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Re: Kite aerial photography

Postby Raptor » Thu Mar 18, 2021 7:01 am

montagdude wrote in Thu Jan 28, 2021 4:10 pm:I decided to start a website chronicling my kite aerial photography adventures, photos, kites, etc. I'll probably just post there from now on. If you are interested, feel free to subscribe! I'm currently still in the process of writing the stories about my previous sessions.

https://somdkap.com


WoW, you are getting nice quality aerial photographs.
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Re: Kite aerial photography

Postby montagdude » Sat Mar 20, 2021 4:30 am

Thanks! I'm hoping to take some at a new site tomorrow. We'll see though; earlier the weather report calling for decent wind all day, but now it's decreased.
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Re: Kite aerial photography

Postby montagdude » Sun Mar 21, 2021 3:49 am

Well, the wind turned out to be enough, but at one point there was a prolonged gust that brought down my kite and camera rig in the water. :( I managed to get it all back, but of course the electronics got soaked. Fortunately, I made a mistake and forgot to turn the camera on in the first place (imagine that), so I'm hoping that if I let it dry out for a few days before attempting to turn it on again, it will be okay. My hopes for the other electronics (servos, receiver, video transmitter, micro FPV camera) are not so high, since they were powered on when it happened.

I was flying the big barn door kite when this happened. This isn't the first time it's gotten pulled down when the wind picked up a little, though I've never had it go all the way down before. This has pretty much convinced me to replace it with something else. Rokkakus seem to be really popular in the KAP community, especially for light winds, but they seem to handle stronger gusts better too. I might make one of those.
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Re: Kite aerial photography

Postby Johan G » Fri Mar 26, 2021 11:00 am

montagdude wrote in Sun Mar 21, 2021 3:49 am:Fortunately, I made a mistake and forgot to turn the camera on in the first place (imagine that), so I'm hoping that if I let it dry out for a few days before attempting to turn it on again, it will be okay.

With a bit of luck that should work. Not being salt water sure also will help.

Nice rig. Spotted it on the FreeCAD forum and recognized the username. (By the way, FreeCAD 0.19.1 was released only a few days ago.)
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Re: Kite aerial photography

Postby montagdude » Wed Apr 07, 2021 10:08 pm

Unfortunately it did not survive. I think the battery being in there must have caused something to short inside even though it wasn't on. So all the electronics were a loss. :(

Anyway, I took this opportunity to order a camera I've been wanting for awhile: the Sony RX0. It has the form factor and weight of an action camera (only 110 grams), but it has a 1" sensor and very sharp lens. From samples I've seen online, the image quality looks amazing. As a side benefit, it's also shockproof and waterproof, which would have come in handy the last time out...

Instead of an R/C rig, this time I'm going to make one that rotates and takes pictures on its own using a servo controller. That will allow me to just focus on flying and save a little bit of weight to boot. Maybe I'll do another R/C one at some point in the future, but for now I think I'll stick with this. I'm estimating the entire rig will be under 300 grams.

I also ordered some material to make the new kite, a Rokkaku with vents in the sail at the lower spreader. Some tests with a cheap dowel and plastic version suggest it should be really stable and have a better wind range than the Barn Door kite, with much less tendency to get pulled down. Here's a video of the first test flight of the cheap prototype, which was in wind that's pretty strong for a kite with this kind of construction. The prototype is 5 feet tall. The final one will be 7 feet tall and use the carbon fiber tubes from the Barn Door kite and a high-quality sail material.

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Re: Kite aerial photography

Postby Johan G » Sun Apr 11, 2021 8:07 pm

montagdude wrote in Wed Apr 07, 2021 10:08 pm:Unfortunately it did not survive [...] all the electronics were a loss. :(

Ouch. :(

montagdude wrote in Wed Apr 07, 2021 10:08 pm:Anyway, I took this opportunity to order a camera I've been wanting for awhile: the Sony RX0. It has the form factor and weight of an action camera (only 110 grams), but it has a 1" sensor and very sharp lens.
[...]
Instead of an R/C rig, this time I'm going to make one that rotates and takes pictures on its own using a servo controller.

Sounds like there is a potential for some great panoramas. :)

montagdude wrote in Wed Apr 07, 2021 10:08 pm:Some tests with a cheap dowel and plastic version suggest it should be really stable and have a better wind range than the Barn Door kite, with much less tendency to get pulled down.

Nice! :D
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Re: Kite aerial photography

Postby montagdude » Mon May 03, 2021 3:19 pm

Here is a video overview of my new camera and rig (go to 5:30 if you want to skip the description and just see it in action).


Here is a picture I took with it yesterday.
Image

Also, the big version of the kite above is almost done. It's all sewn and the spars are fitted; now I just need to make the bridle.
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Re: Kite aerial photography

Postby Johan G » Mon May 03, 2021 6:21 pm

That photo looks very professional.
Low-level flying — It's all fun and games till someone looses an engine. (Paraphrased from a YouTube video)
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Re: Kite aerial photography

Postby montagdude » Mon May 03, 2021 7:58 pm

Thanks. I think the little watermark signature is partially responsible for that effect. :)
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Re: Kite aerial photography

Postby Johan G » Tue May 04, 2021 3:51 am

Oh, wow! I just noticed the pool or tub at the top of a small tower on the second building from the bottom left. :shock: 8)
Low-level flying — It's all fun and games till someone looses an engine. (Paraphrased from a YouTube video)
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Some YouTube videos
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Re: Kite aerial photography

Postby montagdude » Tue May 04, 2021 4:12 am

Wow is right! I didn't notice that myself. Interestingly, that very fancy house is not even present on Google maps aerial imagery, but it is in street view.

https://goo.gl/maps/1Vhdb7BF3nsveePu9
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Re: Kite aerial photography

Postby wkitty42 » Tue May 04, 2021 9:14 am

that's because that image is from back in 2013 or so but the street view stuff is much newer ;)

that area has had numerous changes over the years... i use Google Earth which has a timeline feature that allows you to look at an area over time... some of the satellite/aerial photos are not so good while others are very nice... here's three shots (2003, 2007, and 2013) of that same place you linked to in google maps...

2003Image

2007Image

2013Image
"You get more air close to the ground," said Angalo. "I read that in a book. You get lots of air low down, and not much when you go up."
"Why not?" said Gurder.
"Dunno. It's frightened of heights, I guess."
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Re: Kite aerial photography

Postby montagdude » Wed Jun 23, 2021 2:49 pm

If anyone wants to see more details about my process, here is a how-to video I made recently.

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Re: Kite aerial photography

Postby wlbragg » Thu Aug 12, 2021 4:28 pm

I just now found this last post, really cool, thanks for posting the details!
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Re: Kite aerial photography

Postby montagdude » Tue Aug 17, 2021 7:56 pm

You're welcome. Glad you liked it!
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