DRONES – THE LATEST TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHY ESSENTIAL
By Chase Guttman
Gaze upward. There’s new technology hovering on the horizon and it’s making a dramatic ascendancy.
Drones are an artist’s dream medium. They allow us to explore a scene while discovering the unseen. The photographs and videos that we create are no longer constricted by human limitations.
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are a magical technological force because they dominate that distinct airspace just beyond the reach of the selfie stick and below the landing skids of a helicopter. They go where no other technology can. That is truly game changing in a world where 400 million photographs are uploaded every day just to Facebook alone.
Altering Your Viewpoint
In this modern era, how can you stand out as an artist? Crafting a lasting image in a society oversaturated by visual stimuli can come down to a matter of perspective. Altering your viewpoint can bring dynamic order to an unstructured scene, allowing you to capture a fleeting moment capable of enchanting imaginations. Similar to how the iPhone has democratized photography, drones have democratized perspective.
Drones provide a wide palette of startling, new angles and have unveiled unimaginably expansive scenes for us to experience. UAVs allow photographers to tell stories of another kind – visual narratives rich with the breathtaking views our minds never realized existed.
Take Flight
The introduction of these new tools enable us to redefine our imagery by giving individuals the opportunity to appreciate the breadth and scale of their world. The atmosphere above beckons to storytellers with its soaring, unlimited canvas. With these incredible innovations, our creative minds can literally and figuratively take flight.
Photographers have always clamored to see the world from different angles. Aerial photography’s initial innovators worked in mid-air hot air balloon darkrooms and affixed camera equipment to flying pigeons. Today, ready-to-fly cameras are available to the masses.
Compact, Lightweight, Portable
Compact and portable, drones are becoming more robust with each passing year. Many models are lightweight enough to hike with and small enough to collapse down to the size of a DSLR lens. With intuitive controls and automatic features, it’s easier than ever to feel comfortable behind the sticks. Piloting a drone is a bit like riding a bike – once you know how to do it, you’ll never forget it.
This is just the beginning for drones – its uses are ever expanding and its applications are limitless. Every visual storyteller should have a drone in his or her arsenal. It’s an essential tool for creating new photographic possibilities, near and far. With a drone at the ready, prepare to embark on an exciting journey of visual storytelling from the skies above.
Come Fly With Us
If you’ve recently joined the drone corps, and looking for places to log some flying time, then join us on one of our drone-friendly tours. Many of our destinations are terrific places to capture from above, including Vietnam, Thailand, Greece, Iceland, an even our Historic Route 66 drive. Because flight regulations are always changing, please be sure to check with the relevant authorities. Above all, you want to return with images and videos that showed you were above all!
