7 min read Tips on aerial drone photography

Aerial drone photography has grown in popularity over the past few years. Aside from providing photography lovers with the option of taking photos from extraordinary points, drone photography offers more adaptability for professional use. Photographers are now able to incorporate aerial photography into their services, thus allowing them to provide more varied options to their clients. It’s an amazing modern photography niche that is worth getting into, especially for adventurous shooters who want to bring their photography to new heights—literally and figuratively. And in order to achieve stunning, best-quality aerial photos and maximize the use of your aerial drone, here are several drone photography tips that you need to follow.

Check the UAV forecast:

The first thing you need to do before taking your aerial drone out for a photography session is to check the UAV forecast which gives really important information for the safety of the aircraft, pilot, and other buildings or people in the vicinity. It tells you which areas are off-limits, what the weather will be like on that day, how many GPS satellites are active in a particular area, and a lot more. Always check the weather forecast before starting aerial drone photography, as this can help you to plan your shoots.

Shoot in RAW format:

Taking photos in the digital RAW format gives you more flexibility in post-image processing. This way, you get lossless uncompressed image data from the sensor. The important amount of resolution and detail that can be preserved includes great levels of brightness that allow you to make the greater color adjustment and exposure without making the photo look worse or unnatural posturized due to color banding which is really common in low-resolution JPEG images. Many of the high-end drones come with onboard cameras that support image’s Raw format but if you have a modular drone that allows you to change your camera, it ensures to get the best drone that lets you shoot in RAW format. For Inspire 2 users, the DJI Zenmuse X5S drone camera is the best choice. It allows you to shoot 20.8MP images in 12-bit RAW format and also it features an interchangeable lens mount for more great creative control.

Utilize the thirds grid overlay for composition:

Composition is a very important aspect of an image. It commands the arrangement of the visual elements in the frame, the balance between the positive and negative space, and also the color balance within the image. Usually, it takes a few trials and errors in order to achieve the desired composition, but when you are using a camera with less battery life in it, this is not a problem. However, with drones, you don’t have the same luxury. Many drones average up to 25 to 30 minutes of flying time, so if you are trying to capture a particular subject or scene, it is absolutely vital that you get it right for the first time. To help you make sure that your images are composed properly, ensure to frame your images with the use of the third grid overlay. 

Usually, aerial drone photography cameras have a third grid to help users frame their photos with accuracy, thereby improving their compositions. If you have an option of using an overlay grid, do not forget to use it as this will not only help you to get your right composition for the first time but also helps you to avoid any pointless cropping in the post-processing stage.

Stick to a lower ISO:

Usually, drone cameras have small sensors, which do not work as well at high ISO settings. This is mainly true for the Phantom 3 range which yields really good images but ends up with major amounts of unwanted noise and grain when the ISO is set higher than 100. Unless you are shooting at night, sufficient lighting should not be a problem when it comes to aerial drone photography and it would not be necessary to use high ISO settings. Generally, you will want to stick to the lowest ISO, which means you have to adjust your camera settings manually to keep your image exposed properly. When shooting in shady or windy places, open up your aperture or use a slower shutter speed to let more light come in and be able to maintain the lowest ISO for sharp and clean images.

Take advantage of Auto Exposure Bracketing:

 Drones like the DJI Phantom 3 Professional and other recent Phantom releases come with an Auto Exposure Bracketing feature that helps you to capture realistic photos with high dynamic range in just one go. It allows you to shoot the same photo many times at different settings and exposures, giving you more options to work with. You can select the photo with the best level of exposure, or you can combine all of them into one photo and use the best parts of every shot. This is useful when you want to save time and get the best-exposed shots without having to take various test shots or create high-quality images.

Be prepared to improvise:

There will be a time when no proper planning can prepare you for unexpected and difficult shooting situations. For instance, the weather may change or the location may suddenly be declared off-limits because of an emergency, despite a close inspection of the weather report or UAV forecast. In cases like these, you must learn how to make do with what you have. Take advantage of gloomy skies to change the mood of your image. Use direct sunlight in order to capture a beautiful photo. Get creative and turn normal situations into unique and unexpected photo opportunities. The results will definitely come out better than your expectations.