Gaur from the Drone

[Rajan Kanagasabai]

Tested out my new Drone (DJI Phantom Aerial UAV Quadcopter) mounted with a Go Pro Hero 4 at Masinagudi recently.
The Gaur sensed the Drone (which is not really noisy) even at a good height and were wary of the intruder all through.
This is a frame grab from the video mode shoot.

regards
Rajan

[Vipin Sharma]

Lovely image Rajan sir , is the drone allowed in Indian forest for image shooting? OR does the law varies forest to forest?

[Rajan Kanagasabai]

Hi Vipin, no, the Drones are off limits in the Indian forests. The forest department sometimes use them for survillance or census but those are by their teams.

This was pictured on the fringes of the jungle - from a home, which is actually part of a village area - very close to a temple at the village where Gaur, Elephant and Deer are found often.

regards
Rajan

[Sabyasachi Patra]

You can upload a bigger size. The Go Pro has a image mode as well as video. The bit rates for the video is less. So better to use image mode for clicking shots.

India has got some strict laws as far as flying drones or aircraft over forests are concerned. So one needs to be careful.

Good to hear that you have transitioned from nitro powered to battery powered DJI. Is this the DJI Phantom 1 or 2?

Recently sold off my DJI Phantom. It's noise is audible, especially to the sharp ears of wild life.

[Rajan Kanagasabai]

Thanks Sabyasachi

No, I've not really transitioned out of the Nitros yet. All my aircraft's and Heli's are still Nitro. I did not have an option with the Quads as most of the Phantom series is battery powered . . . . This is the DJI Phantom 3.

On another note, I was showing this post and the same post on my FB page to a good friend in the forest department (who will soon be signing up to Indiawilds). He had an observation which i thought was quite practical and ethical and so wanted to sound it out to you. His observation was:-

I understand this is a legally registered drone which made this nice picture which did not violate any of the rules and airspace of the forest, but don't you think it will be inducing others to try this as well, who may or may not follow norms . . . . and as you have even been frank enough to observe in your photo "The Gaurs sensed the drone and were wary of the intruder even at great heights". Maybe we should leave these animals alone . . . .

I think he has a valid point and we should contribute in all ways to conservation and preservation . . . . . even if it means we will need to delete this thread (or at least the picture) I'm OK with it. . . . . your thoughts please

regards
Rajan

[Mrudul Godbole]

Nice to see this aerial image of Gaurs in Masinagudi. I used to fly DJI Phantom 1. I think Phantom 3 has its on inbuild camera, and so Go Pro cannot be attached. Phantom 1 and Phantom 2 have provision for attaching Gopro.

DJI Phantom has become very popular these days. I have seen a viral video of a Phantom crashing into the bride and groom in a wedding :). If allowed in Indian Forests, people might crash the copter into wild animals. So it is good that it is not allowed in jungles. Lot of awareness need to be raised about it. Lets use this thread to educate people.

[Rajan Kanagasabai]

Hi Mrudul

Yes, the Phantom 3 does not have a GoPro mount, but you can still hook at GoPro to the base (like the picture enclosed). In fact, i saw this on one of the forums and decided to try it . . . . The verdict, the Sony which is part of the Phantom 3 is far superior, awesome image stabilization and good FPS. The GoPro suffered from the Vibrations (as this was a custom mount) and picture quality was quite soft as Sabyasachi pointed out.

regards
Rajan