Drone Strike Pt.3
Another Drone post from various flights I have embarked on over the past few weeks, with a period of warm weather meaning that I have been able to get the drone up in the air on a more regular basis and in various different places.
I have been tossing around the idea of doing some sort of a book with a view to getting something published in the future and will be most likely using my drone images as the main focus for this, so there will be many more drone posts to come in the near future from me that’s for sure. For this idea to happen however, I will need to get my drone licence (currently £999), as I would be then using the drone for commercial purposes (making money from it). Until then I will continue to enjoy my Drone and take it wherever I go to try and build up some interesting images that I can compile the best of for the book.
The Matthew traveling under Clifton Suspension bridge
The Matthew from above
Boat cruising towards Bristol
man taking photos of clifton suspension bridge from his boat
Cars at the port Waiting for delivery
Land of the industry
Industrial area in monochrome
Factory Roof
Industrial wasteland
Industrial buildings
Roundabout
A Stream running into the Bristol Estuary
Park and ride carpark.
Dogfest - Dog Show
Beachlife No.1
Beachlife No.2
Boat
Sea Kayaking
Playing with colours on the coast
Island in the sea N.1
Island in the sea No.2
Island in the sea No.3
A DRONE STORY
I encountered my first negative this past month when it comes to flying my drone when I was angrily confronted by a middle aged gentleman, who came dashing out of his house to aggressively tell me that he is going to call the police If I did not desist with my drone flying near to his property. I decided to go and speak with the man about his issue with the drone as I wanted to see how older people view this new technology which will become more and more prevalent as time goes by….
It became very apparent to me that people have no clue about the law when it comes to drones or the various ways they can be used. The man in question was using scare tactics by telling me that farmers in the area have shotgun licences and will shoot them down over their land if spotted, to which I tried to explain to him that some drones are used for the speedy delivery of organs and are private property in their own right so this would be criminal damage if shot down or damaged in any way. I advised that If people were looking to arm themselves and shoot drones down, there would be further consequences to this action for the person taking the law into their own hands just like anyone else causing criminal damage would be.
I tried to explain the current law to him regarding the flight of a drone, and that you do not own the sky, but he was far too fixed on his uneducated point to argue with, or have a rational conversation with regarding this topic by simply saying ‘You can’t drone here it’s not allowed on private property’. This to me just highlights how the area of drones will, and is causing deep divides in what people think about them, and how they are perceived and how they are used as well as what constitutes ‘my land’, as well as public and private land’
The current rules are:
“Drones must be flown no higher than 400 feet (120 metres), and be kept at least 50 metres away from people and private property, and 150 metres from congested areas and organised open-air assemblies of more than 1,000 people.”
I asked the man what it was that he actually disliked about the drone - he replied that he does not like the noise, and the idea of them seeing into his property, specifically filming his property is his main concern.
Although Ill informed in his understanding of how a drone can and can’t be used, I do take his point and most likely fear, that being out in the country as we were, a drone could be used in a criminal capacity to scope out a property like his, with the idea to easily plan a robbery using the information gained from the drones footage while keeping a safe and discreet distance away from it. Going forward I will try to take off and land the drone away from properties, particularly in rural areas, and keep higher than the 50 metre guideline above houses to cause minimal disturbance or any annoyance to any occupant there. At this sort of height noise would also not be an issue.
Understanding what people feel and understand about drones, the easier it will be to not cause issues like this going forward for myself in my pursuit of interesting and unique photos.
FIN
