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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Advise on octocopter

Well prepare to drop around a minimum of $15k for a DSLR and around $25-$30k for a RED. I looked into last year and the insurance alone is going to cost you (mostly liability cause these can kill people). and those things crash all the time for no reason so do your research for sure good sir :)
 
Neil Dearman said:
...If I were you try this and play around with it used it for many shoots including for TV/Movies and its a great start!!!...
Click to expand...

Wow..really what shows and in what context did you use it..? like for wide establishing shots..?
 
Yeah did a Television shoot in TN (can't say what it was about NDA signed) but lets just say it involves things that play in dirt and climb rocks and make a ton of noise and we used them for Arial shots and as long as the weather was nice it looked great in post :)
 
If you need aerial shots, I'd advise hiring a pro.
It takes far longer than most people realize to learn to fly drones (or any RC) well.
They are fun and all but, as many here can tell you, never underestimate just how dangerous they can be.
 
it looks like when the rules come in you will need to be a licensed commercial heli pilot to be legal.
 
Dan,
Assuming you haven't been flying RC helicopters or multi rotors for that matter, before you hop on the S1000 train, I would highly recommend you take the DJI Phantom 2 w/ H3-3D GoPro 3-axis gimbal a try. The shots you get out of it can be stunning, take a look at this early video from the 2-axis H2-2D for example:
https://vimeo.com/71685366

The S1000 is fantastic, paired with the Zenmuse Z15-5D 3-axis gimbal, your 5D footage couldn't look smoother especially with the A2 flight controller w/ GPS installed, highly recommended if you're a decent pilot as well as a good tech with some electrical background. Another way to achieve 15min flight time is to put 2x 8000mAH 6S batteries mounted side by side.

Hope this helps, if you need assistance with configuring your S1000 or a decked out Phantom 2 w/ H3-3D w/ video transmitter, motion control, and the whole shebang, let me know.
 
The smallest rig we have used a blackmagic on is a Droidworx AD4 (HL). For a quadcopter, it is still a very powerful machine.... But a "slightly" safer introduction than a hex or octo. You simply shouldn't be learning on those things unless you can find a good teacher and a very safe place to fly.

Get a Phantom and take it from there. With the right settings, you can get some interesting shots. I shot these after about 1 week with the Phantom.


 
If you are prepared to do some work yourself you can get a very good heli for under $10k. This one I built a while ago and have flown with Epic about 200 flights now and done feature film and many comercial and and industrial jobs. This is what I'm using:

Carbone frame $500 (china noname)
Speed controllers $800 (Castle ice 50)
FC $1200 (DJi wookong)
Motors $400 (taro 4000 series)
Gimbal $1000 (famous hobby)
Gimbal control (Alexmos) $200
Video transmitter $6
Hand controllers 2x $300 (futuba)
9Ah Lipo battery 8x $170 (china noname)
Props 8x $20 (china noname)

About put in $6000 in this system now and flying time for Epic is 11-12 min. Maximum altitude I have flown is 400 feet.
Perfectly balanced with cameraweight of 3kg (6,6 lbs). Just small optics with no FF.
With Canon 5D the flying time is 15-16 min, but if more then 3kg, I lose flying time and control rapidly. (I never go heavier, just tested)

http://www.reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?84561-My-Octacopter-rig&p=1309692&viewfull=1#post1309692


Here is a flight me and my daughter did recently.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOeSS9zv4vQ
 
Dan McCain said:
Which camera/s were you using for those clips?
Click to expand...

Just a GoPro.... Set at 1080/60p, narrow or medium FOV and ProTune, I find it gives quite a nice look.

In the right lighting, it really can create some amazing shots... and the new H3-3D gimbal looks to be amazingly smooth. If you go down this route, i would suggest getting a better tx/rx though, as the stock one is poor. We use a futaba TJ8 with it and it makes for much smoother copter movements.
 
Dan,

Getting into a octocopter is a big deal, it's a lot of cash up in the sky, and when you factor an epic in it, then you have a lot more. Be prepared if you go that route to put a lot of time into, and it's not something you'd get right away to be able to get great shots. I own two copters, a 4 and 8. The 8 turned out to be too much work for the project I got because of the set up times, and the amount of effort it took away from focusing on the bigger project of making a 5 part TV series. So it's basically sat for 7 months. We opted for a small version of the eye-friod 4 based on the droid works frame.

I choose Infinite Jib based just outside of Toronto, because they can custom build your craft, and give you comprehensive training. They are also around to answer questions and help trouble shoot/repair.

http://infinitejib.com

The black armour drone is incredible... but seriously expensive.

I would highly recommend getting a few crafts, certainly the DJI phantom, but also a little MXQ blade to practice flying. You want to learn with the smallest consequence.

FYI, I'm interested in selling my Red epic equipt Skyjib 8 Pro for 17k complete (pictured) You can then get training by them.

Pro-8-with-Camera-for-the-Website.jpg


Hope this helps.
 
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