Aspen Aerials

[Derek Weiss]

From the helicam.
Windows 1280x720 5,000kbps HDV.
www.fritzrips.com/Aerials/AspenHDV.wmv

[John Lewis]

That is some impressive flying skills you have there! Some of those shots are simply outstanding, especially those that take the camera from grass level up, and the move round the house at the midway point is excellent as well.

Outstanding! Do you have any more?

[Andrew Kufahl]

Very nice video Derek. Gorgeous subject matter, you captured it well. I loved the shots from way, way up.

Just wanted to point out that at 3:01 something seemed to happen with the video. If you watch the right edge of the video, it briefly pulls in then goes back out.

[J. Stephen McDonald]

I like the slow, low-altitude passes, that give you as clear a view of each location, as if you were shooting from the ground. Instead of the fast-moving blur that most such videos show, this let you look at the details. How much total flying time did it take to produce what we see on this video? I expect you'll have many more of these excellent pieces in the future.

[Buck Forester]

Wow, great video! I couldn't sworn a couple of those shots were from a handheld stabilzer while you were walking... I mean, you were clipping the top of the grass, and then you'd go right over the water and then go vertical... amazing perspectives!

[Camron Settlemier]

Are you going to give away any secrets of R/C helicopter, gyro, and pan/tilt gear?

[Julian Frost]

Really nice footage. I'd love to know how you got everything so smooth. Great work. What was the music?

[Derek Weiss]

The helicopter is a 6ft long electric heli.

This was shot over 3 days with good weather and light winds.

It was shot on a little Sony HC5.

There is no gyro on the camera. But I recently built a 3 axis gyro stabilized gimbal that I will be using this week. I'll post some of that footage when it's done.

[Mike Burgess]

Derek. Nice job. What a beautiful location. Even though I live on the shores of Lake Michigan in northern Michigan, I envy your location; especially that "cabin" tucked away in the trees by the little creek and ponds. Again, very nice job.

Mike

[Jim Cancil]

Wooooh! That's great stuff.. Being a 24/7 business type, my mind saw a Long and Foster Real Estate listing in the credits... Good for you.

Jim

[Ryan Farnes]

Very cool. I love that you can do this kind of stuff. Its similar to Planet Earth shots from the ballon they'd put up.

[Ryan Farnes]

I failed to recognize that the ability you have to smoothly move from 1-2 feet from the ground to hundreds of feet in the air....that is truly exciting.

While Planet Earth has some cool shots, they're limited in a sense in terms of their ability to change altitude and perspective that quickly. (but some of their shots are hard to beat in terms of smoothness and quality...nothing like having money to spend on toys...)

Using a large crane can do this, but there is always that limit and sometimes the addition of zooming to enhance the sense of scope or "epic-ness."

Your technique is the real deal. You are flying.

[Ryan Farnes]

Did you use any image stabilization stuff in post on this?

[Paul Cronin]

Derek nice footage. Wish I could get that low when I shoot out of a full size machine. What brand of 6' electric machine are you flying? We use Aerial Exposure with Kenyon gyros in the full size machine and I know Kenyon has supplied to remote machines. Would love to set up a similar product in Rhode Island.

[Derek Weiss]

Originally Posted by Paul Cronin

Derek nice footage. Wish I could get that low when I shoot out of a full size machine. What brand of 6' electric machine are you flying? We use Aerial Exposure with Kenyon gyros in the full size machine and I know Kenyon has supplied to remote machines. Would love to set up a similar product in Rhode Island.

I use a custom built 700mm blade, electric heli.

If it's something you want to persue, you really need to devote full time efforts for atleast two years before you get to a point where you're proficient. The learning curve is quite laborious and slow.