Haven't Bought, Suggestions Welcome Want to Fly over Water

[Janet Turner]

Good Afternoon,
I have just signed up for a UAV training course at my local Airport in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. I am 47 year old female, mechanical engineer, and I was recently separated from my employment at General Motors. I am moving to Ecuador and would like to take a drone with me for the following reasons:
1. Fun way to explore my new country and surrounding area.
2. I live in hotel/condo and would possibly like to get into making videos for weddings/special events.
3. I have quite a few real estate friends and developers there who could use aerial photography in their business.

My expectations are not for this to bring in money for me to live, just the odd spare money and / or just to go out over the ocean on which I live and watch the wildlife during mating season.

Given I want a drone to roam over the water (Pacific ocean) once I get really good at controlling it, what would your suggestion be for me to look at purchasing. I really know almost nothing now, but will be much further ahead in a couple weeks after my course at the airport. I also plan on taking a UAV photography course at my local Humber College in the near future.

Thanks guys, not expectations but would love anyones thoughts that may have some good advice.

JT

 

[Sinisalo]

Get the phantom 3 Professional, it is on sale now for $999 and if you buy directly from DJI they offer free same day delivery, set up, and training.
"Free same-day delivery, setup, and flight training.
A trained expert can hand-deliver your new product (in as fast as 4 hours after payment confirmed) to the exact time and place you choose.
Your Expert will spend up to an hour helping you unbox your product, give you a guided tour, get it calibrated, walk you through the app, and get you flying.
The best part is this service is FREE with your purchase from DJI."

There is possibly another Phantom set to be released soon (according to rumors, nothing confirmed) however it seems whenever DJI releases a new Phantom they are letting the early adopters basically beta test them when it is supposed to be a finished product so there are lots of crash reports in the beginning.

The Phantom 3 Pro has very long range, especially over the ocean (just make sure you turn off VPS if you fly close to the water). You probably want to buy the extra batteries and a hard case before you travel so you can save money on import duties (just make sure you bring the batteries in your carry on). A hard case looks more professional if you do intend to do some paid work on the side, a backpack is more versatile so you can go for a hike etc so you may want one of each.

Have fun!

 

[Janet Turner]

Thank you I am seriously considering the Phantom, with my very limited knowledge. Another question, which apps are the best for the Phantoms and what size ipad is ideal for this application. That's a very good price.

 

[Sinisalo]

Thank you I am seriously considering the Phantom, with my very limited knowledge. Another question, which apps are the best for the Phantoms and what size ipad is ideal for this application. That's a very good price.

In the beginning just use the DJI Go app until you get really comfortable. I sometimes use Autopilot by Autoflightlogic and another App called Vertical Studio but I really don't use them much. Another one that I am a beta tester for is Litchi, I haven't got a chance to use it yet though. If you crash using a 3rd party app and DJI determines it was the fault of the app, they won't cover it under warranty.

I use my iPhone 6 plus and iPad Mini 4, the Mini 4 has the brightest screen with lowest reflectance available on the market today and although some will disagree with me I believe Apple beats android as far as reliability and you don't really want the app to crash during a flight (it is recoverable but inconvenient). Also it seems that with the iPhone 6 and iPad Mini 4 the video lag is very minimal, some android users report bad video lag.

 

[ep 1234]

Good Afternoon,
I have just signed up for a UAV training course at my local Airport in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. I am 47 year old female, mechanical engineer, and I was recently separated from my employment at General Motors. I am moving to Ecuador and would like to take a drone with me for the following reasons:
1. Fun way to explore my new country and surrounding area.
2. I live in hotel/condo and would possibly like to get into making videos for weddings/special events.
3. I have quite a few real estate friends and developers there who could use aerial photography in their business.

My expectations are not for this to bring in money for me to live, just the odd spare money and / or just to go out over the ocean on which I live and watch the wildlife during mating season.

Given I want a drone to roam over the water (Pacific ocean) once I get really good at controlling it, what would your suggestion be for me to look at purchasing. I really know almost nothing now, but will be much further ahead in a couple weeks after my course at the airport. I also plan on taking a UAV photography course at my local Humber College in the near future.

Thanks guys, not expectations but would love anyones thoughts that may have some good advice.

JT