Phantom 4 owner, previously Phantom 3... Is it just me, or is this drone thing very polarizing? Everybody I introduce this thing to is either amazed/mind blown/I need one of these!, or just completely negative about it. So far that has been my experience. I always try to be courteous and aware of my surroundings when I bring the Phantom out, but there always seems to be a few peolpe that just don't get it and just bring up all kinds of negative stuff about "drones".

My opinion: this technology is uterly amazing and my mind is pretty much blown every time I put this thing in the air. Keep in mind, I'm a photo enthusiast, tech nerd. Being able to place a camera in vantage points that I could have never imagined is a dream come true to me. Maybe I'm just in my own world and most don't get it?

The majority of people I show it to ask if I am a pervert and want to spy on people. Hence I don't show it to anyone any more.

The other common reaction is that they 'know someone' who saw one over their house and called the police, who turned up and confiscated the drone. Which is complete BS.

Geebax Posted at 2016-5-11 14:42
The majority of people I show it to ask if I am a pervert and want to spy on people. Hence I don't s ...

Dude! Nailed it. I always get the "Are you spying on your neighbors"? The thing is, most of these people know that I'm a photographer and love taking photos and shooting video.

I feel like it's some sort of intimidation factor. Too much technology for their minds to grasp.

Raymo Posted at 2016-5-11 08:55
Dude! Nailed it. I always get the "Are you spying on your neighbors"? The thing is, most of these  ...

I understand that some people tend to get a bit freaked out or even scared by a flying, seeing robot. The technology is advancing much faster than our mindset (not to mention our laws and regulations) can catch up.

//Thomas

thomas.kolb Posted at 2016-5-11 16:11
Being a drone enthusiast myself and flying a P3A, I still get a bit annoyed when somebody else's d ...

Understandable. But I don't know that many people with drones, and my neighbors actually love when I show them the Phantom. I've never pissed off one of my neighbors, which I'm proud to say that I'm friends with most of them. If I found out one of my neighbors had one, I'd be ecstatic.

It's the people that I encounter away from my house, in open, drone friendly areas on occasion that give off this negative vibe.

I would never purposely give my neighbors a reason to think that I was spying on them. If the rare occasion popped up where one of my neighbors was also flying a drone around my house, I would definitely talk to them and have conversations on the subject. Perhaps become drone buddies.

My original comments pertain to people that are basically clueless about drones.

There is a world of difference between perception and reality.  Sadly, the majority of peoples perception is formed by the overly dramatized media coverage stigmatizing all UAVs as the Valkyries of Doom, poised to deliver death from above.  How some "people" equate a $20 million military Reaper Drone with a $1000 hobbiest Phantom just boggles the mind.  But hey, I live in Kentucky part of the year -- there seems to be a significant portion of the residents with no more sense than a lobotomized angleworm.

Having said that, I've been fortunate to have limited encounters with those brain-dead in-breeds.  I was at a friends barbecue flying around to figure out the best angles to cover the fireworks we were going the shoot off later that night when this slack-jawed jerk, fueled no doubt by generous portions of liquor, offered how he would shoot it out of the sky if he ever saw one.  I simply pointed out how small it was (at 300 feet) and asked him to imagine how small he would look from 300 feet away.  The was no zoom lens, no night vision or FLIR and no weapons (I could see the gears slowly grinding away) Lastly, if the government wanted to spy on him with a drone he wouldn't even see it from 20,000 feet.  

By the way, the neighbor who was throwing the barbecue, the first time I met him we got into a conversation about hobbies and I showed him my Phantom.  We went back to his place where he could show his wife -- they ordered one that night and another a week later.

Whenever I get asked if the Drone is any good for Spying... The answer I always give is... "No - The drone is Hopeless for Spying..., If I wanted to Spy I would be better off Buying a $50 pair of Binoculars rather then a $1500 Noisy Drone. "

And I end up by saying.. "Just Think About It.., The Drone is too noisy for spying... and besides why should I want spy on you, What reason do I have? ..if i wanted to see anything really "Interesting" descretly and quietly and in high defination in the luxuary of my home (and not that i do) the Internet has enough of that Rubbish for Free!... so think about it again Intelligently.... Why would I want waste my time & effort coming out here, in the wonderful outdoors, to spy?"

That has always shut-up all the people that have asked me about drone spying.

dji-p3p1 Posted at 2016-5-11 14:16
Whenever I get asked if the Drone is any good for Spying... The answer I always give is... No - The  ...

You could always ask if they use their Camera with zoom lens in public, or perhaps they have a dashboard camera in their car ?
Or in the UK here there are more surveillance cameras per head of population than anywhere else. There are also the Automatic Number Plate Recognition cameras in use to see which vehicles are insured, taxed, tested etc.
So a drone zooming about 50 metres away with a wide angle camera is not much to worry about really.

I've never had a bad encounter about drones, either when flying it or talking about it.

Maybe some of you guys just look shady?

Aardvark Posted at 2016-5-11 23:30
You could always ask if they use their Camera with zoom lens in public, or perhaps they have a das ...

Aardvark - that's another good reply.

With one person who was very curious (But Friendly) I actually hovered, with his permission, around 50m above his backyard, while he looked at my screen...

His response was .... "Is that all you can see?... That's Nothing" and saying that he just walked away..

dkruseski Posted at 2016-5-11 23:31
I've never had a bad encounter about drones, either when flying it or talking about it.

Maybe some  ...

Hahaha!!!

I guess wearing shades, to block out the hot Australian Sun, while "Looking Shady" Doesn't Help.

I've never encoutered any resistance while flying but I have had a few people I know say that drones are for spying on people.

So, while these ignorant people complain about a harmless hobby toy invading their treasured privacy, the same ones probably vote for and encourage bigger and more invasive govrnment which is the REAL threat to their privacy.

"Lobotomized worm" is a very good mental description for a very large number of people living in most Western societies these days....as Gil pointed out above.

If we are going to spend good money on an addiction, might as well make it something that lasts a long time. ;-)

Welcome to my world... Hahaha

RedHotPoker

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Parrot AR Drone 2.0 Traxxas QR-1 RealFlight 6.5

I get very positive responses from people walking near me while I am flying. One bad response was from a neighbor at the other end of my street and he said "you better not fly that over my house". I am not sure if he was joking or not but he does have security cameras outside of his house. Most people go out of their way to say how amazing it is. I would say more then not people have no idea how sophisticated these drones are. I always educate them on the capabilities with focus on safety. I have even shown them a live view of us looking at the screen which of course we are very small because I keep the drone at a safe distance.

It's up to us all to educate people on drones through our own actions and talking to those who ask giving them the best experience and perhaps even have another hobbyist join in the fun.

Socially I am not very good with people who approach me in a negative manner.

I have had issues in the past and just want to be left alone most of the time.

If someone approaches me in a positive manner, and is generally inquisitive and open to learn, then I feel more relaxed and we usually get on brilliantly.

Unfortunately the latter is rarer than the former.

One occasion recently I had two males approach me in a massive open field with public footpaths. My p4 had just landed and was in my hands.

The older of the men cam straight up to me without any introduction and said in a slightly aggressive manner "What's the laws regarding these drones" ?

I just totally blanked him for fear of saying the wrong thing.

He then asked if it had a camera, by this time I had started walking back home, and carried on ignoring him.

His friend never said a word, and was just smiling his way through it, he looked slightly embarrassed in how his friend had approached me.

In the end I could not help myself, he was starting to really rant by now, so I just turned around and said, "If you want to know the laws about droning, go and check on google" "And whilst your on google, look for some charm offensive courses in you area".....and walked off.

Next time I shall try even harder to say nothing, unless they are nice and friendly.

I am completely with you Raymo, I must say though of all the comments I get when I am out 98% are very positive and so far the 2% that start off negatively Buy the time I have finished talking with them about it I have turn there negative thoughts around.

I've never had a bad experience.  I do tend to fly where there are no other people though, & when people do come past, they either don't say anything or they're really interested & have a good chat.  I know how I'd like to respond to negative people, but I'm not sure I have the patience.  Time will tell...

Geebax Posted at 2016-5-10 23:42
The majority of people I show it to ask if I am a pervert and want to spy on people. Hence I don't s ...

First Officer Geebax,  I don't think it is the drone causing these comments.  My advice;  stop wearing that yellow  rain coat when you go flying

Kneepuck Posted at 2016-5-11 18:55
First Officer Geebax,  I don't think it is the drone causing these comments.  My advice;  stop wea ...

...or the budgie smugglers

"lobotomized angleworm" LOL!!

Generally I never have trouble when flying, most people ignore it but those that don't are usually quite polite and ask the odd sensible question.  A guy with his young daughter once asked if they could have a quick look at my phone screen whilst I was flying.

I'll be honest it's dogs that cause me issues when flying.  Now I can easily hand catch my P3A but I can't hand catch my Trex 550 helicopter!! It's often very frustrating when the Trex lipo is getting low and I'm trying to land and some yappy little mutt is jumping up trying to sink its teeth into the landing gear!!

I've had people "demand" that I land my P4 before.

I don't.

Thanks for all the replies, everyone. Good stuff here, and I'm glad I'm not the only one.

I have to keep reminding myself that we are still in the relatively infancy stage of this amazing hobby/profession and are ahead of the curve. What people don't understand, a lot of the time they fear. We are the fearless pioneers discovering new frontiers, lol. Drone Pirates!

Aardvark Posted at 2016-5-11 21:30
You could always ask if they use their Camera with zoom lens in public, or perhaps they have a das ...

All excellent points!

nigelw Posted at 2016-5-12 04:30
...or the budgie smugglers

And it was only yesterday I was trying them on. Can't see the budgie any longer.....

Geebax Posted at 2016-5-11 23:49
Can't see the budgie any longer.....

{:4_157:}

Now if someone came up with a way to transmit the name of the person you are talking to, to the drone ... so when it comes in to land a robotic voice said something like "hello Fred, I see you are talking to my manservant" ....

Hello,

Just the other day I had my first negative experience - one friendly neighbor (also a drone flyer) came over to warn me that there are some people in the area where I am living that are getting pissed off with drones flying on nearby fields, so there is actually a whole facebook page that contains a drawn out and heated debate about how disturbing all these drones are. It seems to be the noise that bothers people the most, but somebody also mentioned that camera equipped drones are violating some totally crazy Swedish camera surveillance and information collecting regulations (which incidentally also applies for camera tripods, selfie sticks, dashcams, time-lapse photography and bike mounted Go Pro cameras).

Funnily, nobody complains about lawn movers, grass trimmers, kids playing football or skateboarding on the streets for hours - all MUCH louder and more enerving than a Phantom at 70 meters for a few minutes at a time.

Nobody has approached me personally yet, but I will definitely refrain from taking off from our backyard in the future - I recon, it is better to take the car and drive a few minutes to get away from the neighborhood. But ever since then, whenever I want to go flying, I definitely feel that I am kind of sneaking away with some illegal or nasty activities, trying to hide my Phantom on my way out to ther car like some kind of sordid fetish toy ... what a pity!

Or could it be it's just because it is a new technology device, and by our nature we ourselves are over conscious of what others reactions might be...

Who remembers the first mobile phones ? I can remember feeling extremely self conscious walking down the street speaking into my hand. Also remember hearing from somebody that they used to go into the public telephone kiosks to use their mobile

Raymo - its just you, man, sorry... :^)

But seriously,

I haven't flown too many places other than my own property yet, but I have been trying to prepare for those times when I get complaints.  I think I will ask if they have ever seen Google Earth and Street View, and point out that ANYONE ON EARTH with internet access can look at their property and front yard at any time.  My P3P is the least of their worries.

Aardvark Posted at 2016-5-12 12:11
Or could it be it's just because it is a new technology device, and by our nature we ourselves are o ...

Sorry, no. After having checked with the people in our neighborhood, the perceived issues are the following:

1) Drones are loud. They disturb people wanting to sit and relax or barbecue on their patios and gardens.
2) Drones scare children, especially if flown late in the evening or at night.
3) Drones can be used to spy on people. Even if it is not the intention, people don't want their gardens, roofs, pools or backyards visible on somebody's footage.

And media of course do their very best to freak people out with horror stories about drones peeping into people's bedroom windows, falling from the sky and smashing into aircraft.

//Thomas

thomas.kolb Posted at 2016-5-12 08:59
Hello,

Just the other day I had my first negative experience - one friendly neighbor (also a drone  ...

Wise move, I never fly where there are more than a handful of people.  It just winds them up & in many cases is against the law in the UK.

You really have privacy laws stopping you taking photos with other people in, even in public places?

nigelw Posted at 2016-5-12 19:54
Wise move, I never fly where there are more than a handful of people.  It just winds them up & in  ...

Believe it or not - the new Swedish Camera Surveillance Law (KÖL - Kameraövervakningslagen) does exactly that.

You need to hold the camera physically in your own hands, otherwise you are prohibited to take pictures where surroundings other than your own home is visible. So you cannot put your camera on a tripod and take a picture if you thereby depict areas that are open to public (pretty much anywhere except your own home and property).

By the way, there is a foggy side-clause describing that you are allowed to take one or two group pictures of members of your family from a tripod mounted camera in a public area, but otherwise you are effectively committing a crime. Not sure what they mean by "family". Distant cousins? Members of the human species? How about friends? It doesn't say. Go figure...

//Tom

Mimoid Posted at 2016-5-13 14:34
Believe it or not - the new Swedish Camera Surveillance Law (KÖL - Kameraövervakningslagen) does ...

What a ridiculous law!  I think I'd probably just break that one in protest.

Mimoid Posted at 2016-5-13 09:34
Believe it or not - the new Swedish Camera Surveillance Law (KÖL - Kameraövervakningslagen) does ...

How heavily are these laws inforced? This seems like a pretty insane law...

nigelw Posted at 2016-5-13 16:07
What a ridiculous law!  I think I'd probably just break that one in protest.

Everybody does - I do it every time I fly with my Phantom.

cooper3678@gmai Posted at 2016-5-13 16:31
How heavily are these laws inforced? This seems like a pretty insane law...

I don't lose any sleep over it. It's just one of those ridiculous laws that nobody will care to enforce. If the Swedish Drone Troopers would appear at my doorstep at night, I can just show them my camera-less Hubsan, wave my hands and say in a commanding voice: "these are not the drones you are looking for!"

I've been lucky, the only people who have approached me have been interested in my Phantom and wanted to talk about it. I haven't had any complaints yet.

Mimoid Posted at 2016-5-13 16:16
I don't lose any sleep over it. It's just one of those ridiculous laws that nobody will care to en ...

"I can just show them my camera-less Hubsan, wave my hands and say in a commanding voice: "these are not the drones you are looking for!""

That's very good

May the 'farce' be with you