The plan was relatively simple – fly up, photograph the object and land again …

Unfortunately, this is a somewhat simplified version of what is actually happening. Photographing with a longer exposure while hanging in the air is also likely to mean blurring the image due to movements in the drone. The slightest wind or correction of the drone’s location can actually ruin the photograph – unfortunately this often happens, which is why it also requires more patience than that.

However, the challenge with this image was slightly increased as the composition itself, as I imagined it, had to be adjusted while in the air. Suddenly, there was a parking space that filled more of the picture than initially assumed, and which in fact brought one’s eye-catching with it in a different way than I had anticipated before the flight. So I decided to change my composition a little bit and thus also create another thread around the image.

The composition itself remained as planned ie. same foreground, center and background.

• Metadata: DJI Mavic 2 Pro – 10,26mm (28mm), 1/4 sek, f/2.8, ISO 2500.

Bonus material

Indlægget A gathering point for sports and events in a different perspective blev først udgivet på FALKENBERGTHOMSEN.

I have been fortunate to have the task of making drone recordings for a TV show about Copenhagen ZOO. An exciting place to fly and for many a rarity and fortunately, due flight rules inside towns in Denmark, the Danish Police in Copenhagen and the Royal Danish Defence College are some great collaborators when it comes to drone flying in this particular area.

Copenhagen ZOO had, by this task, chosen to give us access before guests opening hours, as it would not be possible to complete the footage while public guests walks beneath the drone – safety first!

This meant that the flight had to start from sunrise and finish before official opening hours ie. no later than noon 10.00 pm where the doors are opened for guests during the winter period.

Plan ahead or fail before flying

Carrying out a flight in Copenhagen ZOO requires planning both in relation to the individual recordings that we have been asked to make, and of course also in relation to flight safety.

Everything is planned carefully and on the way it becomes a flightplan and storyboard of the day itself.

An example – I knew that an overflow had to be done at 0819 pm from a specific point, as this would mean that the Copenhagen ZOO tower and the sun’s location would complement each other and thus give an incredibly nice image.

The safety and the rules must be observed when a drone flight is to be carried out. One thing is to put the drone in the air, but all preparation from home also requires a physical review. This is the life of a professional dronepilot.

There are plenty of obstacles and challenges to flying in an area like Copenhagen ZOO and at the same time take into account any hazards or (un) anticipated events – ultimately, the responsibility is 100% mine and personally I am of the opinion that I would like to keep track of all the details before I initiate.

Obstacles that cannot be seen at first sight

In Copenhagen ZOO, there are an incredible number of trees that cannot be seen at the available maps and at the same time many construction projects are underway, resulting in many new obstacles both in the form of machines, cables in the air and barriers in the form of fences and building materials.

These obstacles resulted in several of the planned flights not being able to be carried out as the drone simply could not come far enough down and at the same time have enough maneuvering space to get the desired recordings – the probability of collisions with trees and cables in the air was too large in this case.

It is about knowing its limitations and not least being ready to compromise on one’s wishes when it comes to safety.

Indlægget Backstage – Drone recordings of Copenhagen Zoo blev først udgivet på FALKENBERGTHOMSEN.

2017 offered a lot of new challenges both in terms of tasks and experiences, but also some unique options such as to photograph in Bali, documentary photography of events, make drone recordings and not least to be allowed to produce an internal recruitment film for the police response patrol (Read about the unit in danish “Beredskabet bliver skarpere på første-indsatsen” (The link opens in a new window).

I feel that I’m very lucky and is very thankful to be part of this adventure of my own and together with you all!

2018 – Records for the danish music video “Nye Horisonter”

At the beginning of the year I went out and made drone recordings for a music video in collaboration with the band Holtsø, Trier & Wittrock. The recordings took place at Amager Beach Park and just the day we agreed to complete the recordings, the sun turned out – the first day of sunshine this year! This was optimal compared to the actual recordings, which allowed us to get some amazing recordings, but unfortunately it also resulted in a lot of people having decided to get as good an experience as us!

With a drone in the air, 3 musicians and a conductor as well as safety rules to be followed, this entails an extraordinary overview of possible situations that could result in a breach of security and thus endangering other people …

Fortunately, people at Amager are very nice and curious and instead of challenging the security as well as the recordings, they chose to look at the recordings and lift the whole experience to a new level that we could only have dreamed of – amazing atmosphere!

As a bonus to the music video, I chose to stay a little longer on the beach park afterwards. The area is amazing and with a fully charged battery in the drone, there should be some recordings of the area and not least the beautiful sunset. The result was a small tribute video to Amager Strandpark and the many guests out there – thanks for the experience!

Recordings with action and lots of challenges

In December, I got a unique opportunity, in collaboration with a very good friend, to produce an internal recruitment film for the Police Response Patrol. The film has just finished last week and the special thing about this production is that we have not been able to control the events, but have just been able to draw on our own experiences from the defense and the police. This actually means that we followed a full day training with 2 cameras and one drone. In addition, we have made some recordings before and after the actual exercise in the form of interviews and night recordings.

The result, we think, has become super good and the message in the film itself has hit the spot! The provisional feedback has luckily been amazing and hopefully it can help make a difference in those circles. Unfortunately, I can not display the movie or the pictures from there, but just say that the officers who sign up for this service make an extraordinary effort for all of us in the same way as the rest of the Police force – they are good!

30 photographs – A ordinary day at the police

Do you want to document a daily life at the police? The answer was simple to me!

A unique opportunity to document the police in a different way, portray the events through my camera and the results are realized through 30 major photo frames, to be hanged by Københavns Vestegns Politi and embellish the times for inspiration for employees and guests. The assignment will be solved in January and hopefully with some unique pictures of a daily life with the police.

Are you looking forward to seeing the results? I do and as soon as the project is finished, the result will be presented on the website!

Indlægget Video Production, Photography and flying drones – 2018 I’m ready! blev først udgivet på FALKENBERGTHOMSEN.

A good colleague was making a music video and in this connection I was offered to make the drone shots, but as most probably also know, one of the conditions for flying depends on the weather conditions and the plan for this particular music video required lots of light and an exciting location that matched the song’s content.

The place where they would shoot were at Amager Strandpark, Denmark,  with a nice horizon in the background.

“The weather forecast for the next 5 days consists mainly of rain and wind except Tuesday – do you think it’s an option?”

Now the weather in Denmark is known to be untidy and a 5-day forecast can change a lot in both a positive and negative direction. When I was asked if that was an option, of course I said yes, but with the note that the recordings had to be canceled if the weather did not allow a safe flight. Monday evening, the day before the scheduled flight, I eagerly checked the weather forecast as well as the conditions at Amager Strandpark – A decision had to be taken on this data and my decision was a big GO to the drone recordings.

Sunshine and blue sky – perfect light

Tuesday afternoon we met all together. The band had their gear with and the drone was ready. The weather was not just ok, it was almost perfect – the temperature was low and it blew a bit, but the luck had certainly remedied us. We chose to make everything ready and shortly before the golden hour entered, we started the recordings. People around us stopped and followed in our recordings, which simply resulted in the band giving the whole arm! Just 1.5 hours later we said goodbye to each other – the job was solved and the recordings were in the house!

Time for reflection on the first sunny day in 2018 at Amager Strandpark

When I’m out and photograph or film, I often get caught up with the situation and this literally means I’m doing a mental studio of the whole area. The advantage of this is of course that I read the area significantly better and thus also get the opportunity to utilize the natural light, details and possibilities, but it can also result in forgetting to look beyond these frameworks seeing other options – it is always a difficult balance and it is definitely a challenge that I often face.

At Amager Strandpark there are many possibilities to capture some amazing pictures and the possibilities of different compositions even though my focus is constantly on the band and their wishes. It’s a must see place in Denmark!

In connection with the footage of the music video, I chose to make some extra recordings as the atmosphere, the surroundings and the beautiful sky invited for more drone flying. The result was some clippings that I chose to collect for a little tribute film for Amager Strandpark No. 3 – the day simply deserves to be honored.

It should be mentioned that I often choose to make long video sequences ie. that I do not stop recording while the drone is positioned or when I switch between the individual recordings. It has its pros and cons. The advantage is, of course, that I have more material to work with when the day is about and therefore not limited to individual recordings. The downside is that the files fill a lot more and it takes longer with the editing process and the selection process.

Indlægget A tribute to Amager Strandpark pier 3 blev først udgivet på FALKENBERGTHOMSEN.