Flying cameras…

Before the tech

Aerial imagery used to be expensive and challenging to coordinate. Before Google Earth, photography companies specialising in aerial photography used to hire a small plane to fly to capture unseen views from above. I remember as a kid, perhaps 10 years old, one of these photographers knocked on our door and showed my dad a mounted and framed photograph of our cottage that he had captured from the plane. We have never seen our house from that perspective, it was completely unique, and if this opportunity ever arose, you would buy the photo!

We have it much easier now

With the invention of consumer drones, and more specifically Google Earth, everyone has become accustomed to seeing things from above. Drone technology has advanced considerably in the past 5 years, they are safer, more autonomous, they can fly for longer and the cameras on them are getting better and better. The first DJI drones released didn’t have their own cameras, people used to mount Go Pro action cameras to the drones - but inevitably this evolved into proprietary DJI software and components.

Belle tout Lighthouse - Seven Sisters Cliffs

The rules

Like most advances in technology, someone realised that more control needs to be had over these flying cameras. Concerns over human safety, privacy and potential damage to property required some rules. Any consumer drone requires registration, an introduction test and license to be displayed on your drone. I think it is a small price to pay for the convenience of being able to capture photos and videos from the sky, which once upon a time was very difficult to achieve.

The biggest advancement in drone tech has been the size and weight of the drones. My first drone, a DJI Mavic 2 Pro, weighs around 900g. This is a reasonable size drone, which if it were to malfunction and fall out of the sky, could cause some damage to property or bodily harm. This has never happened to me, but this is the reason why the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) introduced weight categories. 250g is a threshold for drones, which determines whether you have to keep a considerable distance from people and urban environments, versus flying in open countryside far far away from people and structures. When I passed my A2CofC license in 2021 this allowed me to flying my A2 category (heavier drone) in more built up areas, as well as conduct commercial drone flights.

Why not get a small drone then?

in 2020, when I got my Mavic 2 Pro, investing in a larger drone meant that you have a professional grade camera on the drone. The smaller drones simply weren’t powerful enough to carry the bigger better cameras, and image quality was an important factor for me. Premium models like the Mavic pro series has advanced tracking features, as well as longer flight times and the ability to handle stronger winds. My model has been superseded by the Pro 3 and now the pro 4 which has multiple cameras for various focal lengths.

As time passes, the newer smaller models have inherited many of these features and just about fall under the 250g threshold. They are often quoted as 249g, but some users report that due to manufacturing tolerances they can be 252g. Whoops!

The important thing for me however is that they have now engineered the same camera from my larger heavier drone into these sub 250g drones. The DJI mini 5 pro for example has the same one inch sensor as my Mavic 2 pro, and is roughly a quarter of the weight. Amazing!

Convenience - DJI Neo 2

If you do not own and drone and are considering getting a drone in 2026, then I would highly recommend the DJI Neo 2. It is amazing value for money, has incredible features and is fun to use. It can fly itself, genuinely, it is like a pet that follows you around and then you hold out your hand and it comes back to you and lands on your hand. Check out the below video if you want to learn more! 50,000 other people have already enjoyed that video!

FPV & 360 drones

If regular drones with perfect horizons, buttery smooth footage don’t do it for you, then there are FPV and 360 drones. I don’t own either of these, as I don’t have a purpose for either of them, but I do enjoy learning about new technology nonetheless. FPV is short for first person view, and to fly an FPV drone you wear goggles to see what the drone sees. To stay on the right side of the rules, you also need an assistant ‘spotter’ as someone should always be watching the drone in the sky - and if you are wearing goggles that’s not you! If you have ever watched some drone videos that pass through impossibly small spaces, flip upside down and then follow the water trickling down a waterfall, that is FPV! Companies such as DJI have made FVP drones more accessible, they used to require a lot of self-building and janky battery charging, however there is now the option to have FPV that connects to satellites and won’t fall out of the sky if you take your finger off the throttle. The main differentiating factor between regular drone footage and FPV is that the footage leans with the drone, it is therefore more immersive and energetic as a consequence.

360 drones are a relatively new addition to the market. Like 360 cameras, the drone has multiple cameras that look in all directions and it stitches the video together to make a complete 360 sphere of video; which you can choose you angle once you are back home in front of the computer. This gives you a lot of flexibility in the edit, and also allows you to capture shots that simple aren’t possible with any other camera. Again, I don’t own one of these, as I don’t know if I have a use case for it, but it is another avenue of drones to explore if you want to try something different.

DJI ban and drone rules

As I said above, the drone rules are always changing and in America DJI products are banned entirely since late 2025. To put things into perspective DJI are the world’s leading drone manufacturer and many business owners, even the emergency services rely upon drones for various tasks. What was claimed to be security concerns by America, allowing a China based company to access drone cameras and data, was a risk. Instead of managing it, they simply banned all DJI products being imported into the country. Their loss.

Luckily we do not have that situation in the UK, phew.

The future of drones?

The perception of drones is changing. When they were new technology there was a lot of fear about whether people were spying on them. I personally experienced a lot of inquisitive people when I have been out flying my drone. Everyone has always been interested in seeing what the view of the drone looked like on my display and (mainly men) wanted one!

Six years later and I see more and more signs in parks, websites, play areas saying ‘no drones’. This says to me that someone has not been responsible and now they have ruined it for everyone. It is always the minority that ruin it for the rest of us.

I passed my A2CofC exams, which were difficult, and I would consider my self a respectful and competent drone pilot. But not everyone is, and the rules are getting stricter. Most of the rules make a lot of sense, and I agree with them, as they are focused around human safety. There are some excellent apps that give you guidance on where you can and cannot fly, as well as temporary events that you should avoid due to large gatherings of people. The fact that drones are getting smaller and lighter, and packed with more and more features is good, as these small drones that are sub 250g can be flown in most places without concern over the safety of others. If you do get paid for any drone flights, for any services that has a value, then you will need to get insurance however.

I am positive about the future of drones, as they are an amazing tool that many people take for granted. I have video footage and photos of scenes that 10 years ago simply would not have been possible without hiring a helicopter and a camera crew.

We are lucky to be living in such times!

Thanks for reading!