June 2018

There’s a saying that the Lakes in the Lake District are there for a reason – because it rains a lot. At Hovershotz we have worked out that if we are lucky we get 100 fine days per year to film with drones in the Lake District. For this reason we have explored many ways of filming in the rain and it’s far more complex than just getting a waterproof drone.

Firstly, every waterproof drone we have examined, the camera (even those listed at 4K), simply just do not cut the mustard when it comes to film quality. The majority of these water proof drone originate for China and quite frankly are rubbish (some cowboy drone operators are attempting to offer professional filming with these cheap Chinese water proof drones but our advice is to stay clear of these cheapskates attempting to palm these off as acceptable for broadcast quality).

Secondly, even though a waterproof drone can fly in the rain, water collects on the lens rendering any captured footage useless. There judst isn’t a drone solution available that is both waterproof and can film in the rain. This becomes a problem when a director or filmmaker needs a drone shot and the weather isn’t suitable for drones.

We have had some limited success in being the only drone operator in the Lake District to have had one of our DJI Inspire 1 drones nanotech coated – meaning it is waterproof and can fly in the rain. Despite being waterproof, we are still limited in how we can film whilst it is raining to prevent moisture on the lens (such as filming in the hover position or flying backwards whilst filming). We are the most experienced drone crew when it comes to operating in inclement weather in the Lake District.

We have spoken to various film crew and cameramen who we have worked with, to see how land based filming gets around this and they tend to use spinning lens filters such as the Spintec RD but sadly non of these fit any drone mounted camera (The Spintec RD deflects rain and snow instantly by spinning a specially produced Tiffen glass filter 3000 times per minute. The spinning glass creates both a centrifugal effect which instantly removes rain drops (and even water splashes) and a vacuum effect which removes the lighter snow flakes which may have not been removed by the centrifugal effect).

In our experience Directors & filmmakers require more than just drone filming backwards or just in hover whilst it’s raining, so our quest continues. The issue is compounded by the fact that the DJI Inspire 2 with X5s is now the defacto standard for professional film making, so our solution needs to be based around this. Thankfully due to the popularity of DJI drones, a company called Tokina manufacture a range of hydrophilic rain dispersion filters which should fit the DJI X5S camera. These hydrophilic rain dispersion filters will finally allow Hovershotz (when coupled to a waterproof drone) the ability to film unrestricted in wet weather when raining.

Hovershotz are about to test hydrophilic rain dispersion filters and if successful will use these with the X5 camera from our DJI Inspire 2 on a waterproof DJI Matrice 210. This will mean the finished footage will all be filmed on the same cinematic grade camera, ensuring consistent footage for perfect results plus it will make editing less of a headache.

In conclusion if you require a aerial drone filming expert in the Lake district, come rain or shine, then Hovershotz are the only choice, as we are the only drone operator with a professional quality waterproof rain resistant drone, camera and lens solution.

Here is an example of Hovershotz working with a film crew whilst operating a drone in the rain in the Lake District

© Hovershotz Aerial Drone Photography and Inspections Cumbria 2018