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Anafi for Real Estate photography?

Kdavis2269

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I use my Anafi for taking rectangular JPEGs of roofing material and chimneys to include in home inspection reports. I am not a photographer by any means. Recently I had an agent ask me to take a few pictures for a listing she has coming up. What photo mode should I use and what is a user friendly processing software?

I tried a few sample pictures that I had in Lightroom and they were real grainy.
 
Investigate your laws at local & national levels in regards to commercial drone photography, familiarise yourself with the concepts of public spaces & privacy, where you can fly, whether you can fly over someone elses property to get a good point of view of the place you are capturing, what height & distance must you be from other people, etc.... You may possibly need to get a license, submit forms for each flight, have full public liability coverage for yourself, & special insurance on the drone, etc...

Capture in DNG, lock your exposure off, bracket shots if needed to be merged in Lightroom easily, photograph in relatively good light & still winds, don't capture in jpeg, it's too compressed to edit properly.
 
Thanks or the quick response. I have my Part 107 cert, wide area airspace authorizations for both local class D airports and the Anafi is covered by my business liability insurance policy (-hull damage). Thanks for the tips. I'll try taking a few sample DNG pics and play with Lightroom (free trial) a bit more.
 
Thanks or the quick response. I have my Part 107 cert, wide area airspace authorizations for both local class D airports and the Anafi is covered by my business liability insurance policy (-hull damage). Thanks for the tips. I'll try taking a few sample DNG pics and play with Lightroom (free trial) a bit more.
Interestingly, you don't need to subscribe to the Adobe Photography plan, you can use the Library section of Lightroom Classic for free, for ever! Then, if you search Adobe's site, you will find a freely available program called Camera Raw, that is exactly the same as the editing portion of Lightroom Classic! I get the participants of my photography groups to do this initially.

Make sure you know the ins & outs of your commercial drone piloting laws. I was quite surprised as to the limitations here in this regards. I need to be at a 30 metre radius from anyone. You can not fly over people or crowds, unless you have a drone that will operate if one motor goes out & you need to have a redundant battery also. So that therefore means that only the big boys get to play with that sort of footage, legally!

All those people flying at the beach, parks & even over other peoples houses can be fined quite severely for it, here in Australia.
 
In the U.S. the federal restriction is you can't fly over any part of a person. Based on what I've read there is no hard guideline for the ownership of airspace above private property. The FAA views airspace above 500 feet as navigable airspace but that doesn't necessarily mean the airspace below is controlled by the property owner. The airspace between 83' and 365' is still somewhat in question U.S. vs Causby
 
I've heard that Australia has some strict rules. I got a Adobe package 2 month free trial with a new hard drive recently. I learned the hard way JPEG don't tolerate editing very well but that formate suits the inspection report needs. I'm studying basic photography as I quickly learned that I have no idea what I'm doing. The last photography class I had was in high school where we were developing black and white photos in chemical baths. Thanks for letting me know there is a free work around for Lightroom when also using Camera Raw.

It looks like this will be a fun opportunity to learn more about digital photography. It's dark sorcery to me at this point.
 
KDavis,

I'm interested in doing commercial work (mostly outdoor wedding shots for my daughter's business) with my Anafi as well. I've had my Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate for a while but haven't registered the Anafi yet. I was attempting to register it tonight when I saw the discrepancy between the 18-digit number on the drone and the 18-digit one that shows up in Freeflight 6 App. Looks like the last 7 digits are the same. Just wondering which number you used to register the drone for Part 107?

Thanks, Eric
 
Based on what I've read there is no hard guideline for the ownership of airspace above private property. The FAA views airspace above 500 feet as navigable airspace but that doesn't necessarily mean the airspace below is controlled by the property owner.
For us Downunder, it's not a question of controlling or owning airspace at all. It comes down to safety. If my drone stops operating, can it fall on someone or their property, causing any possible damage in the process? It's that simple, really.
 
For us Downunder, it's not a question of controlling or owning airspace at all. It comes down to safety. If my drone stops operating, can it fall on someone or their property, causing any possible damage in the process? It's that simple, really.

The issues of control and safety are related. The hypothetical "if" can only be used so far when it comes to claiming control. If is a big little word that can be continually expanded to amass more and more control. A commercial plane, IF it falls our of the sky, could kill hundreds and destroy million of dollars of property but we still have them flying over major cities because as terrible as that is in odds are low that it will happen so don't ban flight over congested areas. With drones some reasonable restriction should be in place that balance public safty and personal freedom.
 
KDavis,

I'm interested in doing commercial work (mostly outdoor wedding shots for my daughter's business) with my Anafi as well. I've had my Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate for a while but haven't registered the Anafi yet. I was attempting to register it tonight when I saw the discrepancy between the 18-digit number on the drone and the 18-digit one that shows up in Freeflight 6 App. Looks like the last 7 digits are the same. Just wondering which number you used to register the drone for Part 107?

Thanks, Eric
I used the SN on the drone that matched the SN on the sticker in the case. I noticed the same thing in FF6 on the Anafi screen. I sided with the SN that would be found on the Anafi in case it got stolen and someone took of my FAA registration number.

For us Downunder, it's not a question of controlling or owning airspace at all. It comes down to safety. If my drone stops operating, can it fall on someone or their property, causing any possible damage in the process? It's that simple, really.
Here is what US commercial UAS operators have to follow. Take a look a the link as I would love to see how the rules between Australia and the US differ.

§107.39 Operation over human beings.
No person may operate a small unmanned aircraft over a human being unless that human being is:
(a) Directly participating in the operation of the small unmanned aircraft; or
(b) Located under a covered structure or inside a stationary vehicle that can provide reasonable protection from a falling small unmanned aircraft.

 
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The issues of control and safety are related. The hypothetical "if" can only be used so far when it comes to claiming control. If is a big little word that can be continually expanded to amass more and more control. A commercial plane, IF it falls our of the sky, could kill hundreds and destroy million of dollars of property but we still have them flying over major cities because as terrible as that is in odds are low that it will happen so don't ban flight over congested areas. With drones some reasonable restriction should be in place that balance public safty and personal freedom.
Unfortunately, drones are not made with the same level of safety as commercial aircraft. Until they are, I think it prudent to err on the side of safety. An Anafi falling from a height will do some serious damage to anything below its downward trajectory. I feel the restrictions of not allowing flying over other people & their property is appropriate for recreational & basic commercial usage of a drone.

I guess it also comes down to cultural differences too, as I don't know of any Aussies that have issue with being controlled in regards to their freedoms of flying a drone here. It's basically just doing it with consideration for all others in regards to the regulations & governances of using a drone. It's not about believing we are being controlled by the man or anything like that & it's not subservience & just accepting whatever we are told either. The drone usage regulations were created in negotiation with users & the general population in the first place & that has continued to this day.

Here is what US commercial UAS operators have to follow. Take a look a the link as I would love to see how the rules between Australia and the US differ.

§107.39 Operation over human beings.
No person may operate a small unmanned aircraft over a human being unless that human being is:
(a) Directly participating in the operation of the small unmanned aircraft; or
(b) Located under a covered structure or inside a stationary vehicle that can provide reasonable protection from a falling small unmanned aircraft.

A couple of loose guidelines from our governing bodies website:
  • You must not fly your drone in a way that creates a hazard to another aircraft, person or property, so follow our rules every time you fly.
  • You must not fly your drone within 30 metres of people, unless the other person is part of controlling or navigating the drone.
  • You must not fly over or above people. This could include festivals, sporting ovals, populated beaches, parks, busy roads and footpaths.
  • You must not operate your drone in a way that creates a hazard to another aircraft, person, or property
  • You must not operate your drone in prohibited or restricted areas.
The regulations talk about populated areas in regards to flying over & near to people. This is a loose term that translates to also mean the suburbs, in particular, other peoples homes where there is an expectation of safety & privacy, the beach, certain parks, roadways, etc...

Aussie recreational drone usage laws
Aussie commercial drone usage laws
Flying over your own property

A license is not necessary for commercially operating a drone that is under 2 Kg. There is a special category called "Excluded" but it has many limitations to it, basically making it the same as recreational usage. It is in this category that I am able to offer free drone access to local community groups, but, I need to be a 30 metre radius from people at all times & not fly over any populated areas at the events, such as tents or marquees or shelters, vehicles, amusement rides, processions, etc...

To attain a license here is relatively expensive & unless you have a drone with the ability to continue flying when a motor cuts out & also has a secondary battery to kick in when the first gives up the ghost, you will still be limited to the "Excluded" flying category! There are 2 licenses here, the REPL (remote pilots license) which allows you to now fly within 15 metres of people, woo hoo! Once you have your licence, you may operate commercially with an operator (a holder of an RPA operators certificate, or ReOC), or apply for your own certificate. So if you wanted to operate your own drone commercially, you also need the REOC. Otherwise, you need to find someone who has their REOC & work under them. It's around about six to seven thousand dollars to get both licenses here. Then you would need a Typhoon-H as a minimum to meet the working minus 1 motor ruling, but would have to build in a failsafe extra battery also, so you are really forced to have to use the much more expensive DJI line of drones, if you want to do most real-estate aerial photography (as you are over other peoples property), night or flying over crowds at all.
 
I don't have time to go through each point you made but I'll comment on two...

"You must not fly your drone in a way that creates a hazard to another aircraft, person or property, so follow our rules every time you fly."

This one provision practically eliminates the ability to fly a drone anywhere. As you mentioned, drones are not built to the same safety standards as other aircraft. On the other hand the potential damage if a commercial airliner crashes is exponentially higher than the consequences of a 1 pound drone crashing so the safety standard argument is greatly offset by that IMHO.

Beyond that, if you want to take the words "creates a hazard" to the extreme in the vast majority of situations the flight of a drone creates a hazard to a person or property. I'm not advocating being reckless BUT attempts to remove all risk from flying a drone have to have some connection with what has occurred in the real world not "what ifs".

You mention the 30 meter rule. Why 30 meters? Why not 10 meters or 50 meters? What testing or empirical evidence was used to come up with the 30 meter rule?
 
I bought my anafi just for that. DNG, profile correction in LR, and appropriate noise reduction adjustements give out great results. JPEGs from the aircraft are complete trash, the RAW/JPEG difference is greater than anything I've seen on any other camera in the past 10+ years.
 
KDavis,

I'm interested in doing commercial work (mostly outdoor wedding shots for my daughter's business) with my Anafi as well. I've had my Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate for a while but haven't registered the Anafi yet. I was attempting to register it tonight when I saw the discrepancy between the 18-digit number on the drone and the 18-digit one that shows up in Freeflight 6 App. Looks like the last 7 digits are the same. Just wondering which number you used to register the drone for Part 107?

Thanks, Eric
Parrot support stated that there are two SN's for each drone. 1 The hardware SN located on the drone and wifi info card in the case. 2 The SN listed on the Anafi information screen in FF6 is tied to your shared flight files stored on the Parrot server. Both SN's are on file with Parrot.
 
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Friend of mine asked to come and film his house with my Anafi, as he will put the video to the sales advertizement. I think the quality Anafi films is more than enough to film a house.
 
Friend of mine asked to come and film his house with my Anafi, as he will put the video to the sales advertizement. I think the quality Anafi films is more than enough to film a house.
I also had a friend offer me a job taking aerial photos of a house/property for sale. Be aware that since it's for business use, you'll need a certificate.

Also, I'd recommend watching this training video:
, based on it's reviews and because it's free, as opposed to paying $150.
 
Capture in DNG, lock your exposure off, bracket shots if needed to be merged in Lightroom easily, photograph in relatively good light & still winds, don't capture in jpeg, it's too compressed to edit properly.

Alex ...... would you say your statement regarding DNG...... is worth sticking too as a good guide for general drone photography. I am no photographer and never will be...... something about it just doesnt stick in my head. So I just generally fly and shoot in whatever the application is set to.

I do have and use LR, so do you think it would pay me to stick to your reference and shoot in DNG etc? to get better quality images?
 
Alex ...... would you say your statement regarding DNG...... is worth sticking too as a good guide for general drone photography. I am no photographer and never will be...... something about it just doesnt stick in my head. So I just generally fly and shoot in whatever the application is set to.

I do have and use LR, so do you think it would pay me to stick to your reference and shoot in DNG etc? to get better quality images?
As a pro photographer and retoucher, DNG is definitely the way to go. Lightroom can make better color edits to a RAW/DNG file than Photoshop can to a JPG. DNG offers greater flexibility in what you can do to the image and how you save the file. It *almost* allows you to have a second chance at taking the photo!
 
@apixelpilot Thanks for the confirmation, DNG shall be may weapon of choice going forward (y) and I can then have a play in LR and see what results I get. Now they have the Anafi profile in there, should make a vast difference. Thanks
 
@apixelpilot Thanks for the confirmation, DNG shall be may weapon of choice going forward (y) and I can then have a play in LR and see what results I get. Now they have the Anafi profile in there, should make a vast difference. Thanks
Yes LR does, and Photoshop's Camera RAW plug in does as well.
 

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