Ordering My X8

Drone-Survey-Photography · Jul 16, 2015

After alot of research and sole searching I am ordering an X8. My plan is to work out alot of the technical details or aerial surveying while waiting for the new FAA regulation to get in place. I have filed for the Section 333 Exemption but I dont have a pilots license, so for now I have some job sites that I can fly as a hobby and work out bugs in the X8 and probably more difficult in the photography and software to produce the views I need.

If someone can help with a quick question, I want to add FPV but I dont want the gopro or gimble, maybe add later, but right now I am afraid it will be the weak link in the system and I dont need to quality that gopro will provide. So a fixed camera with a monitor set up is what I am thinking of. I thought 3DR has a full set up but I cannot find one w/o the gopro on their website. Any suggestions?

Thanks

Drone-Survey-Photography · Jul 19, 2015

Got the X8 first flight today very nice very impressed. did not work out of box I went through the adr video and set up fine. Couple of small issues to settle. Hope to fly first mission this week using mission Planner

x8+ is a great value if you need to carry anything but the on on-board camera like a GoPro. Payload up to1.7 pounds. Had flight time of 20 min without payload

sgjgb · Aug 2, 2015

While you wait for 333, get your pilot license going. I have 333 and X8+ setup for mapping too w/ Canon 260. Works great, and I plan to add fpv using the 3DR kit. I'm looking at gimbals now to mount a Panasonic G7 and work on automating camera functions. Work in progress.

Drone-Survey-Photography · Aug 3, 2015

I am not going for a pilot lic, I have a guy (couple) who can fly for me when I start doing survey commercially, if needed. The lic requirement is clearly going away, question is when. Did you get a sport lic?

Very Nice, did my first test survey using Canon S100 this weekend, Loaded CHDK, complicated but works nicely, I used the time lapse set to 5 seconds, did not have all the camera setting dialed in for the first run so the focus was not great, second run much better. But now it looks like a ESC is burned out,
Have you figured out the cable to have pixhawk trigger the camera, little confusing, I know 5v is needed but question of which set-up to use. This is the next goal for me.
I am planning to order the 3DR fpv this week. I may just update my laptop to windows 10, that way I can get FPV and Mission Planner on the same screen.