One cold weekend in December I found myself down at the H.H. Knoll park in Port Colborne with a few minutes before I needed to be anywhere. I parked by the edge of the Sugarloaf marina and looked out over the scene. The sky was crisp and clear. The water was just turning to ice. And the sun shone brightly in the sky. Where else, indeed?
This was a scene I have captured in camera many times. The sky, ever changing, is always different. The boat slips are bereft of ships at this time of year, which makes their symmetry very appealing. The lake may be frozen or not, and the birds frequenting the area might be swimming or walking. It’s always different. Which is why so many like to revisit so often and pass an hour or two as they watch the world go by.
Chilly
Not today. It was -10 Celcius, a bit brisk for most. Mine was one of only two vehicles in the lot. The day was bright. Zero wind. Which meant no wind chill. It was a lovely day to take a walk. Or send up the drone.
The operating specs for my model say it is good to fly in temperatures as low as -10 C. Right on the money. A pilot has to consider all environmental factors. Cold weather drains batteries fast. If it is humid, there is a risk of icing on the propellers, which can bring a drone crashing to earth. Moisture in the air can get into motors even when it is not raining. All these are things to consider. All these and many more become instinctive pre-flight checks, muscle memory as you tick them off while unpacking the gear. A visual scan confirms no people, no animals, no birds, no wind, radio signal good, batteries good, no power lines. A half dozen other items are quickly checked off the list. And off we go.
Waypoints
I had a very specific idea in mind, and now was an opportunity to make it happen. Before taking off I quickly set up a couple of waypoints. Waypoints are familiar to anyone that works with maps. In drone terms waypoints are preset locations where the drone will perform actions set in advance. My controller has a map that shows the local area. On it I could see the park, the marina, and the lighthouses. I set one waypoint at the boat ramp, and one more at the bridge. Height, 50 metres, well above the light poles, trees, and flocks of geese and gulls huddled on the cold ground.
I wanted a slow sweep to take in the sun on the ice and all those empty slips. After setting the start and end points of this simple flight I set a POI, or Point Of Interest. This is where the drone camera would track while it flew between the two waypoints. The POI was centred on the boat slips. With the waypoints and POI set, I pressed the button. And off she flew.
Ascending to the preset height, the drone flew off to the boat ramp and turned toward the POI. Recording began. The drone swept slowly to the second waypoint, keeping the camera pointed at the POI and continuing to record. At the end of the preprogrammed flight the camera stopped recording and RTH kicks in. ‘Return To Home’ flies the drone automatically back to where it took off.
The drone landed at my feet. One button press was all it took to send the flying camera on a mission, complete the mission, and return. I had been out of the car less than five minutes.
Mix And Match
Waypoints can be combined in countless ways. A mission might have a dozen or more of them, not the simple two I used here. A drone will faithfully follow instructions along the way, turning the camera here or there, taking photos or videos. Or both. The only limitation is the imagination and skill of the person setting the waypoints. Planning is required to visualise what a drone will see before it ever gets there. Additionally, a firm hand on the controller is vital. Drones will follow the instructions given. Even if that takes them into a flock of passing birds or out of radio range. Lengthy flights risk batteries running out. Low altitude flights can pass too close to distant trees, moving vehicles may unexpectedly come into view. Vigilant fingers remain on control sticks ready to take manual control if needed.
In this case, it wasn’t needed. The flight went flawlessly. I reviewed the video in the car, and below is the edited version. Three lakers, two lightouses, and the sun. Not a bad little practice flight. I’m one of the 1% of Canadian adults that have achieved an advanced RPAS pilot rating. We are proud of that: We earned it. We make it look easy. It isn’t. That’s experience for you.
Prints and products for all images by request.
Subscribers get more. Get exclusive discounts and content delivered right to your Inbox.
Leave comments below.