Today’s images are a series shot from various parts of Europe – mainly Sweden and Switzerland. Some were captured as part of scouting for another shoot with the much larger M600/H6D-100c combination, and some were simply because the weather looked incredible and there was no reason not to fly*. The packing penalty for including the Mavic in my travel bag is so small that I think I’ll probably make a habit of this in future – sometimes there are really incredible mornings where you’d like to see the place come alive in the light… MT
*Be sure to check local regulations first: in Switzerland, for example, no-fly zones within a certain distance of an airport are marked as are restricted zones with height ceilings. There are also weight category restrictions. Sweden requires a permit full stop.
These images were shot with a DJI Mavic Pro and post processed with Photoshop Workflow III and the Weekly Workflow.
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Prints from this series are available on request here
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Images and content copyright Ming Thein | mingthein.com 2012 onwards. All rights reserved
Ming Thein | Photographer 
Dear Ming, I second Wolfram Z’s comments – as always beautiful shots! Inspired by this and my initial attempts with a Mavic, I am now considering the purchase of a DJI M600 and a Ronin gimbal to shot high res aerials. However, I am not sure what cameras are supported and the DJI support wasn’t very helpful. I assume that the live view of your H6D is transferred by the DJI Lightbridge module via HDMI. Does this mean that any camera with an HDMI out could work in principle? But how is the shutter triggered? Via the DJI Remote Start/Stop? According to the manual there are connecting cables available for Canon, Sony, Hasselblad but not for Nikon (I would love to use my 810, and later maybe the 850).
On your Hasselblad rig can you also control aperture, ISO etc once airborne?
Sorry for all these questions and I hope you can help as I cannot find these answers anywhere online or by talking to DJI support…
Thanks. Yes, via lightbridge for video, but USB-C and DJI Remove for control (you have full control other than manual focus). There’s a video of me using it here for a shoot for Koenigsegg.
As always: real nice shots – where in my home country did you take these?
And may I ask what software/smartphone was used (ios/Android)? I’m thinking about buying a Mavic; there’s rumor DJI’s own GO4 app is very unstable… and even secretely transmits data to their chinese servers?!
Zurich and around Angelholm. Can’t honestly say re. software – stability seems fine for me, but if they’re transmitting anything I don’t think they’d tell me…
Ming, is it possible to fly X1D with DJI matrice? Great shots by the way.
Should be, the H6D and X1D use the same control protocols and USB-C interface.
You need no permission to fly over Zurich City.
Cool! I especially like #1 (road through yellow field of flowers) and #10 (flowing wedge shaped buildings). Congratulations!
Thanks!
Promenades and avenues
Europe endless
Real life and postcard views
Europe endless
Another dimension…. wow!!
I like the geometry of it!
Thanks!
The patterns you’re finding from up above are fantastic Ming. I’m starting to feel that to stay relevant as a landscape/travel photographer, a drone is almost necessary. Drone shots are becoming more and more common but you make it pretty clear that there are still an unlimited number of patterns and perspectives to explore. Thanks for sharing!
We’re at the start of it, but I am inclined to agree with other commenters that the novelty factor is starting to wear off…
This last summer in Vienna, two guys sent a drone to film the people that was taking sun on a nudist beach (a river beach). The drone collided with a tree and fell down in the nudist area, and the owners were so dumb that they tried to recover it and finished arrested by the police : )
None of those were particularly smart things to do…
Fantastic shots !
Thanks!
Hello Ming,
Nice shots! Did you need a permission for the shots over Zürich. Asking for a friend… 😉
No, except for some areas – check the map the Swiss civil aviation authority has online…
🙏🏻
Very nice, I preferred this set to the last one you shared.
I’m still not entirely sure about the artistic merits of this kind of photography; sometimes they can look a bit like something off a spy satellite; but they can be appealing! 🙂
Thanks!
wow, what stunning shots
Thank you.
amazing… I’d always snubbed a drone but these show more creative opportunities than the norm – lovely shots… you don’t send your Hasselblad up do you Ming?!!! I’m always looking for high vantage points, towers of churches, the keeps of castles, etc., but the field of rape is limited to a drone for sure!
Is it all expensive to do this?
Not on a mavic. But we did send it up for the Koenigsegg shoot…
So you had a permission to fly over all these villages and cities?
We had permits for the ones that required them; not every city requires permits. And some were shot in the middle of nowhere.
Beau travail ! 👍
Thanks!