On this trip to Medellin, Colombia. Took the opportunity to Film an inconic Landmark nearby called "La Piedra del Peñol" Tips to for international travel and what i found useful during this trip follow the video.
Hope you enjoy the Edit and shots! (Video Music is copyright Free)
Drones have become such a great tool for capturing amazing perspectives and taking photography to new hights ..literally.. unfortunately the speed at which drones have spread around the world does not match the level of acceptance from all Nations. I have experienced nations where drones are completely illegal when entering the county, like Cuba and Nicaragua to name a few. I have prepeared a brief set of actions I take before i travel abroad with my drone: Check the local Laws: the first thing i do when i decide on a Country is to check their specific laws about Drones (if any), and try to get other peoples input on traveling to destinations they might have already visitded to get a take on their experience. Drone Forums and online communities are great for this as knowledge is broadly shared. Some countries prohibit the entrance of drones completely, so please be aware.
Check the local No-Fly zones: i tend to rely on Airmap and the DJI No Fly zones, as they tend to be the most up to date in terms of accuracy. you want to avoind any illegal flying, specially when flying as a tourist on a foreigh Country.
Understand distances: when traveling, it is not always easy to charge batteries on demand, understand how far and by which means you will be travelling to your end destination and plan accordingly in temrs of gear (how many fully charged batteries to bring).
Make sure your Drone has latest firmware before leaving home: making sure your drone firmware is up to date and doing a test flight before traveling gives you peace of mind.
After i check all of the above, its is a matter of planning your trip, organizing gear, making sure lipo batteries are stored in lipo battery travel cases to avoid issues, and taking these with you on your carry on luggage (its most airlines rules for lipo batteries) unless it exceeds the limits. (check with your carrier)
The Video and shots below are from a Place Called "La Piedra del Peñol" or El Peñol Rock, which is a granite rock monolith with stands tall next to the Guatape Dam in the Region of Antioquia, Colombia , South America. To get here you need to Fly to Medellin and drive for about 2 hours to El Peñol. Once there, It takes 740 steps up a narrow staircase (You can see on one of the pics) to get to its top. I flew the Drone from the top to capture its view from this unique angle.
Things to keep in mind if you plan to fly there is the weather. Weather changes quick, specially the wind, bringing the drone down for landing is a bit challenging because of the uplift winds generated by the rock (same phonomenom airplanes experience as turbulence when approaching mountaneous Regions when landing and takeoff). The way to approach the landing is to look for the leeward side of the rock and bring the drone in from that angle.
Another tip here is to use ND/PL Filters as you will do flying over water (DAM) so this helps cut the reflection and add contrast to your shots.
When taking shots of the Rock, to show its magnitude, you want to avoid having the cenith of the rock line up with the Horizon. You want to either have the Cenith (Top) of the rock be above the Horizon or Below the Horizon, this gives the Rock more sense of its true greatness and captures the eyes attention when looking at the shot.
PD: The Letters "G I" that you see painted on the rock are really an attempt from the Guatape Region To mark the Rock as theirs.. the I was really part of a U. but they got stopped by the people from the neighboring town of El Peñol and it stayed like that.
Thanks Vlas, Glad you Liked., and indeed hope the laws catch up for good and well sensed, cause nothing comes out of senseless laws! .. Have you traveled to any countries that prohibit or limit the use of drones?
Thanks Jackson! appreciate the support, glad you liked this one! it had been a bucket list item for me to photograph from above, and finally had the chance to travel there and do it. Another great destination i would suggest for you!
FlyingFish82 Posted at 2018-7-3 04:25
Thanks Jackson! appreciate the support, glad you liked this one! it had been a bucket list item for me to photograph from above, and finally had the chance to travel there and do it. Another great destination i would suggest for you!
Cheers!
you are welcome buddy, hope to travel there as well
First Officer
Captain
Administrator
Second Officer
lvl.3