131 622 0220

In August 2016 the very first Scottish FPV Nationals took place in a field near Dundee. The purpose of creating this event was to find a Scottish Champion and a Scottish national team of six pilots that could represent Scotland in the Euro Cup in October 2016.

 Video by LA Media '2016 Scottish FPV Open Championship'

 

Within the FPV world, The Euro Cup is an important global event as it is a qualifier for the World Championship event, which will take place in Hawaii this year.

Winners get huge cash prizes and gain recognition and prestige within the drone world for their team. When LA Media discovered this was happening we happily volunteered our production services to help raise awareness of this newly budding sport in Scotland.

Prior to this Scottish Championship taking place, any Scottish FPV pilot who wanted to take part would have had to go south of the border in order to compete for a place in the British FPV team and if successful, then move on into the global racing scene as a member of that British team. While this has been all well and good recently, it was felt by many Scottish FPV pilots that Scotland should create it own opportunities for Scottish pilots to get into the FPV global racing scene.

One of the most accepted paths to achieving this was through the creation of a Scottish FPV Team that would represent Scotland in national competitions. The FPV scene in England is already well developed with lucrative sponsorship deals and is dominated by professional pilots. Therefore, every year it is the same individuals who rule the scene.

While there is already a club level of competition going on in Scotland the number of pilots involved is small. In order to encourage new flyers, club flyers, and hobbyists to take part, it was felt that an Open Scottish National event was required to help do this.

Scottish FPV Drone Racing

Image by LA Media ‘FPV Drone Racing at 2016 Scottish FPV Championships' 

Enter ERSA

To this end, a web community of FPV pilots called FPV Scotland approached ERSA, the European Rotor Sports Association and they asked ERSA to recognise Scotland as an independent nation in order to allow Scotland to send a Scottish National team to their next event The Euro Cup.

Happily, ERSA granted this recognition and FPV Scotland then followed this up by organising the first Scottish FPV Open Championship in order to find the Scottish FPV pilots to make the team with.

Scotland in the Euro Cup in October 2016

The Euro Cup is an important global event in the FPV global racing world as it is also a qualifier for the World Championship event that is taking place in Hawaii this year.

To have a Scottish national team take part in the Euro Cup is a big step for FPV in Scotland as it is a level of competition of which most Scottish pilots have no experience. By taking part in the Euro Cup, a massive level of experience and learning will be gained by the Scottish pilots involved and through

To have a Scottish national team take part in the Euro Cup is a big step for FPV in Scotland as it is a level of competition of which most Scottish pilots have no experience.

By taking part in the Euro Cup, a massive level of experience and learning will be gained by the Scottish pilots involved and through

It is also an opportunity to raise positive Scottish awareness of drones in general by the proper marketing of the new National Team.

dsc_1836

Image by LA Media ‘FPV Drone Racing at 2016 Scottish FPV Championships' 

Why is it important?

Drones have already developed into a massive global industry on many levels and the development of the industrial growth surrounding drones can be seen particularly in China, USA, Korea and in England.

It is an industry founded on a global demand for all things associated with drones and their expanding use in everyday life helps keeps that market demand high.

The consumer drone market is just starting to hit its stride – largely due to advances made by market leader DJI. These updates make drones more reliable and easier to use for photography and video.

Scottish FPV Drone Racing

Image by LA Media ‘FPV Drone Racing at 2016 Scottish FPV Championships' 

 

The most rapid commercial market growth has come from the small RPAS sector - consumers, hobbyists but mostly leisure flyers.

According to The Royal Aeronautical Society, this is one trend that is set to continue because “the amount of investment is less, the technology is more versatile, more readily available, accessible, and easier to use” than existing methods.

The EU Commission, Lords Select Committee in their report on ‘Civil use of remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS) in the EU’, found that a new drone leisure sector was emerging due to the decreasing size, cost, and versatility.

Drones have officially become mainstream, now they are being used by the general public as their ‘personal camera’, offering new types of ‘holiday snap’.

Moreover, Sky has recently announced that it is investing $1m (£760,000) in the US-based Drone Racing League, and will begin broadcasting its events from next month. The first live races outside the US, including one in London, are due to take place next year.

Scottish FPV Drone Racing

Image by LA Media ‘FPV Drone Racing at 2016 Scottish FPV Championships' 

Why now?

The technology surrounding drones and the applications of drones are changing almost on a daily basis and this speed of development allows for almost any country interested in promoting an industry founded on drones to create one supplying marketable product to a hungry global market.

There is virtually nothing in Scotland to exploit this growing marketplace. This does not mean, however, that the skills and people are not there to do so.

What is required is the stimulus of political and financial support to develop the industrial research and a range of products to meet the needs of drones while at the same time creating a manufacturing proposition that could meet demand across the field of drones.

FPV racing is already established as interest around the globe and would be a great starting point for launching interest and industry in Scotland as the marketing potential of having a first-ever Scottish National FPV Team are clearly there.

It is a strategy that could help develop the sport in Scotland and allow opportunities that would go a long way towards helping to develop a public profile and therefore a media interest around a Scottish Team and potentially grow the number of people who might take up FPV racing.

LA Media is proud to be a supporter of Scottish FPV Racing and we can't wait to see how this sport develops!

To see the first Scottish FPV Open Nationals click here.

To support the Scottish team click here.

 

Thank you for reading!

Don’t forget to follow us on TwitterFacebook and Instagram for your daily dose of media chat!

Visit our website lamedia.co.uk and if you have any questions, e-mail us at [email protected] or give us a call on 0131 622 0220