By Oren Schauble And Roger Sollenberger

Intro to aerial photography.......................................................

Getting started...............................................................................
Getting in the air............................................................................
Flying for great photos...............................................................
Behind the shot with @bdorts................................................
Cheat sheet for amazing aerials.............................................
GoPro settings: What do they mean?.................................
Photo editing...................................................................................
A quick guide to removing GoPro distortion...................
Editing a photo: Step by step..................................................
Planning to get better at aerial photography...................
Finding a place to shoot.............................................................
An interview with Jonathan Mayo-Buttry..........................
Behind the shot with @landforce...........................................
Behind the shot with @itsreuben...........................................
An interview with Craig Coker.................................................

3
5
6
7
8
10
12
13
13
14
15
17
20
21
22
24

INTRODUCTION
Drone technology and camera technology are on converging courses. The twin
history of flight and photography actually dates back to the mid-19th century:
The first aerial photographs were taken from a balloon in 1858, three years after
the invention of the dry-plate camera. But thanks to the smartphone revolution
this convergence is advancing at an incredible rate today, as drone and camera
components both get smaller and more powerful. Now its easier than ever to take
professional-grade photography equipment to the air.
Of course, right now only a very few people are flying their cameras, so today
drones still have a gimmicks edge to them, a way to distinguish yourself as a
photographer capable of capturing the world from a new and unique viewpoint. But
before we know it, our super-charged technology cycle will make flying cameras
widespread and maybe even commonplace.
This leaves us with a few questions. How do we incorporate drones as a tool for
artistic innovation? And what will the aerial perspective mean to us in the future?
And probably most importantly now, the question this book is dedicated to: How do
we take advantage of it today?

A new context
Drones offer us incredible new ways of contextualizing
our subjects, a nearly map-like sense of scale and
complexity. You see the forest, not just the trees, and can
capture something otherwise incomprehensible; just think
of the first time you saw an aerial of the Grand Canyon.
And this perspective has a powerful and lasting effect; it
gets burned into your brain. I mean, whats the first thing
that comes to mind when you think of Hurricane Katrina?
The world around you is really just a huge canvas. Plus,
aerial shots can look simply amazing, and right now
people are eating it up.
And if you like to shoot traditionally with a camera in
hand, the aerial perspective can affect the way we look
at the world from the ground. Larry Bird said his world
changed when one day, playing high school ball, he could
suddenly and clearly in his mind envision the whole court
and all the players moving on it, as if he were looking
down from above. He saw where he was and where
everyone else wasnt, and the game opened itself to him
in a whole new way. He had two perspectives at once.
Drone photography can open the world to you in the
same way, because well have easy access to that kind of
double-vision. How would it feel to look straight out at
your world and directly down at it at the same time?

The wow factor

You can also see the tree within the forest. Drones have
a range of movement and speed that allows you to
make interesting choices in framing our subjects, and
maybe lots of choices in succession, showing how theyre
connected to the environment around them, how they fit
into a scene and move in it. Drones are way more than
a gimmick; theyre storytelling devices that let us show
people a new world, framing landscapes and structures
and people in ways that can amaze you, and that will
definitely amaze the people you show it to.
This book is a quick how-to for aerial photography,
written by a guy who stumbled on success and learned
the formula. Youll learn about the techniques and the
equipment, how to practice and polish the art, and how
to take and share the kinds of photos that will make the
most impact.

GETTING STARTED
The first thing most people I talk to want to
know is whats legal to do. Dont be confused
by the rules! Its actually pretty simple:
Recreational use (taking aerial photographs
for fun) is one hundred percent legal, as long
as you follow some simple ground rules that
well list out for you below. This means you
can get out and practice your aerial shooting
today, drop it on Instagram, and feel proud
and worry-free watching the love roll in.
However, if you want to use drone images to
make money or advertise, thats commercial
use, and for now it requires a special
exemption from the FAA. Its called a Section
333 Exemption, and you need a minimum
of a sport pilots license to qualify. But good
news: Thats true today official regulations
are on the way later in 2016. So unless you
really, really, really need to make some bank
off your aerials right now, we suggest waiting
on applying for that exemption until the
official rules come out, because the FAA
might relax the requirements for certain
types of commercial use.

The Rules:
Here are the basic rules for recreational drone
use in the US.
Dont fly above 400 feet.
Maintain line of sight as you fly.
Avoid other aircraft and stay five

miles away from airports.
Dont fly over crowds or stadiums.
Dont fly near people.
Dont fly over roads, bridges,
hospitals, schools, prisons or other

sensitive or trafficked structures/
infrastructure.
Dont fly over no-fly zones these
include certain metropolitan and
government areas (NYC, Washington, DC,
etc.) as well as national parks and other
areas as determined by the FAA.
Follow local laws and ordinances, such as
standard privacy or trespassing laws.
And always, please exercise common sense.
Worried about those no-fly zones? Dont
be: The FAA plans to launch an app called
B4UFLY, which will advise you of any flight
restrictions in the area, based on your GPS
location. You can also check out Airmap
or similar mobile apps that serve the same
purpose. Plus, many consumer drones today
offer real-time access to this information
through their own apps.

GETTING

IN THE

AIR
READ THE MANUAL
At the risk of stating the obvious, a good
flight manual that comes with the drone
should contain just about everything you
need to know about setting up, flying and
operating your drone. It should also contain
valuable instructions that might spare you
a crash. We cant say this enough: Please,
please read the manual, especially if youre
a first-time pilot.

Prepare for your first flight

First make sure all your batteries are fully
charged.
Youll also want to choose a clear, open
area to fly in not only will this keep you
clear of obstacles, but it ensures the best
GPS connection.

Wait whats GPS? How does it

work in a drone?
Drones use GPS to determine their location
and hold their place in the air. GPS is an
acronym for Global Positioning System,
an American satellite-based navigation
system that provides location information
anywhere on (or just above) Earth as

long you have a clear line of communication

and are connected to enough satellites.
A drone has to talk to several satellites at
once to get a good GPS lock. A good GPS
lock allows the drone to stay in one place,
remember where its home is, and stop and
hold its position in the air when you let go of
the sticks.
Some drones offer a manual flight mode
if GPS signal isnt available. But if youre a
new user, always, always fly with GPS. This
is why you should fly in a clear area with
no structures around that might obstruct
satellite connections.

Ready to fly for real

First power up the controller, then power up
the drone. Next, connect to the drone and
open your mobile app if your drone has one.
Make sure the drone is on a solid, flat surface.
Stand at least a few yards away from it, make
sure that the camera facing away from you,
and take off.

FLYING FOR
GREAT PHOTOS

Start slow
The first few times you take off, you might want to simply play around
a little with your altitude, and then practice landing. When youre
comfortable with that, slowly bring in the directional controls and
yaw controls (rotating the drone).

Orientation
I didnt know it when I started, but orientation is actually one of the
biggest challenges for new pilots. Heres the fix: When youre learning
to fly, always keep the drones camera facing the same direction that
you are. If you turn the drone around to face you, youll be flying nose
in. Its a mirror-image orientation. The direction controls have become
inverted: Your left is the drones right. (Just how an actors stage
left is the audiences right.) This means if you press the stick to send
the drone to your left, the drone will move to its left, which is actually
to your right. If you try to send it forward, it will go backwards, i.e.,
straight at you. Flying nose in can confuse even experienced pilots, so
when youre learning, always keep the drone turned nose out and
away from you, so you and your drone face the same direction.

Clean shots
Another issue you might encounter is having your propellers or
landing gear show up in your shots. To prevent the propellers from
getting into the frame, you can simply tilt your camera angle down just
a few degrees. This is another good reason to fly slowly: If you dont
fly too aggressively youll keep your props and legs out of the frame
the whole time.
Now that weve covered the basics, we can move on to the good stuff.

My best shots always

seem to be the
unplanned ones

BEHIND THE SHOT W/@BDORTS

I headed out to Larch Mountain, Oregon, in search of some new perspectives with
Solo. As I drove up the fog rolled in and light rain pinged the car. We came to a sharp
turn that I thought would make for a cool aerial shot. We took off between some trees,
pretty narrow, but I snaked Solo through them. As I cleared the trees I could see the
road and some low clouds that started to move through the frame. The fog led to
several nice stills, but the winner to me was this one the ribbon of black road and
the fog slipping away out of the trees. I shot at several altitudes, but couldnt capture
the sprawling feel of the fog until I reached about 350 feet, where I had a big field
of view that was much more dynamic than the lower altitudes. My best shots always
seem to be the unplanned ones, and this was definitely one of those times. The shot
that I came back with from this adventure will always be one of my favorites.

CHEAT SHEET
Rule of Thirds - The rule of thirds
is a time-honored law of imagery
(photography, painting, video, etc).
Picture two horizontal lines and two
vertical lines sectioning your image into
nine squares like a tic-tac-toe board.
Youll usually want to place the main
elements in your photos on/near these
lines and the intersections. Why does
this rule work? A slightly off-balance
composition is more interesting and
pleasing, and it actually often looks
more natural than a perfectly centered
subject; after all, the world around us
isnt perfectly centered, and our eyes
are evolutionarily first drawn to things
that are a little out of place. As a bonus,
by locking down these elements youll
naturally create interesting negative
space (empty space; objects are
positive space).

The Syms - We all know what

symmetry is: a subject you can split
right down the middle into identical
halves. Rectangles? Symmetrical. Tilt
that rectangle into a parallelogram and
you lose that symmetry. Symmetry in
photography depends on how much
you show, whether you foreshorten
your subject, how you arrange it in the
composition (straight up vertically?
diagonally? sorta-sorta?). Drones
give you the luxury of playing with
the location of your camera in three
dimensions to get stronger and
weaker effects.

The Lines Are Drawn - Our eyes like

to follow lines. This affinity affects the
way were drawn around an image (or
guided, as a strong composition will at
first pilot our eyes for us). Find lines
from the air -- the cut of a cresting
wave; the finger-like curves of the
wave that landed before it and now
seems to be clutching at the sand as
it reluctantly ebbs out; the scalloped
sand on the beach -- lines can turn a
simple landscape into stories or create
impressions that print on your brain.

CONTINUED >

CHEAT SHEET
Ive Been Framed - As you set
up your shot, pre-visualize the type
of frame your photo will eventually
occupy. Will you post to Instagram or
to Facebook? Wide banners to run
across a web page? What do you plan
to do when you edit: Crop it? Blow it
up? Pre-visualization as a rule of thumb
is good practice, anyway -- it will help
you find your perfect shot that much
easier, and youll also be more primed
to notice surprising nuances.

Light - Often overlooked. Time of day

plays a huge role in the kind of light
you get. High noon shoots usually dont
yield great results. If you find that you
have to shoot during a bright time like
this, dont fly into the sun: Youll get
a washed-out image. The light and
shadows are best during the golden
hours of early morning or late evening.
This can be especially interesting
when shooting nadir shots, with your
camera pointing straight down.

Poetry in Motion - Movement is

usually more interesting than stasis.
A person running, a car on the
road, even the motion of water or
wind through an otherwise static
landscape - they all add dynamism
and a narrative, and subtly imply
unpredictability and an appealing
imbalance. Drones are particularly well
adapted to conveying movement, as
they themselves are objects in motion.

Resolution & FOV

Shoot hi-res stills at up to 12MP with a GoPro HERO4 (set to wide FOV). Youve got
some lower-resolution options at smaller fields of view, but there arent really any
great use cases for them. Best to always shoot at 12MP, then punch in to remove the
wide FOVs fisheye in post. (This basically changes the wide FOV to medium.)

ProTune
Switch ProTune on to unlock access to a bunch of camera settings. Heres a
breakdown of these settings and how to use them, in the order youll find them on
the ProTune menu.

White balance
Your camera comes with white balance set to Auto, and its actually pretty solid -GoPro does this really well on its own. If you want manual control over how warm or
cool your photos look, ProTune lets you adjust white balance. Choose between two
values, 3000K and 6500K (K = Kelvin; white balance is really a temperature shift).
These feels go from a cooler blue feel (3000K) to a warmer yellow (6500K). Dont
want any WB correction? Just go Native.

Color profile
Color and contrast. You have two choices: GoPro, which is highly saturated and
makes the shots pop; or flat, which is best if you want to color correct in post. Start
with GoPro for immediate eye-catching results; choose flat for more flexibility.
You can also shoot with a filter, like the ones from PolarPro, which help with image
and color.

ISO limit
ISO is essentially how sensitive your camera is to light. With GoPro, this sensitivity is
automatically enhanced or enervated digitally; the ISO setting in ProTune allows you
to adjust the limits of this added light. Limits range from 800 (lighter; more grainy)
down to 100 (darker; less grainy). You wont want to touch ISO unless youre shooting
in a location with super low light conditions, like a cave (or at night, obviously).

Sharpness
Adding digital sharpening gives your shots a, well, sharper look. The GoPro menu
allows you to set the level of sharpening that you apply. Leave sharpness at low for
a clean look.

Exposure compensation
Adjusts lightness/darkness. Exposure set to 0 as the default. Your adjustments
affect the compensation exponentially: Set EC to +2.0, for instance, and your images
will be four times brighter. Youll probably want to leave this one at 0, too -- though
dropping exposure a bit can help draw out some cool contrasts, like the variegated
patches of lighter and darker hues of blue in a lake or the ocean.

Snapseed
Great free app from Google for onthe-go mobile photo editing and
enhancements. Highlights include the
selective tool that allows you to edit
certain computer-selected regions of
the photo, along with a great suite of
HDR settings.

Enlight
A paid app, but it has fantastic Skew
settings, with a Distort feature that
helps you correct, while on your mobile
device, the type of distortion found in
GoPro and other cameras.

VSCO
The pros go-to for image tweaking
and filtering. Free, with many additional
filters available for purchase.

GoPro Studio
Will remove fisheye from videos but not
photos; not as useful for photo editing.

Lightroom
The pros choice for desktop
photography editing.

Photoshop Fix
Great for basic mobile editing; files
can be sent right to Lightroom or your
Adobe creative cloud.

Photoshop
The end-all desktop editor for
comprehensive photograph
manipulation, retouching and
improvement.

Removing Distortion - Best

Ways
Lightroom
Import >> Develop >> Lens Correction
>> Auto Profile Corrections (select
your camera model if it does not do so
automatically)

Photoshop
Filter >> Adaptive Wide Angle >>
Fisheye >> Adjust from default if
needed

Enlight
Canvas >> Skew >> Distort

STEP BY STEP

Step 1: Straightened and cropped the

image, following symmetry and leading
line concepts for a great compostition.

Step 2: Used HDR Scape filter to bring

out the shadows, colors and definition in
the photo.

Step 3: Tuned the image. Brought

down the highlights, added warmth
ambiance and contrast.

Step 4: Upon review, a vertical photo

looked better for Instagram, so I added
one last rotation.

This is something that applies for anything you want to be

great at, but is worth the reminder: If you want to be excellent
at shooting aerial photos, get out and shoot, a LOT, and use it
as an excuse to explore the world around you.
1. Dedicate one full battery to
shooting stills
Especially if you mostly fly for video
or just for fun, dont make photos an
afterthought. Get a second battery and
dedicate that battery, every time you
fly, to shooting stills. Shoot for the full
length of the battery until you need
to bring Solo home. Snapping a few
stills in between videos gets it done in
a tight timeline, but to really learn, use
that time to carefully set up shots and
explore with just still photos in mind.

2. Make a list of the shots you want

to capture
When you arrive at your location,
and before you take off, make a note
in your head, on your phone or in a
flight log of what you think will look
interesting as a photo everything
interesting you want to look straight
down on, maybe a shot of yourself
from above, all of the different
things you want to capture. Work
through all those shots one by one.

Just the process of looking around

and making a list will help you
get organized and in the mindset
of capturing photos. Once youre
through your shot list, use the rest of
your battery to explore.

3. Capture your subjects from lots

of different angles
If you have an interesting subject,
shoot it from all sides and above,
at many different heights. Dont be
afraid to plan and shoot eight or ten
angles or perspectives of just one
subject. If a bunch of them turn out
well, its great for posting sets on
social media (for instance, groups of
four photos on Twitter often perform
better than just one).

CONTINUED >

4. Plan locations ahead

If you know where youre going to fly,
search for what other photographers
have done before in the same location;
use Google Images, Flickr, Instagram
etc. Seeing these shots, then thinking
about what you can do from the
air and making notes might provide
inspiration that you wouldnt otherwise
get just by showing up.

5. Use Google Maps

Google Maps is a great tool for
scouting anomalies or features from
above a location, especially if you plan
on bringing your drone on a hike or
have to make a long walk in.

6. Get to know your camera

Become familiar with your camera
settings, and play around with them.
Find the kinds of exposure, focal
length, etc., that work for you, and that
work for different locations in different
lighting conditions. If youre using a
GoPro, Solo makes this convenient
with in-app access to GoPro controls.
But no matter what youre shooting on,
after a while youll start to see things a
little more like the camera sees them
or how you want your camera to see
them.

7. Commit larceny
As with any good art, its okay to
be derivative, especially if youre
starting out. Look at what the pros
do, and learn from it, be inspired by it.
Recommended reading: How To Steal
Like An Artist. Some of my favorite
aerial photographers on Instagram
include: @bdorts | @jakechams | @
tomjauncey | @landforce |
@imaerial_com

8. Work with what works

Look closely at favorite shots youve
taken, or your most popular posts on
social media. Take note and see what
you can do to replicate the look and
feel of those shots whenever you go
to a new location. This is how I found
my favorite style, which is a straightdown shot, then rotated 90 degrees
so that a horizontal composition
turns vertical; after the first of those
shots got a great social media
response, I began actively seeking out
opportunities to use a similar style
every time I shot.

9. Dawn patrol
If its tough to find time to fly, try
shooting at sunrise one or more
times a week, every week. Not only
is it motivation to get up early, but
the light is exceptional, and even
seemingly pedestrian locations
become a little more compelling.

10. Join a flight group

Going to an RC field or using meetups
to find other pilots, no matter what
they use or do, is a great source for
other tips and even trips to go on.
Theres nothing that gets you going
more than working together with
others. Have fun on your next shoot!

1. Finding locations in your area

Every state or city park nearby thats
got an open area is a fantastic place
to start. (Avoid National Parks if youre
in the US, and always check your local
regulations.)

2. Atlas Obscura
This site is an awesome resource
for planning photography road trips
(or where youre going for work or
vacation).

3. Google Maps
Youll hear me say this many times,
but this is an amazing tool to scout
locations from above; you never know
what youll find in a satellite view.

4. Offer aerial photos

Know of an amazing location nearby,
but its not public? Reach out and ask
if theyll let you shoot photos for their
website, etc., in exchange for letting
you fly. While many may say no, youll
sometimes be surprised at who says
yes.

5. Talk to a realtor
Realtors love aerial photos and,
especially for showing nicer properties,
are starting to include them frequently
in their portfolios. Have you or a friend
recently bought a house? If youve

got the time, let the realtor know

youre more than happy to shoot
some photos for free, and use the
opportunity to polish your portfolio.

6. Lakes, rivers and beaches

Some people get afraid flying their
drone over water, but its a really
great chance to practice flying and
photography safely; plus, youre
often far away from people and
obstacles. In addition, a snap of
waves crashing on rocks from
straight above looks great.

7. Lonely planet
For any trips youre taking, or even
to surprise yourself a bit about your
hometown, take a look at some of
the local attractions.

8. Local hashtags
Lots of states have built instagram
communities around amazing photos
like #bestoforegon or #instahawaii.
Use these groups to check out where
people are shooting in your area;
youll find yourself always checking
the location on great shots from then
on. Dont be afraid to ask if a location
isnt listed.

You obviously edit a lot of

motion graphics, much more
so than stills Do you find the
processes are similar, or do you
use totally different software/
filters/features?
There are certainly similarities between
producing video or motion graphics
based content and shooting aerial
photography. At the core of both,
you have a concept that you want to
communicate. Whether its a landscape,
a story, or a message, you are crafting
the content to relay something specific,
and controlling the way that content is
perceived. You have a huge amount of
control over designing the look of an
aerial photo in post-production. If its
a warm landscape, you can brighten
the highlighted areas and add some
color temperature to make the image
feel warmer, attempting to capture the
feeling of the environment when you
shot it. You want to guide the viewers
eye. Figure out what areas of the photo
capture the pieces that you want to
accentuate, and brighten or sharpen
them. Then you can subdue the other
parts, by darkening or blurring them, to
help guide the viewers eye to where you
want it to go. With panoramic images,
having some kind of major feature or
something that stands out helps give the
image character. It also helps establish
scale. When you see something
manmade, like a skyline or a pier, break
the landscape in a panoramic image, it
gives you more information about the
surrounding landscape. You can start to
tell a story in that single image.

I use Photoshop exclusively to assemble

panoramic images. Photoshop is used
in all areas that I work in, including
motion graphics. Its the best tool to
explore and refine concepts, and you
can easily break things into layers to be
animated. These same principals can
apply to aerial photography. You can
break apart different shots into layers,
constructing the exact shot that you
want. Maybe there is a perfect sunset
in one image, but there is a person or
a car in that shot. You can borrow that
data from a different photo, removing
the elements you didnt want in the
shot and preserving the parts you want
to keep. Similar to the post production
workflow for video, you have to refine
those edits until they are not noticeable
to the viewer.

When youre shooting photos,

what are your preferred
GoPro settings?
The biggest benefit to shooting imagery
with a GoPro is ProTune. You can lock
ISO down to the lowest setting to
reduce image noise. Shooting at 12 MP
(wide) is great for the amount of data
you can capture, but it does include
lens distortion. You can, however
circumvent this with a modded lens.
Ive enjoyed shooting with the Peau
Productions 3.97 mm. This allows you
to shoot on the wide setting without
getting barrel distortion. I usually set
the sharpness to medium as Id prefer
to leave any post-sharpening to more
robust desktop software, which gives
you more control.
CONTINUED >

When youre shooting photos,

what are your preferred GoPro
settings?
The biggest benefit to shooting imagery
with a GoPro is ProTune. You can lock
ISO down to the lowest setting to reduce
image noise. Shooting at 12 MP (wide)
is great for the amount of data you
can capture, but it does include lens
distortion. You can, however circumvent
this with a modded lens. Ive enjoyed
shooting with the Peau Productions 3.97
mm. This allows you to shoot on the wide
setting without getting barrel distortion.
I usually set the sharpness to medium
as Id prefer to leave any post-sharpening
to more robust desktop software, which
gives you more control.

If a user wants to turn a video

screenshot into a still photo,
what are some tips for exporting
a high quality, clear shot?
GoPro video is very sharp. Unless you are
flying very fast or turning aggressively,
your frames will be sharp. Film at the
highest resolution possible.

Any tips for working with GoPro

still photos in post?
If you shoot with the GoPros sharpening
levels set to medium, then you can control
how sharp the image is in post. Use an
unsharp mask to bring out details. Dont
use so much that its clear to the viewer
that sharpening tools were used, as that
can bring them out of the photo. Push
the levels until you can tell its a little
too much, then back the settings off a
bit. Sometimes closing your photos and
opening them later with a fresh set of
eyes will help you figure out if youve
gone too far with any types of color
correction or
post processing.

What are your favorite fisheye

removal techniques?
I usually bring images through the camera
raw import feature, which you can use
on any images, not just raw images. This
allows you to batch things like exposure
and color temperature settings, and
fisheye removal, giving all of your images
the same look. That gives you a consistent

base to start from when assembling

aerial photos into a single panoramic
image.

A lot of your work features

some pretty dramatic lighting
editing Any favorite plugins
or filters others might enjoy
experimenting with?
After getting the baseline lighting close
in the camera raw import settings, I
light everything in post manually. My
favorite technique is to use transparent
gradients in quick mask mode to make
feathered selections of the parts that I
want to lighten, darken, or blur. Once I
have the selections, Ill manually adjust
levels, curves, or simulated camera blur
settings to craft the look I want and
focus in on certain parts ofthe image.

When youre shooting to

create a Panorama, what
GoPro settings do you use?
When shooting aerial panoramic photos,
Ill sometimes shoot 4K video, rotating
the drone around. In post, you can
isolate frames from the video and stitch
together a high resolution panoramic
image by assembling those frames in
Photoshop. I use the same ProTune
settings as stills; ISO set as low as
possible, sharpness set to medium. I am
fine shooting with either the flat or the
GoPro color profiles. The GoPro profile
seems to just juice the saturation a bit,
which is usually done in post anyway.
On higher end cameras, shooting flat
usually means that you are shooting
raw, with a higher dynamic range. But
with GoPro, the flat color profile doesnt
translate to a higher dynamic range, so I
dont think it matters much.

Any tips and tricks for users

on composition? How do you
space your photos for proper
framing?
Using traditional photographic
techniques like the rule of thirds or
taking advantage of dramatic one point
perspectives can work. Overall, try and
identify the most compelling part of
your scene. Then set up the framing
and camera position to accentuate that
element and give it the focus you want.

CONTINUED >

What software do you use for

stitching together panoramas?
I prefer to manually stitch images in
photoshop. There are plenty of autostitching apps, but I think part of the
process in creating an image from
multiple images involves choosing
which parts you want to use from each
image. Water is especially tricky, as
waves from one shot wont line up with
waves from the next shot. Manually
blending and rotating selections can fix
issues like that, as you have maximum
control.

Any tips or tricks on getting a

great stitch?
Know when to crop. Just because you
shot 15 images for a panoramic image,
doesnt mean you should use them
all. Once assembled, crop in to get
the framing you want, even if it means
ditching parts of the photo.

What other post-processing

do you do once the stitch is
completed?
Traditional color correction and
retouching, such as curves, levels, hue/
saturation and removing unwanted
objects like people, cars, etc.

Any other editing/tips tricks

you can share with our
users?
For landscape images, once you
are finished, try flipping the entire
composition horizontally. Sometimes
a mirrored version of your image can
give you a more interesting look.

Strangest story/encounter/
demo experience with Solo?
Filming on set with Michael Bay in
Malta was very memorable. Also,
filming in Mexico was intense. Too
many stories to recount. The best
moments are adventures where you
think the shoot wont work out, or you
are losing light, and then at the last
moment everything comes together
and you get something bigger than
you imagined.

BEHIND THE SHOT W/COLIN LANDFORCE

This photo came about in somewhat

sketchy flying conditions, but I knew I
was going to get a great shot so I went
for it. GPS was iffy because I was in a
corridor of super high trees. Once I got
lock I immediately popped up and got
up and out of them to get a stronger
lock and all was well. It was snowing, but
not hard, and it wasnt a wet snow so I
felt pretty comfortable flying given the
conditions. I envisioned this shot at much
higher altitude, but the fog was thick and
when I got much higher than a couple
hundred feet I started to lose the visual
of the ground/trees/road... things started
to grey out. I brought it back down to,
if I remember correctly, about 170ft and
started shooting. The thick fog was still
an issue at this altitude but it was shifting,
and from 4 or 5 shots I captured this, this
was the winner. Interestingly, this was my
2nd-favorite shot from that flight but over
the course of the following week I shared
both on social and this one blew up when
compared to my favorite.

CONTINUED >

BEHIND THE SHOT W/REUBEN WU

Raplee Anticline

Approach
On the way to Mexican Hat and Goosenecks State Park, I encountered this strange
landform called the Raplee Anticline. The strata were exposed in red zig zags and
the whole mountain appeared like it had suffered some violent upheaval at some
point in its past.

Experience
I had to fly my 3DR Solo drone pretty far in order to get this shot. I was separated
from the mountain by the meandering San Juan river and 2000 ft was the closest
I could get. The sun had set from where I was inside the valley but the mountain
remained softly illuminated, giving me a few minutes to get the shot I wanted.

Perspective
As I directed Solo into position I realized this feature was immense. It had an
extraordinarily dynamic natural composition, and the moon was suspended
perfectly above its summit. Im drawn to compositions where lines converge and
align in symmetry with celestial objects. To capture both landscape and moon
fully would not have been possible without being airborne.

Capture
This was best captured in a panoramic photo. The composition of the picture I
had in mind was so fragile that using a moving image would not have added much
value. Also, the landscape was so vast that I needed to use the panorama feature
to pan the camera to take multiple images and create a wider aspect photograph.

I N T E R V I E W

PANORAMAS, STITCHING, FLYING TIPS AND MORE

When youre shooting to
create a Panorama, what
GoPro settings do you use?

GoPros highest photo quality (12mp)

Single shot mode
Protune ON
White Balance Depends on
conditions. Generally set to 5500K/
Day and 3300K/Night
Spot Meter OFF
Color FLAT
ISO 200
Sharpness Medium
EV 0

How do you space your pano

photos for proper framing?
Pre-meditation and visualization is
key before taking to the air. Try to
calculate how many photos it will
take for you to complete your pano.
Once in the air you can start from
either right to left or vice versa. Take
all photos in a row and never random
order so theyre easier to work with
in post.

What software do you use

for stitching panoramas?
I get optimal results with Adobe
Photoshop. They have great autostitching software as well some really
useful advanced options.

CONTINUED >

Any tips or tricks on getting a

great stitch?
Flatten your GoPro image first to
get rid of distortion. You may also
need to crop your photos. Actually, I
highly recommend cropping if youre
going to use auto-stitching in Adobe
Photoshop.

What other post-processing

do you do when youve
finished the stitch?
I use Adobe Lightroom to color grade
and flatten my images. Lightroom has
some great GoPro presets
for getting rid of distortion.

Lets talk about downward

facing panos. One of my
favorite shots of yours is a
straight downward stitch of a
dock in California.
Downward-facing photos are some of
my favorite aerial perspectives! And
Im assuming that here youre talking
about the pier with the waves? The
post work on that one was a dual
effort. Once I captured the shots our
photo editor Jered Garrison did most
of the stitching. The way I wanted the
panorama completed it needed some
advanced stitching and photo merging.
Auto-stitching wasnt possible with
this pano because I wanted certain
attributes merged in, like waves, which
werent in the other photos. Shadows
and lighting were inconsistent and
needed advanced work as well.

How do you compose

the different photos
when planning to stitch a
downward-facing set of
shots?
First, a GoPro cant lockout exposure.
This is usually key to stitching panos.
If your light changes from shot to
shot youll have inconsistent data,
making stitching difficult. To avoid
this debacle try to shoot your pano
during a time where light stays at a
consistent value. Also be quick about
getting all your shots.

Any tips or tricks for

stitching downward versus
aerial?
Youre going to take a similar
approach either way. No matter what,
you gotta be quick moving from
shot to shot so that if your pano has
any moving attributes like clouds,
sunsets or people theyll stay in
one place, which will make stitching
easier.

Also, I get a lot of inspiration from the

photos that @dailyoverview posts on
Instagram.

CONTINUED >

Pacific Beach Pier, San Diego, CA

www.3dr.com

PHOTO CREDITS:
@itsreuben
@bdorts
@samuelelkins
@lifeafteranalog
@seandshoots
@landforce
@jbcmotion
@craig.coker