Benefits of Using Drones to Capture Video

*Kettering Bug, first UAV used by U.S. military in WWI Image courtesy* *Smithsonian Magazine*

Ninety-nine. That’s how many years it’s been since the first unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), known as the Kettering Bug, was used back in 1918. Most commonly known as drones, UAVs were first used in combat by the U.S. military to shoot missiles. Since then, many industries have adapted drones into their day-to-day processes. Fast forward nearly a century and the film industry is now using drones to capture stunning video. What is it about drones that allows us to capture such incredible video?

Versatile Video Angles

*Images courtesy Twentieth Century Fox (left to right: opening scene aerial shot filmed from helicopter; helicopter that captured the aerial shot)*

While aerial shots were often used in older films - think The Sound of Music opening scene - those shots were captured from helicopters, cranes or other objects that could capture footage from an aerial point of view. While these older shots were well done, it was hard to get certain angles because of the large size of the airborne object used to capture video, difficulty stabilizing the camera used in airborne objects, etc. Since drones are small in size, it’s easy to squeeze into tight spaces and control the drone to capture unique and complex angles in full 4K video.

Filming with drones allows for fluid motion

There’s nothing worse than shaky video. By using drones, we’re able to capture fluid movements because of a gimbal: a stabilizing device that keeps the camera horizontal no matter the motion used to capture video. Because drones capture such fluid movements, it is becoming more common to use a drone in place of a dolly.

As you can see in the videos we produced below, drones allow us to capture stunning video in versatile angles, full HD quality and fluid motion.

We teamed up with The frank Agency and filmed these beautiful drone shots of Washburn University’s campus at sunrise. Go Ichabods!

Our drone reel also highlights some of our recent drone footage.

Future of drones

It’s safe to say we’ll be seeing drones only rise in popularity in the coming years. Statistics predict drone sales could increase by billions in the coming years; according to Business Insider, civilian sales could surpass $3 billion by the year 2024!

If you’re interested in drone footage, contact our team or call (816) 872-3456. We’d love to help bring your next vision to life through our drone video services!