Introduction - SBJBW

SBJBW

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Thank you for the welcoming note. My name is John, and I have had my drone for all of one month. So I am a real newcomer to this hobby. It is a Holy Stone HS720E. I am primarily interested in what it can do to expand my other hobby of photography. For now, I will most likely have more questions than answers. I look forward to it.
 
Greetings from Birmingham Alabama USA, welcome to the forum! We look forward to hearing from you!
 
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I have had my drone for all of one month. So I am a real newcomer to this hobby. It is a Holy Stone HS720E.
Welcome from the Hampton Roads area of Virginia, USA.

As a New Drone Pilot, there are a couple of Legal Things you may need to do…

If you have not already done so, you will need to get your TRUST Certificate. You can get that at the Pilot Institute Web Site (FREE…) . If your Drone weighs less than 250-grams (0.55 pounds) and you are flying under The Exception for Recreational Flyers, you are not required to register your Drone.

When I first started flying I registered my Mini 2 because the TRUST Certificate and FAA Registration established me as a "certified" Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Pilot.

Link to the TRUST Certificate at the Pilot Institute Web Site (FREE…)


Link to the FAADroneZone (Optional Registration for Drones under 250-Grams…)


Since you live in California, there are specific laws and rules for you to follow, please check the link below for all the Rules and Laws that are in effect in your neck of the woods and it also links you to some of the Best Places to Fly in your area… Also, if you travel on vacation, visit friends, and relatives in other parts of the country, check back here so you do not run afoul of the law.


Even if you have flown Drones before, here is some Good Old Fashion Advice…

You paid a lot of money for that Drone, put your phone number on it. If your drone gets lost or stuck in a tree and it finally comes down when you are not around, give the finders an opportunity to contact you so it can be returned.

Now, for the Fun Part, But do not let the excitement of the moment get the best of you. When you are going out to fly, do it slowly and deliberately. Get used to a set procedure and even practice it.

There are so many things I could write but these are the highlights that I feel need mentioning.

Plug in your phone/tablet into your controller; turn on the Controller and DJI Fly App (if it does not start on its own…). On the Drone, open the front legs, then open the back legs, then remove the Gimbal Cover.

The Gimbal is the most delicate item on the Drone and banging or bumping can damage it. I also fastened a short "Remove Before Flight" ribbon to the cover so it's more noticeable and I do not forget to remove it…

Turn on the drone and watch it come to "life." Watching the Gimbal go through its self-check is almost like watching a kitten or puppy opening its eyes for the first time…

Place the drone down (preferably on a Landing Pad) while it finishes its self-test (collecting satellites, etc…).

Check your battery status (Phone, Drone, and Controller), check the Signal Strength, by now the Controller should have reported it updated the Home Point.

Lift off, 4-5 feet (1-1/2 meters) or so, hover a bit, check the controls (move the drone a bit forward, back, left, right, yaw left and right). By now, your Controller will probably report again, Home point Updated.

If you go out in a rush and race thru your start up and take off before the drone has finished it prep, it may update its Home Point over that pond or that old tree you are flying over and in your excitement, you'll fly the drone long past it Low Battery point and when it engages Return to Home and lands in the pond or in a tree; it will be all on you…

Now go have fun, learn to fly the drone by sight before you try to fly it out a distance depending on the video feed, FPV.

I would also advise you to use YouTube and watch a lot of the Videos on flying and setting up the Drone. When it is too dark, too cold, or too wet, you can "fly it vicariously" through YouTube. Also watch some of the Blooper Drone Videos and learn how not to fly your "New Baby."

Happy Droning…
 
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Thank you for your sage advice. I have watched a number of Greg’s video courses on Pilot Institute. Early in the game I got my TRUST certificate, and the drone is registered with the FAA and marked with the registration and my phone number. I am trying to be organized in how I go about this, and I am keeping a logbook record of each flight.

All this is leading to a list of questions, which I will soon start asking the experts.

The Blooper Drone Videos should be instructive, in their own way.
 
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I have watched a number of Greg’s video courses on Pilot Institute.
All this is leading to a list of questions, which I will soon start asking the experts.
You mentioned that you watched a number of Greg's Videos, so I'll ask the first question, are you taking the Pilot Institutes part 107 Course? I'll be straight up, I did, and I scored 100% on my Exam last October. I cannot say enough good things about the course. I know lots of folk have passed the course by just buying a book or two and watching some YouTube Videos, but most of them are just hoping to pass. I knew I was going to pass, I just did not know just how well I would do…
 
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I am considering taking it at some point in the future. Maybe next fall. I have no interest in doing this for commercial/business purposes, but there may be other reasons Part 107 would be good to have.
 
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there may be other reasons Part 107 would be good to have.
Just a few quick notes. If you have registered your drone on the FAADroneZone (which you should have…) then you know that there are Authorizations and Waivers that the FAA can grant Drone pilots. Authorizations can be granted to Rec Flyers, like flying in controlled airspace where the Zone Quadrant Altitude is not Zero, but 50', 100', and up to 400'.

Part 107 pilots can get a waiver to fly in the Zero Altitude areas. They can get LAANC authorization to fly at night. They can get waivers to to fly well above 400' and so much more.

Basically, 107 folk can fly in a lot of places and at time Rec Pilots cannot…
 

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