The Lone Droner

The weather on the two afternoons we were in PD was great. And the tides were high before sunset when we went to the beach. That made for some nice strong waves and great condition to hit the sea. The boys certainly enjoyed it.

The warm sun contrasted well with the cool sea water - sunscreen needed of course. Once you got in, you felt like staying in all day since to was really nice and refreshing in the water. The great breeze also was an added bonus.

But somebody had to fly the drone. Despite the heavy breeze, the drone held its position well and flying was not a problem at all.

I managed to get some great 4K footage and the customary photographs as well. Unfortunately there were clouds on the horizon, hence I was not able to get the red sunset as the sun kiss the horizon. I was happy enough however.

I brought the drone out on both afternoons and managed to fill up my memory card. Good thing I brought the charger along, otherwise I would be out of juice by the end of the first afternoon.

Now came the part of doing editing on those huge 4K files ..... That could wait I supposed ....

Flying over The Clocktower

*This entry was written during my trip to Fraser's Hill in Sept 2016*

I finally got my wish. After the morning trip into town was fogged over, I was happy that the clouds parted when I went there again - with Anita this time after our trekking at Bishop's Trail.

From another angle looking towards Puncak InnTurning towards the Post OfficeWatching from the top of Puncak InnOff came the drone and I managed to fly around the clock tower, Puncak Inn, down towards the main road leading up into town as well as the golf course. Then came the warning that I was running out of memory space.

Straight from the topPanning towards the way to SmokehouseBut that was after I managed to hover around the famous clock tower a few times. With the sun coming out and plenty of people mingling about, it was quite a spectacle. Good times.

Flying Over the Smokehouse

The entry was originally written in September 2016

So far, all my droning was done around KL and Putrajaya. And come to think of it, we haven't really travelled much since the Langkawi trip. I never really had the chance to take the drone out of KL.

Understandably, I was quite excited to do some flying during the trip to Frasers Hill.

Luckily the weather was OK after the drizzle when we first arrived. And flying there was a joy despite the lack of sunshine.

Rather too windy for comfort but the drone handled it well. There were hardly any shakes in the footage.

I only managed to do a couple of flights. The first was around the Smokehouse on our first afternoon. The second was the next day during lunch time in the town center, fulfilling my wish to fly around the famous clock tower.

I shot the flyover in 4K before realizing that I did not bring with me an extra memory card - you can't get a new one in these neck of the woods. By the time in was midway on the second flight, I ran out of space.

So, for the first one I did a few passes above the Smokehouse, with the visitors giving a wave when they heard the buzzing. It was really green and tranquil around there.

I should've brought an extra memory card for the drone...

Firmware Time

This entry was originally written in September 2016

The drone had been dormant for almost a month. A new firmware had arrived and since I planned to take the drone up Fraser's Hill, I might as well get things up to date, in fear of not able to fly at the venue.

I decided to use the MacBook to download the software and connect the drone directly after. Alternatively, I could use the DJI Go software on my iPad for the update but the update through the computer was more straightforward and made more sense.

Sasana Kijang

Passing by Jalan Kuching everytime I travelled from Gombak to home, I noticed a modern-looking building right up the hill around Kenny Hill.

After reading about it, I found out that it was called Sasana Kijang, a museum owned and operated by Bank Negara. It showcases old money and information about economics, something which I may visit in the future. It was also then that I realised that one of my friends worked there full time as an artist.

But the modern architecture was what attracted me, and since I had some spare time in the morning, I decided to take my drone there.

It was rather tricky to get a good angle to photograph the building as the was nestled in between trees. The only way to get a decent photo would be to fly high and photograph it obliquely at an angle. I got a few decent snaps but in the end concentrated more on the city skyline. The lights were against me as I was in the West of the city. Harsh light was coming towards the drones and the contrast was too great. Best to come back here in late afternoon when the lights would be behind me.

What did I learn this time around? It was tricky to capture a building in small space, plus it was important to plan on the time of the day to go out to photograph ....