Three weeks ago, I had never flown a real drone before. However, since my appetite for reality capture has been growing lately, I felt it was time to invest in a drone that could be used for photogrammetry. Therefore, after comparing/evaluating/comparing again different types of drones, I finally decided to buy the Phantom 4.

I am always afraid of being disappointed when I finally receive something that I have been waiting for a long time, but in this case, it was no need to worry. DJI made even the unboxing an Apple-like feeling, and when the drone was revealed I was stunned by the sexy and elegant design. I was so starstruck that it was the first time in my life that I read the manual, saw all the instruction videos on YouTube, before I even turned it on. The Phantom 4 became «my precious».

When I finally had the guts to try it outdoor, it was a joyful experience. The software was intuitive, the controller felt solid and precise, and the drone was responsive. I have tested out most of the features like the «activetrack», «tapfly», «obstacle sensing system», «return to home» and many more. I do start to trust these features, but it still feels crazy to fly the drone with full speed towards a wall and trust the «obstacle sensing system» to automatically stop your drone before it crashes.

I have also tested the Pix4D app with the Phantom 4 two times already. It is a great app and I will review it in a later blogpost. I generated a Sketchfab model from my latest flight. You can see the result below:

At the moment I am not using «my precious» for commercial use. I want to be a better pilot first, and I need to apply to the Civil Aviation Authority to get the right approval. This is important to me, since I see the potential danger a drone can cause.