I want to buy an hdslr helicopter asap, what are my options?

Trust me, the above posts are spot on -- this is no picnic. Imagine trying to get a perfectly-framed shot while balancing a tennis ball on a sharp pencil point in high winds during an earthquake and you'll get an idea of what it is like. I would suggest you snag a good simulator (like http://www.realflight.com/) and see what you are getting in to before you go much further. There is a helicopter training program in that package that will help a lot -- the "keep the heli in the circle" exercise will be good practice. My version does not have a multi-rotor, but there is a big Bell Medivac model that flies a lot like a payload-carrying quad. I have one of the older Draganfly SAV rigs that I have modded somewhat, the Bell is a better simm that what came with the unit from Draganfly.
Even after you gain proficiency with the simm, you will still crash a lot. Quads are especially dicey because it is easy to loose track of yaw, I can't imagine trying to fly an octo. Once you loose your sense of heading, you have no chance whatsoever of controlling pitch or roll, uncontrolled flight termination is only seconds away. I went into it thinking my FPV monitor would help with yaw, but it doesn't always. I could go on and on, I'll just repeat -- get a good simm, understand that the real thing is much harder.
Oh -- and there may be legal issues where you are. As far as I know, nobody is enforcing yet, but there still may be issues. ;-)
 
Are these choppers going to stand up to the wind? I found a gyro copter that could handle the GoPro but it can't handle even the gentlest wind. Grounded due to a broken tail rotor. The wind blew the helicopter onto my roof and it dropped to the concrete. CRASH! I've had lot of crashes due to the wind.
 
I have flown my heavy Y6 main platform in up to 35mph winds with no flight problems. Your platform needs to be DIALED for wind handling.

Good video is best acquired at sub 15mph winds. YMMV. Mine is a custom setup. Typically the smaller and lighter, the worse handling in wind. Also, the more props = typically worse wind handling.

Yes as Stephen mentioned. On a multi orientation can be especially difficult. I have had a number of big crashes after losing orientation at first. Even a fully "loaded" gimbal smashing $2,700 crash because I lost orientation a couple hundred feet out.
 
if you just want to have a flying camera, get a multirotor or heli equipped with auto flight.
It means it will get a gyro, GPS, altimeter,accelerometer, camera (for altitude and position) so if you loose control, you just lift hands over your head and let the AI go back home or just stabilize.
A full fledged system is a bit expensive but a lot less than several crashes.
currently there are big open projects for this (included the Next Gen Multicopter project and http://www.auav.net/) and many more smaller ones and commercial products (rotomotion) using small processors (gumstix, arduino)
http://code.google.com/p/arducopter/wiki/ArduCopter

http://www.auav.net/

The main target of these system is to make the the pilot free to concentrate on the payload instead the flight.
So they use cameras (infrared or normal) to check pattern on ground and get static flight or altitude control , or control horizon, use GPS to control position and even return home when remote control signal is lost.
they are VERY effective. some even allow to draw the path on the map (on a PC) , and let the airplane fly on its own.
so if you got a race on a track (ski, cars) you can have the airplane follow the track, from start to end and go back for next loop.

and we forget a real nice solution for aerial shots not requiring high speed flight, but more static, slow movement : balloons, Zepp or Blimps that are very safe and silent to use.

and also weird project like the UFOs using coanda effect, that are not possible at full scale but would be valid for smaller devices.
Coanda effect is a rule that says air will flow over a surface and follows its curve up to a certain level.
Thanks to this, you can build a donut wing profil and inject air through the center of donut.
It has been a failure to build working project because it is like helicopter at low altitude (imagine to control a ball in equilibrium at the top of a half sphere made of turbulent air.) . But today with electronic you could imagine to control that easily.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXVtUCABiv8&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXVtUCABiv8&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szasukfWXTU&feature=related
 
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From someone who's been DP/Cam Op on a number of RC heli shoots, here's what I can tell you…

Get a small heli to train on, and don't bother trying to fly any kind of camera on it. Use it only to train, to learn how to fly. I've seen footage from GoPros on smaller helis, and honestly, it isn't anything I'd ever try to sell to a client. Can it work? Sure. And it may be appropriate for the project or budget at hand. But if you're thinking about setting up a business as a production company providing RC heli services, a GoPro isn't the way to go.

For full-scale HD productions, I'd look at something like a Gaui X5 or Align Trex 600E or bigger, depending on the camera you're wanting to fly. The PhotoShipOne website will give you a good idea of which platforms are going to give you the best performance for aerials.

And one more thing…

If you can swing it, seriously look at flying a purpose-built video camera rather than a DSLR. Rolling shutter will be your main enemy, and most DSLRs just don't have the refresh rate to deliver great footage in difficult conditions. Any camera will give you good footage on a calm day, but when the wind kicks up, something like an FS-100 will prove it's worth. Not to mention that the ability to shoot 60FPS (in a 24p wrapper) saves time in post.

Just my .02.
 
Hey Guys

Older thread here, but I feel I have something to add. I've been trying to find the cheapest way to get decent aerial for GoPro cameras. I've found a very cheap (relatively speaking) way to get footage that can be passable under the right conditions. The AR Drone! It's a quad that flies by an iPhone app, and it's a very nice 300.00 toy. But with the "MacGyver RC mod" for 130.00 more you get a proper RC transmitter to fly with much more control. I also found a guy at etfett.net who makes GoPro mounts for the AR Drone, and the shots don't get any props in the shots. I made a video about it that I'll post. And below that I'll post a video by a company called Xpro Heli that created a very stable platform for GoPro, but it's much more - 2,300.00. But it's worth every penny. I paid 2,500.00 for my tripod and legs, so really it's in there with other video tools. No it won't lift a DSLR, but man I've gotten some sweet GoPro footage that takes very well to Magic Bullet Looks. Back to the AR Drone, it can get good footage, but "jello-cam" looking footage crops up a lot. More-so with the Hero2 camera. But there are some solutions like slowing the shutter speed by putting an ND1.2 filter over the lens, or flying on an overcast day. Still the AR Drone/GoPro kit is more of a training thing. You will crash, and you will need to buy replacement parts. But better to crash a 300.00 toy than a 2,300.00 serious tool. I am getting my XP1 (from Xpro Heli) next week, and will start my journey of learning that platform. I'm glad I already did a lot of flying on my AR Drones because I'll make less of the same mistakes with my XP1.

Here's my AR Drone thing:

The best AR Drone/GoPro footage I've gotten. Watch for the crash from 250 feet around 7:00!

And here's what I've graduated to! The XP1 - NO JELLO WITH THIS BABY

Just remember that the RC world is deep, with a steep learning curve. I've gotten to be a pretty good pilot in the past few months. But I crashed a lot. I crashed my AR Drone within 10 seconds of the first flight. There are software simulators to train on - get one! Get some toys to practice on. Go to RC forums like this and learn damn you - LEARN! There is no easy way to do this. Aircraft are getting better and better, and the modules like GPS and gyros are evolving the capabilities of these things, and making it easier to fly. Now, I'm not selling anything. I'm just a videographer wanting to get my own aerial shots, who has done MEGA research and made some instructional vids to share what I have learned. I tend to learn more when I am teaching what I just learned. So check out my whole AR Drone journey by checking my AR Drone Playlist - if you are interested. It's not a final solution, but it's a fun first step!!!

AR Drone Quad-Ccopter Modifications
http://www.youtube.com/user/ChadWork1#grid/user/D4CCE37602B28242
 
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It's fun stuff. Very intense project for sure, even to get decent footage from a gopro.
I'm using my Xmas vacation to test a new platform. Always testing, building or buying something. You can see some of my stuff from the big link in my sig. Enjoy. Watch out for the money pit :)
 
I am very keen to go down the GoPro route, with a small heli and the GoPro, I will have to read back through this thread, but can anyone quick link me to the best thing for this, round 1-2 grand?
 
Chadfish said:
Read my post with the 3 videos in it. #27
Click to expand...

That's awesome. Very impressed with that, but I do think that a feed back to a monitor would be necessary for what I want to achieve, can you do this at all with any of the mods you have?
 
The new GoPro Hero 2 can send a video feed while recording to the card. You have to buy an FPV kit to fly by monitor. Can't do it with the Drone. You can with the XP1 since it's so much more powerful. I don't have that yet.Just look up "FPV" or "First Person View".
 
I have worked with 1 real pro in Germany so far and I can confirm what others have said here: hire a pro or get ready to spend a LOT of time and $$$$ to learn. The copters are going to have a solid place in production. I already saw a RED under an octocopter. Nice work Matt!
 
Hey, we were able to achieve quite good footage with a cheap F450 quadrocopter for around 700€ and the GoPro camera. I'm very satisfied, espacially at the comparably low cost. Here you can watch it :) :


Greetings, Constantin
 
I looked into a chopper setup, but for a steady professional quality fly rig able to support the payload I needed it was close to $12K, which just wasn't worth the outlay.
 
I too am having great results with the GoPro, and they are uping the quality from 15mbps to 35mbps soon, and adding a flat picture profile that gives 11 stops of dynamic range. There is also the new Sony sports cam that looks promising. That being said, my XP2 quad is able to carry the Sony NEX-5n, which has DSLR quality & removable lens', but is very light.
• This is the XP2 quadcopter use for filming: ‪‪xproheli.com/affiliate/25/quadcopter/xp2-rc-aerial-video-quadcopter‬‬

I just shot this using the GoPro.

There is a guy in chia selling reasonably priced craft that can carry a anything up to a DSLR's weight. He's got a lot of different craft with lots of different options and mounts and such. He has more videos than anyone I've seen on YouTube. I suggest you contact him and tell him your needs. You can get something RTF for under 3 grand that may do the trick. I have a buddy who just bought one of these:
http://www.youtube.com/user/alishanmao?feature=CAgQwRs=
 
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