Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

I'm wanting to do some hover/flyby shots with my gopro (maybe wrapped in foam vs case - if anything its not going to get wet...) that also reduces the weight.

What kind of RC plane or helicopter will carry the extra weight of the GoPro? Or have anyone had any videos/tutorials on how to mount it?

I've seen a bunch but they are all for rigs that cost thousands or tens of thousands. I'm thinking that is overkill for the weight of a gopro to get it to hover 20ft above a scene.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Lol if your asking what Heli/plane to mount to you proberyly haven't flown to much Rc. I fly the blade helis and the smallest one that would work for me would be the 400/450 size any smaller it's going to be hard to find an area to mount the gopro. If you haven't flown helis a good forum to read is helifreak.com. I would try flying small ones first then once you can get a 450 size. Have fun and be careful the bigger helis are very dangerous and never flown over people.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

I put a GoPro on my T-Rex 450 but that's really pushing the limits.

If you don't already have an RC helicopter, you might want to look at the "quad" copter or multi-rotor designs as well as single rotor.

Check out HeliFreak.com and read the threads about aerial photo/video. Also, check out This thread about quad copters: A New 1000mm Quad Copter Design - RC Groups. Things have changed a lot since that thread started. For example, a company called "Skookum Robotics" are rewriting the software for it's controller to work with a quad copter in addition to single-rotor helicopters. Skookum's SK-720 features gyros and motion sensors to stabilize helicopters and it should do a nice job on quad copters as well.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

There's quite a few videos on youtube shot with a GoPro mounted on a AR Drone Parrot - AR.Drone Parrot - First quadricopter that can be controlled by an iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad - which runs about $300 and is controlled over wifi with an iPhone or iPad. Probably not the most stable platform but may be the least expensive option and have a fairly short learning curve.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

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Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
There's quite a few videos on youtube shot with a GoPro mounted on a AR Drone Parrot - AR.Drone Parrot - First quadricopter that can be controlled by an iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad - which runs about $300 and is controlled over wifi with an iPhone or iPad. Probably not the most stable platform but may be the least expensive option and have a fairly short learning curve.
__________________
My latest short documentary: "Four Pauls: Bring the Hat Back!"

Thanks Evan!
I was getting ready to try a balloon but I looked at the video's then called the company and talked to them about using a GoPro or Replay.

It won't do heavy duty work but should work for what I want. I ordered one a few minutes ago.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

So after seeing my 450 fly the replay, my buddy shows up at my studio with a 400-size heli looking like Ralphie after ripping the wrapping paper off his Red Ryder!

I had to explain to him in very slow sentences that he was not to run out and try to fly it alone until I gave him some pointers. And did a thorough check of the build as it was an off-brand from Hong Kong.
Attached a set of training gear and made sure all the controls were working and did a test flight. Trimmed it out a bit and gave him my training regimen. Handed him the controls and he followed my instructions. He was shaking so bad after the first hop which was more just making it light on the training gear that we had to stop. He gets it. This is a real aircraft that can do serious damage to property and people and requires a serious commitment to get proficient at just basic flight.
Add the weight of a camera and expecting to get useable footage is another ball game. Dean and I are good pilots (from the videos ive seen him do) but have learned that there's a lot more to it than just flying around. Camera vibration, balance, aerodynamics are obstacles that have to be overcome.
Small helis are cheap but are not the best option as they get knocked around by the slightest breeze and are pretty squirrelly without the weight of a camera. Larger helis are much more stable and therefore easier to fly. But my "gasser" dinged my wallet for about $3k without a camera mount!
Quad copters are the way of the future for RC photography and videography. Still serious equipment but easier to learn.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

When I bought my Helicopter, which is not really large enough for a GoPro, I spent a month learning to fly and 3 weeks replacing the parts I broke.

Looking forward to the quad.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Robert... I'm still a novice, but at least I'm skilled enough to evade an unleashed, undisciplined dog. I was doing some hover tests the other morning, to evaluate vibrations and see if the tail rotor was responding properly, when a dog started charging toward it.

I had to get it up higher, then scoot out past the fence to get the dog to forget it was there.

Don't know why a dog this size wasn't on a leash. The owner doesn't realize that even if the dog doesn't bite, all he has to do is knock some toddler over and cause a serious head injury.

Dog doesn't like RC helicopter - YouTube

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

After doing a lot of tests and experimenting with this 450, I've decided to build a quad for my next helicopter. While getting footage from a Replay off a 450 is very educational, I really think I have to get a better camera aloft to do anything serious.

There are some advantages to a multi-rotor:

-- All the energy goes toward lifting the aircraft. In a conventional design, a significant amount of power is spent on counteracting main rotor torque.

-- Because there's no tail, it can fly sideways just as fast as forward and reverse.

-- Fewer moving parts: Just motor and prop. No gears, belt drive, swash, links, etc.

-- Might be able to enclose the props with shrouds for safety.

I'm researching motors, ESCs and props to see what's needed to be able to lift a Canon Vixia, and have to learn about how they're supposed to work together to provide a smooth-flying aerial video platform.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Or you could just get one of these:

World's first manned flight with an electric multicopter. [VIDEO]

and take up an F800 or something and shoot it yourself.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

What's interesting is the pilot is using an RC controller to operate the helicopter. Hope it's a Futaba!

I just read something a bit concerning about multirotor helicopters. This particular one has a tendency to "flip" if the operator should give it a rapid control input or if a gust of wind should tip it into a steep angle. The writer explains the reason why in the review.

Review: LotusRC T580 quadcopter

I don't think this is an inherent problem with multi-rotors but might be specific to this particular design due to the way the software might have been written. At least according to the article's author.

Depending on the circumstances, high speed runs with abrupt stops or maneuvers might be part of the job. Hopefully the problem of flipping isn't common to all multirotor designs.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Bite your tongue! JR RULES!! HaHa!

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

As sensitive as the T580 is to wind gusts and unusual attitudes, here's a demo by someone who built a quad copter that employs "open source" software.

It's very resistant to adverse forces, including having someone yank on a string attached to one of the arms.

It eventually gets yanked out of the sky due to an over-enthusiastic assistant. But even with one of the arms bent, they were still able to get it up into the air after the crash.

So a quad is, in fact, capable of handling difficult conditions. There's one designer in Germany that took his quad out into gusting winds without any problems.

This is something that simply cannot be done with a standard single-rotor design. I've had the experience of the main rotor blades make brief contact with the ground, and had to go through the whole litany of examine, assess, repair, replace.

Showing Off

And an example of whether multi-rotor helicopters can fly fast:

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Yeah the AR Drone looks like a good beginner quadcopters and I can source it locally. Since there re videos online using the GoPro mounted I know it will work and it looks like it will do what I want (long pans and hovers above the action).

When I get better at flying or source an experianced RC pilot I'll look into getting a bigger/better copter if needed.

Thanks guys, most informative.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Do the manufacturers publish tables to allow determination of load capability when density altitude is taken into account? For instance your quad can't carry as much on a hot day (2000 DA) vs. a normal day (0 DA), or you can't carry as much in Denver as you can in Miami when it's the same temperature outside.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Nope. No operational charts like that. Especially since each helicopter has its own unique characteristics due to differences in components used and variations in setup.

There is a chart that someone put together that provides a rough idea of what a given rotor span can be expected to lift. And there's also a set of guidelines that suggest how many watts is needed to lift a given amount of weight for a multi-rotor design.

The only way to really know is to do your own flight tests and plot out the data points.

It's how some people know how long they can fly. They'll run the helicopter through its paces for a few minutes, then put the battery on a charger. The charger will then tell them how many amps were put back in.

It's the same way you determine fuel efficiency on a car. When you know how many amps were drawn and the time of the flight, you'll know how many amps per minute is burned, and how long you can run on a given battery until you get down to a floor of 20% capacity.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

I got the Drone yesterday and so far, it's still grounded and I'm pulling my hair out.
I have an Android and there is an app for it. My Android doesn't even see it though...so I bought an Ipad today. I wanted one anyway to review video in the field, make notes and misc stuff. It works on every router in town...except mine.

I'm expecting a long night!

Tomorrow, I'll install the Drone App, upgrade the firmware and by the grace of God, get it flying.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Flew it and love it. Now I have to experiment with mounting the GoPro. I'd love to mount it on the bottom if I can keep it clear of the sensors.

Velcro time.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

I have been toying with the idea of a quad-coptor for a while but have been reluctant to spend too much. However the new GoPro Hero HD 2 looks like a great camera to put on the Parrot AR.Drone. Most of the videos I have seen using this setup are pretty useless for professional video as the rotors are always in view as the cameras have been mounted on top. There are however mounts that sling the camera underneath & give a clear field of view. There are other extras available too like a 'proper' R/C transmitter rather than an iPhone. Check out this video where the guy talks through the options & shows some pretty decent aerial footage shot with the previous version of the GoPro camera. It looks pretty stable but there is a fair amount of 'jello'-cam.
I sat down with my financial controller today looking over the above videos & she has authorised me to go ahead with the purchase of a Parrot AR.Drone, GoPro Hero HD 2 & camera mount so hopefully we will be able to swap experiences soon.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

I'm experimenting with a mount I made out of carbon fiber that mounts it under and slightly back of sensors.

Not an easy mount to keep steady.

The battery mount is OK as long a you're not shooting wide, that's when you get the props.
You do need to tilt hard to get the ground shots though.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

I've watched that video a couple of times Nigel and I'm on several boards with Chad. He's primarily an audio person but he's also nitpickey about details...so, if he's happy with it, it's probably pretty much top notch.

I went ahead and ordered the mount.

Getting reasonably competent at flying the thing is enough without fretting about experimental mounts.

What's another hundred bucks....I ordered the landing gear to.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Helicopters models or real ones fly in the same way bricks don't - how anyone keeps one in the air is beyond me. I got given a largish one that I figured would easily hold a gopro and got excited.

Read some books, learned how helicopters stay in the sky, and took it to a large field near my house. probably 200 yards square, with a single tree right on the corner, well away from the centre. I got it wobbly, about two feet off the ground, so have it a little more welly, and it hurtled off, smacked straight into the tree and smashed itself to bits. After two weeks, replacement parts arrive, and I try again - and this time smash it straight into the ground. Three weeks later I had my one and only real helicopter lesson - a trial flight and demonstrated by total lack of coordination. Far too many "I have control" comments from the instructor - who described me as "not being a natural" and "displayed a lack of coordination and spatial awareness".

So anyone who gets pictures from a helicopter is a genius in my opinion.
Paul

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

By all accounts model helicopters are just as difficult to fly as real ones. The multi-rotor coptors are entirely different. They are intrinsically more stable as they are not trying to turn circles around the main rotor (that's what the tail rotor is preventing). There has also been some clever auto-pilot software developed that keeps them flying level & even hooks in with GPS so that they can be set to hover at particular co-ordinates & execute perfect return to base commands.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

DJI is releasing a new Quad in a couple days... should be a very nice platform for the GoPro... its going to be called the Naza F450

DJI Innovations - Wookong Multi-Rotor

I'm hearing around $500 ready to fly...

They are also getting ready to release new software for Waypoint flight.. via google earth 3d maps... you just show it where to go and take footage, then it comes back and lands for you... of course that software is mega
$$$

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Almost forgot... ritewing is also releasing a new craft in the next week or two... its called the ZII.. purpose built for the GoPro... super setup with the carbon fibre covering on the craft...

here's the info on it... price for craft $130...

New molded Ritewing Zephyr II

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Both my Parrot AR.Drone & my GoPro Hero HD 2 arrived yesterday but I am still waiting on the camera mount to arrived from Norway. Probably just as well as it will give me time to master flying the drone (well, not master but become more competent:-).

The drone is amazing to fly, very easy indeed with awesome auto-pilot that just allows it to hover safely in between me figuring out how to actually fly it. With indoor hull & the GoPro it weighs a total of just 535gm (about 1lb 3oz) which should be pretty safe for those underneath even if falling from some height as it is mostly padded with expanded polyurethane. The batteries give no more than about 10 minutes of flight time & take 90 minutes to charge so I have already ordered some extra batteries with 50% higher capacity.

The GoPro Hero HD 2 is equally amazing especially in good light. Very detailed & nice natural colours. Playback of the .mp4 files was a bit choppy on my MacBook Pro until I had installed the free Cineform Studio software. I wasn't aware until now that in fact GoPro acquired Cineform about 6 months ago so this isn't just a question of them buying in some software to transcode the video it's actually a full blown application to handle using two GoPros for 3D.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Still waiting on my mount too Nigel.
I added some software to fly the Drone that I think may help over water. I need to do some testing before I risk one of my uncased GoPro's.

It also addresses one of my big gripes with freeflight.
It compensates for the Drone facing you. Left turn means left turn no matter which way the Drone is facing.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

How does the on board video look? Can someone post a video of there iPad/iPhone while they are flying the drone, interested in seeing how choppy/leggy the video is. Can't wait to get mine.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Onboard video's pretty crappy!
Low rez, choppy, poor color, etc.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Which software? Yesterday evening I bought the other two AR.Drone applications in the App Store (Flight Recorder & Drone Control) but haven't had a chance to try them out yet.

I have ordered the 2.4GHz R/C modification as it by all accounts allows for much finer degree of control while keeping all the easy fly autopilot features.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

It's pretty poor at 640x360 at about 15fps. It's enough to fly by but not use seriously. You even need to buy the 3rd-party app Flight Recorder to actually record the video. You should be able to find loads of video on YouTube demonstrating Flight Recorder but here is one to be going on with. The first half of the video is a view of the drone flying & the second half is the view from the flying drone. I believe that Flight Recorder can trigger still photographs too which could be marginally more useable. While Googling I even found a guy who has written an app to take panoramic photos from the done Matt Keeter // ARPan

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

The application is Drone Ace Nigel.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Thanks Nigel,

I would never use the inboard for an actual video, my interest is how smooth does it look in order to use it for fine controls of the AR Drone when doing pans around large structures like a house or statue where I can't see the drone 100% of the time.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Don, Download Drone Ace in the iTunes App Store looks great. I have just purchased it but sadly it is now dark here so I can only take the drone for a trip round the living room:-)

Graeme, I haven't yet had the confidence to fly blind by relying on the view from the iPhone alone but the image quality is certainly good enough to aim the camera accurately. I do have an iPad as well but find that the iPhone feels more comfortable in my hands for controlling the drone.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Anyone know how long it takes to get that mount from Norway to the US?

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

I'm still waiting for mine after 10 days & I am much nearer to Norway here in the UK. I have sent an email to enquire where it has got to but have had no reply. It's a shame as I could have used it for a paying gig this weekend.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Go my AR Drone, need some practice flying but encouragabl results. Next step is to get the GOPro Ounted and then go from there with some te shots and flybys. Videos soon!

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

I just watched your video Nigel. That's pretty country!

Good looking video. What camera are you using?

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

Just FYI, here's what I've gone through on my own quest for aerial videos.

It didn't require me to answer three questions to avoid being thrown into a chasm (what is your name? what is your quest? what is your favorite color?).

I've been messing with a T-Rex 450 helicopter for the past couple of years. Took a break for several months while I reconsidered after crashing and not being able to get past simple hovering.

I have a pilot's license and could land an airplane on a specific spot on any runway so I had a decent skill level. But I discovered RC helicopters were different. REALLY different.

For anyone doing this for the first time and wants to learn how to fly an RC helicopter, take the time to religiously follow these lessons before attempting to get off the ground: RADD'S SCHOOL OF ROTARY FLIGHT?

RADD's school of rotary flight. It's a series of baby steps to get you familiar with how it works. But even with that, seriously consider investing in Skookum Robotics' SK-720. It can help you keep the helicopter level and controllable. Don't spend money on simulators. Just get the SK-720, set it up properly, and teach yourself to fly.

What made a difference (breakthrough) was the SK-720. It self-leveled the helicopter when things got bad, and I was able to power-out of any bad situation before it turned to wreckage. Almost all of them.

I played around with a T-Rex 450 that was never intended to lift anything other than itself. I fitted a GoPro on it, just because someone else did. Then the Replay 1080XD. Images that I got from that setup were OK but just OK.

To get acceptable footage means putting a better camera up there, and that's a lot more weight. More weight means more power and bigger batteries which means more weight and more power and bigger batteries …

In a conventional single-rotor helicopter, a tail rotor keeps the aircraft oriented in any particular direction and that takes a lot of power…. that's not being applied to lifting the payload (camera), and for us, that's the point.

As we're all interested in getting aerial video, I would suggest looking at the multi-rotor designs. All the power is directed to lifting the mass.

Conventional single-rotor designs also feature a main rotor that's about 3 feet in diameter or more, spinning at 1800 RPM or more. That's considerable potential to maim people. If you need to be in the air for a half-hour, you'll have to turn to gas engines and conventional single-rotor helicopters. If not, then look closely at multi-rotor helicopters.

Multi-rotor designs can also badly lacerate bystanders, but if the props are shrouded, then incidental contact can become harmless unless someone's hair gets caught in a prop. Big safety factor.

But take note: Multi-rotors require stabilization systems to keep them level and controllable. They are not expensive.

So while experimenting with POV cameras and off-the-shelf systems can provide a great first taste of this unique perspective, keep in mind what else is out there. And it will not break the bank. Just have to do the research and buy smart.

Aloha,
Dean.

Re: Smallest Heli/Plane I can mount GoPro
 

I wouldn't get in a hurry Nigel.
I got this email today:

I will send you a new email as soon as i have got the Mount manufactured and sent out.
I will work as fast as i can and try to get it to you as soon as possible.

Best regards
Daniel.