A few years ago I laughed at drone enthusiasts, what with their spinning blades chopping into the frame. I can't get the .gif of the DJI phantom crashing into that wedding couple out of my head. All ridiculousness aside, I can't believe aerial photography is now accessible to us, the lowly regulars. It's still ripe for overuse, but at least the technology has caught up enough that its not blatantly obvious when you cut in some prosumer quality drone footage into an edit. Its a powerful way to shoot landscapes and achieve any possible perspective on a shoot.
My wife and I drove down the Pacific Coast Highway as our honeymoon trip. I took a ton of pictures, but in Big Sur I spotted a remote pilot buzzing over the coastline and peaking over the tops of redwoods. He had this pseudo-psychotic permagrin on his face, a lot like that old Soundgarden video. I understand why, as now I am aching to revisit the PCH from above.
I used to bring quite a bit of equipment with me when traveling, but the biggest problem I ran into was that it just wasn't fun enough to use. The weight dragged me down, plus the added anxiety of having your life's work contained in a backpack that can be misplaced or stolen. I spent more time worrying than shooting. I can count on zero hands the amount of times I woke up early enough to catch a sunrise. In the past week alone, I've caught 3 and am more cognizant of the weather and sun / cloud cover than ever before. The amount of ground one can cover in a short 20~min flight is astounding.
The biggest lesson I learned from flying (aside from the pilot/HAM radio alphabet) is to stop worrying so much and find a method to work that brings you joy. It's impossible to argue with the result.
