My first drone purchase...help please!!

[kbutzer2380]

I am wanting to get into drone flying for aerial photography. I want a package deal RTF and do not want to DIY, as this will be my first drone purchase. I was going to purchase the blade 350 QX3 based off flight test video recommendation, however it's not available anymore if I'm not mistaken. So can you guys recommend a package drone RTF that features the similar qualities as the blade 350 QX3? Would the Yuunec Q500 4K RTF be a good choice? Thanks for your help guys!!

 

[Spencer-1214]

If you have the money, a dji phantom 4 is a great rtf package.

 

[RcPro97]

Yea, phantom would be great. I've seen footage from them and they look amazing. I'm not a phantom person myself. I prefer the tinkering and spending way too much effort to get things working

 

[DharanFlyer]

Phantom is top of the line and personally I'd get the 3 vs the 4 only due to the fact it is slightly cheaper and I don't see the value in the 4.

I would also get http://www.horizonhobby.com/product...roma-4k-st-10-w-2-battery-flight-case-blh8691 just because I really like Horizon products.

 

[ElectriSean]

I have the blade chroma, it's a pretty decent machine. The price has come down quite a bit over the last couple months too, quite a bit cheaper than the phantom 3 now. FT did a review on it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RBCcpc53Ls

 

[PsyBorg]

Heh Just watched that episode and was REALLY impressed when they strapped the Remote to a fixed wing and played follow the leader with it and it seemed to work well.

 

[Crazy Goats]

PsyBorg: strapped the Remote to a fixed wing

Yeah. That was funny.


I am personally not at all a fan of DJI or RTF FPV quads in general. But the phantom is very good at doing what its made for. The chroma seems pretty good as well.

 

[PsyBorg]

Its not the DJI products that are a problem. They seem to be the ones that set the bar for non professional AP platforms so they must be a good product. Its what some of the lesser intelligent people that buy them do with them that give them a bad rep. Were it not for that our hobby would still be less stressful and far more enjoyable with out the threat of the Air Gestapo coming for us.

 

[Crazy Goats]

Yes, I agree completely. It makes me mad that people are ruining the hobby for us. And it doesn't help that the media makes the hobby sound bad.

Ha, I like this: "Air Gestapo". LOL

What I meant was that I dont care for their products. I just cant see a use for them.

 

[PsyBorg]

Sorry to kind of hijack this thread as this is off topic a bit.

Did you see the video from Steele on his version 2 mods? That was some crazy stuff there.

 

[ElectriSean]

Sorry to kind of hijack this thread as this is off topic a bit.

Did you see the video from Steele on his version 2 mods? That was some crazy stuff there.

That was amazing.

 

[mn2sam]

That video is absolutely nuts! I love that there are so many videos of people with the kind of skill, although normally they use a 250 quad for that kind of thing.

Back on topic, I really would recommend the phantoms as well if you're looking to capture aerial footage. I've gone the DIY route myself because I like to tinker and buy specific parts and slowly build it up, but that means that everything is sub-optimal. The phantoms are amazing in comparison, especially with how they deal with things like gusts of wind, and the gimbals are perfectly balanced so when you combine all of that the video does seem to be particularly stable.

The DIY quad I've built is very similar in performance to a friend of mine's quad which he bought RTF. I can't remember the brand I'm afraid, but it seems to be very similar in components to mine, and he suffers with the same slight wobbles as I do in flight. I will say though, for stable video, the bigger the better! I built an 800mm frame for a friend using the Naza M lite, same as my quad but bigger, and his is beautifully stable.

 

[GabYee]

I am wanting to get into drone flying for aerial photography.

While I am a huge fan of all things Phantom, getting even a cheap Phantom at $400 or $500 is not something I recommend for a beginner, you need to learn to walk before you can run, that's why I recommend getting a cheap drone first to master your controls before getting in with the big boys.
Checkout my list recommended beginner friendly cheap drones.

 

[JonBon]

For your first drone (and since you want to get into aerial photography) I'd strongly suggest the Syma X8G - https://www.amazon.com/Syma-Action-Camera-Quadcopter-Helicopter/dp/B015YGGO0E. It's a little over $100 and comes with an 8mp camera. You'll be able to get the hang of flying a quad and practice your aerial photo/video skills at the same time. Otherwise, I'd look into other beginner drones like these before shelling out $700+ on one of the higher-end models.