I don’t like calling it a “drone” because that’s not what it is. It’s a quadcopter camera. The word “drone,” to me, puts it in the category of a weapon currently used in warfare, and I am 100% not into that.
To me, it’s a tense exercise because it’s a really nice camera and it’s expensive, and one wrong glitch at the wrong time can make it go poof and go away. I can’t say that about any of my other cameras, which are strapped to me at all times. This one just floats around and flits to and fro like a dragonfly.
I bought it for work, but as yet haven’t done anything professional with it, as first I need to get a professional drone license. Yes, I need a professional license to fly it if I want to make money with it. Right now I only have a recreational license, so everything I’m doing is for practice and “fun.”
Like these rather boring photos I took of our local botanical center this weekend…
One of the things I eventually want to do is start using this flying camera for taking real estate pictures as a side gig, which is why I’m taking pictures of buildings. Here are a few from last year, when I first got this camera.
One of the most nerve-wracking things for me to do is fly the camera over water, but this weekend I applied the “Fear is the mind killer” mantra from Dune and sent the buzzing little busybody out over the Mississippi River, and took a photo of the center of our local Centennial Bridge from the middle. Despite the cold, my palms were sweating the whole time it was out there, and I didn’t even get a great photo because I was in too much of a hurry to get it back over dry land.
The view was better from the sunward side anyway…
I think my favorite images I’ve captured with this flying camera are of ruins. Not ancient ones, but the more recent urban decay variety.
And then there’s scenic sky shots, which this camera seems to excel at, but only when there are a lot of clouds.
Anyway, that is what I was up to this weekend. That, and working on the latest novel. Here’s a sneak peek at the cover:
No release date is set, yet, but it should be out before the end of this year. Like I keep saying after every new book, “This one is probably my last.”
Heck yeah, Gnomes!