Sorry if you were looking for a 5 minute movie here...
What I have for you instead are 3 ten minute or so videos of Colorado's spectacular scenery.  If you've thought about flying over 14,000 feet, let me tell you: it's awesome.  However, the drone ascends more slowly and descends more quickly.  Also, when there is considerable wind, and you are in the 14k+ range, the Mav will give you an error that it has extra drag, like from the prop guards, but really it's just fooled by the decreased lift it gets in thinner air.  Overall, I was very happy with how the Mavic Air performed at altitude and in considerable winds - definitely worth the weight in my camera bag!

Video 1:  This one is material from hiking with my girlfriend.  Beautiful scenery, but less rugged.

Video 2:  Most rugged scenery.  This footage was taken trekking some serious mountains with my buddy.

Video 3:  Solo hiking; some experiments with follow me and shows you what it's like to be first up a 14er!

Which is your favorite?  Big thanks if you watch them all!!

All music by Bonobo.

Enjoy =)







Final thoughts:  don't be a drone d-bag.   Drones are loud and we must be consdirate in tranquil areas.  Talk to other backcountry users before launching your swarm of bees, and consider simply enjoying the serenity instead of filming it.  It's perfectly acceptable to go to a beautiful area and not fly your drone.  And when you can fly... =)

very nice video

wow great job

Nice work.

LOVED your 'Final Thoughts'!!!!!  Could not agree more!
Been trying to get the wife to take a hiking trip out to Colorado - may have to show her these to help light that fire!

Nice videos and thank you. The range/distance you can fly must be great. I have way to many trees in my area so i have to go to a hilly area to get range for my liking.

Very good, I am always fascinated by magnificent mountains - Well done!

AC5FF Posted at 2018-8-1 05:14
LOVED your 'Final Thoughts'!!!!!  Could not agree more!
Been trying to get the wife to take a hiking trip out to Colorado - may have to show her these to help light that fire!

Thanks - I hope this video does help get you to CO.  AMAZING place.  This represents about 3 weeks of traveling in CO, based out of Denver, and it's just a tiny sample of what you can see and do in CO.  Go have fun, and share your work when you get back =)

rolling56 Posted at 2018-8-1 05:28
Nice videos and thank you. The range/distance you can fly must be great. I have way to many trees in my area so i have to go to a hilly area to get range for my liking.

A note on reception in the mountains - while flying *unobstructed* the range is indeed very far.  I'm sure if I could get the MA's advertised two miles of range, it would be in the Rockies (though I never took it farther than a mile out - with variable winds, it's crucial to save battery to be able to fly back to home).  HOWEVER, it's very easy to lose transmission from the drone, even from a close distance, if you fly the drone behind a ridgeline or rock outcropping.  These geographical features completely block transmission, and very suddenly - I had to figure that out "on the fly" so to speak =)

alex_markov Posted at 2018-8-1 06:01
Very good, I am always fascinated by magnificent mountains - Well done!

Me too!  The mountains made me buy the drone... and the mountains will make me come back and fly more.  I submit humbly to the mountains!

Truly outstanding footage and all three are amazing, thank you very much!

Wachtberger Posted at 2018-8-1 06:09
Truly outstanding footage and all three are amazing, thank you very much!

Thanks!  Appreciate the feedback from everyone.

Thanks for Sharing

jacksonnai Posted at 2018-8-1 04:17
very nice video

Appreciate that - did you happen to watch all 3 or have any favorite bits?

maddox Posted at 2018-8-1 04:58
wow great job

Thanks!  Were there any parts that stand out to you in particular?

Loki's Eyes Posted at 2018-8-1 11:29
Appreciate that - did you happen to watch all 3 or have any favorite bits?

did watch all of them but with some skipping cause 10min is a bit too long the best is around 3min
my favorite one is the 2nd

jacksonnai Posted at 2018-8-1 15:50
did watch all of them but with some skipping cause 10min is a bit too long the best is around 3min
my favorite one is the 2nd

Yep - 30 minutes all together is a lot of footage.  I will make a "best of" reel and include some timelapses and wildlife video also - but 3 minutes is so tough!  I'm still just trying to get a feel for people's taste for longer movies and extra flying, vs the quick cuts short films.

Loki's Eyes Posted at 2018-8-1 11:30
Thanks!  Were there any parts that stand out to you in particular?

you are welcome

I must say all 3 were just amazing.
Not sure which one would be my favorite. So I watched them twice.
The first one with such a long trail to the top had the best part for me. How long was that trail to the  top?
The second one being so  rugged had such beautiful landscape. Great shot of the Sunset.
The last one I decided was the best. Flying high and slow in the clouds.
All 3 had great music.

Nicely done. I'm headed to Estes Park in 2 weeks to spend a week in the mountains with my MP.

Loki's Eyes Posted at 2018-8-1 16:41
Yep - 30 minutes all together is a lot of footage.  I will make a "best of" reel and include some timelapses and wildlife video also - but 3 minutes is so tough!  I'm still just trying to get a feel for people's taste for longer movies and extra flying, vs the quick cuts short films.

yup keep it up

Neat work!

B1houdini Posted at 2018-8-2 17:27
I must say all 3 were just amazing.
Not sure which one would be my favorite. So I watched them twice.
The first one with such a long trail to the top had the best part for me. How long was that trail to the  top?

Thanks so much!  The trail with all the people (Quandary Peak) wasn't really that far, I think about 3 miles from the bottom to the top (one of Colorado's "easiest" 14ers).  Your feedback is really appreciated!

Paul_IA Posted at 2018-8-2 18:11
Nicely done. I'm headed to Estes Park in 2 weeks to spend a week in the mountains with my MP.

You will love the Rockies with your MP no doubt.  Estes Park is a gorgeous area, but I advise you not to fly in RMNP - and anywhere you want to take your bird up, be sure fly with courtesy!  On one of my hikes, a novice pilot brought his Spark (2nd flight he told me) to fly at the summit of Quandary Peak.  He proceeded to hover the drone in one place for about 10 minutes.  Everyone was getting clearly annoyed, though he was oblivious.  Behavior like this turns crowds against good pilots whose drones you only hear when they take off and land... minimize your drone impact please!

Loki's Eyes Posted at 2018-8-3 06:42
You will love the Rockies with your MP no doubt.  Estes Park is a gorgeous area, but I advise you not to fly in RMNP - and anywhere you want to take your bird up, be sure fly with courtesy!  On one of my hikes, a novice pilot brought his Spark (2nd flight he told me) to fly at the summit of Quandary Peak.  He proceeded to hover the drone in one place for about 10 minutes.  Everyone was getting clearly annoyed, though he was oblivious.  Behavior like this turns crowds against good pilots whose drones you only hear when they take off and land... minimize your drone impact please!

I realize you can't fly in RMNP. That's just where we home base for the week. I use AirMap to make sure I'm not in restricted space when I travel and I always respect people's privacy and not fly around them when they're enjoying their site seeing. I've never been confronted by anybody in the 2 years I've been flying as I always fly in a courteous manner, but it's good advice to more novice users.

Paul_IA Posted at 2018-8-3 17:01
I realize you can't fly in RMNP. That's just where we home base for the week. I use AirMap to make sure I'm not in restricted space when I travel and I always respect people's privacy and not fly around them when they're enjoying their site seeing. I've never been confronted by anybody in the 2 years I've been flying as I always fly in a courteous manner, but it's good advice to more novice users.

Word - thanks for being awesome!  I'm a new member of the drone world, but a longtime member of the outdoor community, so I have been doing a lot of reflection about the conflict between these groups.  Wilderness folks hate the noise, photographers love the footage - if only we could make drones quiet I'm sure there would be a lot less tension.  Until then, let's stay good ambassadors.  Appreciate the dialogue - happy flying!