Top 10 Tips for Aerial Photography

If you want to use your drone for aerial photos, you should feel overwhelmed before the first flight. At the beginning you are still concerned about how to safely fly the quadcopter through the air and bring it back to earth, but later the question arises of how you can take the perfect photo from lofty heights without having to resort to daring maneuvers.

To make your way to becoming a professional drone photographer easier, just read the following 10 tips & tricks and experience fantastic aerial photography with your drone.

Looking for a drone instead? This article on the best drone camera under 5000 in India will guide you in the right direction.

Here are The Tips for Aerial Photography1. Stay relaxed and check your surroundings

Before you take your drone into the air, you should take a moment to unpack and check your device and your surroundings. An approaching storm or a stray dog nearby can quickly put a spanner in the works. If you also want to land the drone on the side, you can quickly get overwhelmed.

2. The morning hour has gold in its mouth

Get out of bed early, pack the drone and off you go. Early risers have an advantage here. The best aerial photos are available shortly after sunrise and shortly before sunset. Softer light and richer colors make pictures with your drone look even better.

3. Compose with Grid

To take photos that stand out due to the geometric finesse, you should take a look at the grid function of your drone. Activate this and a grid of 2 × 2 lines divides the field into 9 areas. Now try to focus on the intersection of the lines or the focus of the photo on one of the vertical lines. Play around with the lines and you will find that your aerial photos quickly become more balanced.

4. Try the D-Log mode

Even if the images look washed out in the preview mode, the D-Log mode has its own advantages. As soon as it comes to post-processing your photos on the computer, you will appreciate the wealth of detail that can suddenly be found in each of your aerial photographs. Just try it out and activate the mode on your Mavic or other DJI drone.

5. Auto exposure bracketing (AEB)

In the great outdoors, the lighting conditions change quickly, and the sun or a cloud can quickly thwart your plans. Finding the perfect exposure for your aerial photography is anything but easy. Fortunately, there is auto exposure bracketing. With the help of AEB, your drone takes several pictures with different exposures. Now select the perfect shot or create an HDR photo that is impressive.

6. ND filter

One of the best accessories for your DJI drone are ND filters (Neutral Density Filters). In principle, they work like sunglasses for the camera. Makes sense, since most photos are taken in the sunshine. The filters come in several designs. An ND8 filter is recommended for beginners.

7. Take a look below

To get a completely new perspective, it is worth simply panning the camera vertically downwards. The aerial photos that are created in this way bring unexpected geometric structures to light. A change of perspective that is worthwhile.

8. The right image editing software

If the pictures from other drone photographers look better around corners than your own, then this does not necessarily have to be due to a better drone or flight skills. Most likely, image editing software was simply used to add the finishing touches to the images. It is easy to feel overwhelmed by the multitude of editing options that programs such as Lightroom or Photoshop offer. But just a few simple tricks can make your aerial photos look a lot better.

9. Histogram

A relatively useful function in image processing is the histogram. It gives you an indication of the color distribution in your picture. When experimenting with the colors in your images, keep an eye on the histogram. It can help you avoid overexposure and burned out colors.

10. Discover new spaces

If your aerial photographs are becoming more and more similar, it may be worth checking out a few new places. Inspired by new surroundings, you will surely find ideas quickly to give your photos a new kick.

Conclusion

Just keep these tips in mind the next time to click photos or shoot videos with your drone camera.

Tarun is a former semi-professional sports person with a serious addiction to the internet.