UKH

"When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things."

Hence I'm selling a DJI Mini 3 Pro on a popular auction site.

I thought the drone would help immerse me in the outdoors but it turned out to be a faff and a hindrance. Plus my operator ID has expired. I think, if you approach droning properly and with commitment you can probably acquire some incredible footage but as a hobbyist there's little gratification.

Interesting - think I'm in the same boat.

Have a DJI Mini 2, and yeah... it's not taken off in a LONG while. I've definitely learnt that I much prefer taking photos over videos, partly due to the editing, but also due to the actual times I'll look at stuff.
Photos can be on screensavers, digital displays, printed out on rotation for photo frames.

Videos, meh - share on Facebook? 

They still do offer some amazing options for taking otherwise impossible shots - and I'll still pack mine for holidays, but it's getting way less use than I thought it would.

Drones are just like any other photography tool. It's more about the story you are telling than the device. If you start with the device before the story then the novelty is always going to wear off pretty quick.

You're right of course. I'd also argue that with the UK being so built up and the restrictions on use being [rightly] stringent, you're fairly limited in what you can try and do anyway.

I think it's a bit harsh and inaccurate to suggest a drone is 'childish'. I bought a Mini 2 a few years ago purely as a means to an end, and it's more than served its purpose. But if you treat it just as a toy then yes, I can see how you'd become a bit disillusioned quite quickly.

What do you mean you thought it would "help immerse me in the outdoors"? Did you think having a drone would make you go out to new places to get impressive footage, or was it more that you already knew places that you'd like revisit to get a new perspective on them?

Pre-purchase, I imagined the drone would be like a robotic buddy, that I could send ahead to scout the terrain, for example. In reality it takes that much focus and care to operate that it would monopolise all my time and energy.

Interesting, that's part of the reason I bought one too, but more for scoping out some more distant crags that were tricky or time-consuming to get to. I also find it very helpful to record friends working projects so we have detailed beta to refer to once back home.

Edit: should have said that I don't really find either too much hassle time or energy-wise that it causes a problem or otherwise detracts from regular 'crag-time'.

Only if you're using it to tell a story.

If it's 3 hour's walk to a promising-looking virgin crag or a 20 minute drone flight controlled from the comfort of the front seat of your car.... Lets just say that you can check out a lot more potential new trad crags in a day with a drone than you ever could on foot!

Kinda - but whilst it's easy to visualise a wider/telephoto view without buying a lens, you can't really open up a lot of the ideas without actually getting a drone.

You have very little idea of what a scene will look like top-down, or from a "not standing on the land" viewpoint, whether at sea, from cliff-height or above other vistas.

I bought one last year (mini 2 se). Mostly used for climbing shots. I love it... can't imagine how else you'd get this angle of a deserted Spanish beach.

I thought this was going to be about Rishi Sunak.

can't imagine how else I'd annoy everyone on a deserted Spanish beach.

except with a jetski...

If it was deserted .... who would you be annoying?!

If I'm planning on flying mine when other folk are about I always ask first if it would be okay to do so and tell them it's only going to be for a short while. Not everyone gets their nickers in as much of a twist about drones as you might imagine.

Some people may be too polite to express their disapproval? Or possibly feel too intimidated even? My personal view is that they are yet one more mechanical intrusion that creates unnecessary noise in the outdoor environment. How do you even know where everybody potentially affected by your drone is to ask them beforehand? 'Not everyone gets their nickers in ... a twist'.  Is this how you respond to someone who actually does object when you ask them?

I could see about a kilometre in each direction. Not a soul. Interestingly, once about 50m away I couldn't hear it either - the sound of the sea completely covered it. Likewise, I always ask. If they look annoyed then I simply don't persist.

Wildlife.  They are a total PITA in some areas, forcing huge numbers of birds to fly and expend valuable calories. Although nowhere near as bad as dog owners throwing sticks into flocks off birds. 

That's a fair point, but I don't think I've ever been aware of a bird take off in response to me launching my drone.

In response to  Lankyman:

By using my eyes and ears. The sub-250g drones are really very quite as soon as they are any distance in the air. As Jon says above, you really can't discern them.

No-one has actually expressed a concern any time I've asked them, which has probably been less than a dozen times. In fact they've asked if they could be sent a photo when offered that option. But if anyone did object, I'd obviously not fly it at all. Why would you assume I would?

Generally, beaches either have loads of birds or just about zilch, and the beach on your photo looks too ‘nice’ to be birdy. Interestingly, just did a Google search and the first bunch of sites where about raptors attacking drones !  

Because of the way you phrased your response to a previous poster. Something about your wording suggested that a genuine objection is simply 'getting knickers in a twist'?

That wasn't my photo, I don't really do beaches!

Apologies if that was the case, it wasn't my intention. I wouldn't fly if anyone objected or their body language suggested they would want to object but were too polite to do so.

Whops !  

And now these three remain: Faith, Hope and Love. But the greatest of these is Love.

Never put away childish things,  I'm almost 52 and my latest passion is radio control truck rock Crawling, also known as" playing with your toy car" by the wife.

Ps, I got bored of the faff of my drone Realy quickly, mainly the faff of connecting up my phone to the controller. 

Ah wives - very good at cutting through the bullshit.  When I think I'm in the garage building a scale model of the settle and carlisle railway near great whernside, she tells her friends I'm playing with my trainset.  

edit: I'm 63 and a grandad so it's allowed

Pedant alert! It doesn't go near Great Whernside.

sorry - remove the great.