UAV FAQs... What Producers Need To Know

Have you taken your robot out for a flight yet? Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), this year's gadget-person's gadget, will have been found under many a Christmas tree and it's a fad unlikely to fade. Such is the buzz around remote controlled flying machines that seeing them in our skies could soon become as commonplace as having parcels hovered to your doorstep by Amazon.

Aerial filming by drone is not new. Belgium developer Flying-cam won the first of its two technical Academy Awards in 1985 for designing an unmanned miniature helicopter. UAVs have been used to replace dolly and jib shots in awkward locations and to create dramatic lift and zoom shots. But the sector is experiencing a bonanza having been given an iPhone makeover. Advances in camera, flight and battery technology mean that anyone can buy, fly and take footage with one. “The current UAV market is a modern-day gold rush,” says US aerial filming specialist Skyworks. “Worldwide, companies are scrambling to put incomplete products to market.”

With dozens of drones on the market from as little as £50, the technology has leapt into the hands of hobbyists. But buyer beware, most drones at that end of the scale won't be able to lift the equipment that professional content producers need. The battery life dictating flight time is another factor and the type of camera mount or gimbal the kit uses to stabilise photography is also very important.


Then there's health and safety. With reports of near misses over London Heathrow and the recent arrest of a photojournalist using a drone, regulation will likely need tightening. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) rules that no flight is allowed within 150 metres of any congested area; and the UAV has to be in line of sight with the pilot at all times – which means a ceiling of 120m (or 400ft) and not more than 500m away. It also stipulates that no UAVs can be flown within 50 metres of a person, vehicle or building – unless those are 'under your control'.

That's the crucial bit. Savvy producers realise that obtaining quality aerial footage that isn't going to waste time or budget necessitates a professional team of qualified pilot and experienced camera operator. There are over 400 licensed aerial filmmaking specialists in the UK but even then the field is hugely competitive.

“About five people in Europe could have shot this spot for new National Geographic [below], eight miles out at sea,” says Tony May, camera operator for aerial filming specialist Aerosight. “It required a lot of skilled communication planning.”

“Drones are a neat piece of kit, very mobile and a lot less expensive than a helicopter,” says Outsider founder Robert Campbell, but still probably not as good as a manned machine. “If you're doing a big shot following a car you need you need good time in the air to follow it.

“Am I seeing a lot of scripts demanding an aerial shot? No. If there is, it's there for a specific reason," continues Campbell. Outsider used a drone for this aerial shot (at 1.10 into the clip) over a Hong Kong golf course for a 2014 HSBC spot directed by Scott Lyon for Saatchi & Saatchi London. “As drones develop I may be proven wrong in six months time.”

Campbell's advice? “It's pointless having a brilliant drone carrying a Kodak Brownie. It's all about the camera, the lenses and someone who can operate it. A helicopter operator earns their money because they know exactly what they're doing. If you want something hovering in the air maybe a drone will work, but if you need to follow the action get a cameraman who has worked in the business. I wouldn't go near a DIY drone outfit.”

Dean Wynton, who runs Aerosight, agrees. “There are a lot of cowboys with a GoPro and a drone who undercut the market and gives aerial filmmaking a bad name.” He advises producers to check for insurance and a license. “If a showreel shows shots of fields, trees and churches you can expect little experience of flying to order.” Aerosight's showreel includes the below spot for EE produced by Framestore London.

If you are intent on playing around with a drone – and why not, it does look fun – then you face a blizzard of purchase options. The size of the UAV will generally dictate the camera payload. Quadcopters (craft with four rotors) are more energy efficient than Octocopters but typically can't carry as much weight.

Audio always needs recording separately since these beasts are remarkably noisy. Standard drone functions include remote control by wi-fi, usually a smartphone app, and a GPS (the more advanced will be able to return to home and land even if the signal fails). They are sold in kits for home assembly or ready to fly from the box.

The market leader is DJI and its flagship is the £1000 Phantom 2 Vision+. It recently launched the £1600 Inspire [below], a version which includes a 4K camera and will upturn its wings on lift-off to avoid line of sight with the lens.

Lumenier offers no-frills airframes with a reputation for judder-free flying; while Parrot is the brand for cool, fun designs. There is even a drone on a leash (Fotokite, below) which circumnavigates civil aviation laws since it qualifies as a kite; and another prototype (Nixie) which can be worn on your wrist. Drone technology is evolving fast, packed with more and more sensors to allow the aircraft to sense where objects are in the skies and to (hopefully) steer well out of the way.

“Sometimes you need the experience of a specialised pilot and/or camera operator to pull off a certain shot,” explains Marc D’Souza, executive producer, UNIT9. “Sometimes you can use automation when the shot is complex or has to be repeatable with precision. Sometimes budget limitations will encourage you to take things (quite literally) into your own hands.”

For the autumn/winter Fendi fashion show in Milan in February 2014 UNIT9 flew a lightweight drone indoors above the catwalk transmitting footage live via wi-fi to a web camera feed.

“We used trained pilots but not camera operators as the rigs had no degrees of freedom with respect to the drone, and the critical factor was the ability to manoeuvre a drone in close proximity to a crowd of near 1000 people,” says D’Souza.