Hello,
Just wondering if anyone here can give me some advise? I have been running into this situation a couple of times now when flying off a cliff, say 100m above the ocean, now in this case you can't rely on your depth and you don't know how high you are from the water. I have tried to pan my camera straight down to get some idea of how far you can drop till you hit the water but again it is hard to see like that.
I was trying to get some good shots of some sail boats but didn't dare to go low enough so did not really get the shots I wanted. Just wondering if anyone else here has ran into the same scenario and has some good ideas?
btw, I am flying a P4.

If you take off on top of cliff, and fly over the cliff your reading will go a minus figure , you should be able to figure it out from that figure, give yourself plenty of leeway.

You will just have to judge by looking at the video image. Although if you get low enough, the VPS system should start to give you an altitude reading. VLOS will also work pretty well.

If it's an issue, fly down towards the bottom of the cliff and see how high it is.
If you're photographing boats, you should be able to easily see where you are in relation to the water surface.

hallmark007 Posted at 2016-12-1 00:56
If you take off on top of cliff, and fly over the cliff your reading will go a minus figure , you sh ...

Problem is that you never know exactly how high the cliff is and a couple of meters off and you could be dipping the P4 already.

KM5RG-Robert Posted at 2016-12-1 01:12
You will just have to judge by looking at the video image. Although if you get low enough, the VPS s ...

Never though of the VPS system, at what level from ground/water will that start to give you a altitude reading?

I think 30 feet or 9 meters if I recall correctly (trying to remember when I always see it come back on)..

Mobilcams Posted at 2016-12-1 04:34
I think 30 feet or 9 meters if I recall correctly (trying to remember when I always see it come back ...

Thanks, I will try that out next time flying.

Go down to the beach, and fly up above the cliff, to see what the elevation reads. Reverse that number, when flying down.
Yes, it will read a negative, but with fairly good accuracy. Do have fun, and please share the video. Haha
Stay out of the surf... ;-)

RedHotPoker

fans1e87bf90 Posted at 2016-11-30 21:12
Never though of the VPS system, at what level from ground/water will that start to give you a alti ...

The problem with that is you are urged to turn that system off when flying Nap of the water because it also gives false readings when 30 feet above water or less.

fans1e87bf90 Posted at 2016-12-1 14:10
Problem is that you never know exactly how high the cliff is and a couple of meters off and you co ...

That's why I suggested flying down where you can see the bottom.
It doesn't matter if you are a couple of metres above it but you'll have a number and you will know.

While the VPS suggestion that some had provided is a neat idea, you do want to be careful since the VPS does not like reflective surfaces like water.

Is there a place for you to land the bird at the bottom of the cliff, power down the motors, then start them back up again?  This way your home point will be set at (or near) sea level instead of on top of a cliff.  

Mabou2 Posted at 2016-12-1 23:20
Is there a place for you to land the bird at the bottom of the cliff, power down the motors, then st ...

What would be the purpose of that?

Labroides Posted at 2016-12-1 07:53
What would be the purpose of that?

Hola Labroides....  Well, just thinking that the home point would be at the bottom of the cliff rather than the top so there would be no concerns about the negative altitude number.  But then again, maybe I've just gone looney.

It would be much easier to start the flight at ocean side, fly up, start the video, and know what and where you are at all times.
Flying down seems like an accident waiting to happen. But hey, I am land locked in the flat lands of Alberta prairies, aside from the near by lakes and our glorious North Saskatchewan River.

Although in a few weeks we will be inundated with white fluffy water particles known as snow! Haha
I hope all goes well, without any unnecessary turmoil. Good luck. Please post the video...  Thanks.

RedHotPoker

Use Google Earth to check the elevation of home point and the water. You'll know with fair accuracy how far you can descend before photographing the fishes.

Mabou2 Posted at 2016-12-1 13:20
Is there a place for you to land the bird at the bottom of the cliff, power down the motors, then st ...

Some of the places I have been flying and had this issue, there is no way to go down to the water level.

RedHotPoker Posted at 2016-12-1 18:57
It would be much easier to start the flight at ocean side, fly up, start the video, and know what an ...

Ibiza02.jpg

RedHotPoker Posted at 2016-12-1 18:57
It would be much easier to start the flight at ocean side, fly up, start the video, and know what an ...

Not sure how to upload pictures or movie clips here, if I could I'd show you a couple of good shots to show you all what I am talking about.

fans1e87bf90 Posted at 2016-12-1 16:17
Ibiza02.jpg

Not sure if you were trying to post a pic or exactly what?
But I do hope you are successful in capturing your seaside video.
I am looking forward to seeing how it goes. Certain that you will have fun, experimenting and enjoying the experience.


Good luck! ;-)


RedHotPoker

fans1e87bf90 Posted at 2016-12-1 16:22
Not sure how to upload pictures or movie clips here, if I could I'd show you a couple of good shot ...

When you open a new post, click Advanced, then when you click the pic icon, it will give you a second option.Now when you tap the picture icon, then tap Common Upload. That will allow you to open the photo folder in your computer or device.


RedHotPoker

Tryin to upload pics

RedHotPoker Posted at 2016-12-2 00:28
When you open a new post, click Advanced, then when you click the pic icon, it will give you a sec ...

Thanks for the help, got it. Now how about movie?

Here's another one from the start point.

fans1e87bf90 Posted at 2016-12-1 16:32
Thanks for the help, got it. Now how about movie?

Same procedure, after you open Advanced, now you will have a movie camera icon, tap that and upload the video from your computer.

The picture you posted is really a beautiful scene, you are doing very well. Thanks for sharing such a lovely capture.

That's quite the awesome horizon and outlook from your vantage point. ;-)

I do see a slight horizon cant, so perhaps you will do a cold IMU and gimbal calibration, to correct that.

RedHotPoker

fans1e87bf90 Posted at 2016-12-1 16:36
Here's another one from the start point.

Wow, what amazing scenery. We have nothing like that up here on the flat prairies. Wonderful clear shot...

You have a great area to record your vids and pics from. You must be proud to live there.


RedHotPoker

RedHotPoker Posted at 2016-12-2 00:38
Same procedure, after you open Advanced, now you will have a movie camera icon, tap that and upload ...

Again, thanks for the help and your positive comment. Ibiza is a beautiful place and I captured some real nice footage there. Love the P4 and the quality off the movies it produces. With the movie camera icon I can only upload from a URL and not from my Mac.
Wonder if this will work:

fans1e87bf90 Posted at 2016-12-1 16:47
Again, thanks for the help and your positive comment. Ibiza is a beautiful place and I captured so ...

Without even opening the video, the opening screen shot looks amazing. Wow, what a gorgeous location..

Now for the magic... Haha

Ok, that's amazing!! Every scene is awesome, & could be a postcard home...You should be very proud of this video. Even the music is so suitable to the incredibly rich scenery. Just marvellous!
I like how you are slowly floating along, and the song choice is soft and mellow, allowing the veiwer to really get a feel for it all.
I actually wished that I could use the drone as a diving platform. Haha


RedHotPoker

RedHotPoker Posted at 2016-12-1 17:53
Without even opening the video, the opening screen shot looks amazing. Wow, what a gorgeous locatio ...

Haha, that would be nice, diving off the drone, maybe some day we will be able to do that Cheers for the compliments again, still got a lot to learn on filming, edditing and such but step by step.

fans1e87bf90 Posted at 2016-12-1 17:48
Haha, that would be nice, diving off the drone, maybe some day we will be able to do that ...

You are well on your way to being an accomplished videographer.

Keep at it, as it will only continue to improve.... Have fun! ;-)


RedHotPoker

DJI-Jamie Posted at 2016-12-1 01:45
While the VPS suggestion that some had provided is a neat idea, you do want to be careful since the  ...

It should however work just fine above the shore line and give you a height reading. Alternatively as I stated earlier you could also just use the camera view to see how high you are compared to either the shore or the sailboat etc. Put the camera at straight forward and/or down slightly. Or even straight down and look at the shoreline.

KM5RG-Robert Posted at 2016-12-2 02:05
It should however work just fine above the shore line and give you a height reading. Alternatively  ...

I am definitely going to try the VPN rather than using the camera as I found it really hard to judge from it, no matter what angle it was in.