I am new to drones, and have visited some sites to see what is available. I want a drone that can be programmed to follow a path that photographs rows of new trees and returns to the start point and land. There are existing large trees nearby and power lines to avoid, and occasional deer and dogs, so forward object detection seems desirable depending on how accurate a flight path can be programmed. With zigs and zags, the flight path may be about 1/2 mile, unit flying at 8' most of the time. HD or better camera resolution. Wifi exists at the site, but will be out of range during part of the flight. Occasionally I will want to use the unit for other photography. For example, I want to know how high I would need to have an antenna installed to get line-of-site to internet provider radio towers. I don't want to say a hard budget number, but this is a 9 acre farm and walking around still works. I'm more concerned about features & reliability per price. What models do you suggest I consider, and why?
Well - I may start to sound like a broken record, but here is the model I suggest: http://click.dji.com/1yk3KUe9wmU9Bkgz?pm=link&as=0001 That is the Phantom 3 Advanced. It is also available on Amazon.... http://amzn.to/28XArwv My reasoning is pretty simple.... Best range of any machine under $2,000 (and probably even over!). 3rd party software for waypoint flying (litchi, autopilot) will do exactly what you want - time and time again (repeatable). Good value for money spent If you want object avoidance there is only one model that does that decently - the Phantom 4. Personally, I don't think that will save your bird too many times. Realistically, you should not program a flight which is less than about 8 meters (25 feet) closer to anything. That should be a very safe amount of wiggle room... If you have concern about crashing and losing your machine, buy the DJI Care extra insurance or get it through a 3rd party (Neary Aerial). You could have a P3A and the insurance and a couple batteries, case and extra software for well less than the bare cost of the P4. You could step up to the Pro model if you desire 4K video - but the files are huge! Let us know what you decide upon. The idea of being 8 feet from the ground - that is quite close. But the bottom facing sonar may help you do that. If I were you I'd start with having it somewhat higher and experiment. There are various ways of setting waypoints. DJI built in systems makes you fly the course and set the waypoints as you go. This assures you will not set them wrongly. Litchi and other apps allow you to set them beforehand. BUT, make sure to learn the software well because many times the settings are given in height above the starting point as opposed to height above the waypoints! This may cause you to fly into the ground if it rises as you go! So...my advice is that whatever bird you get, start slow and work your way up to the full automation.
