01/21/2020
How to Fly a Drone: A Beginner’s Guide
Beginner flying drone
Drones have become a hot trend in both photography and videography. In fact, they’ve practically become standard production equipment for professional photographers and filmmakers.
Still, there are many drone users who invest in these expensive gadgets just for recreational purposes. And if you’re one of those people who are hoping to get in on this cool new hobby, or possibly turn drone flying into a lucrative career, this article is for you.
Below, we’ll talk about the first few things you’ll need to learn about drones, as well as how they are generally operated.
Basic Drone Controller Functions
Drones are generally operated with a remote controller or a transmitter. This handy device somewhat resembles gaming or toy remote controllers with buttons and joysticks that serve various functions. More professional models can be quite overwhelming and may take more time for a user to utilize its full functionality.
Its left and right sticks, however, generally operate the same way across different models. These are used for controlling majority of the drone’s maneuvers, so it’s important for users to understand how to make the most out of these basic controls.
LEFT STICK: Yaw & Throttle
The left stick controls two aspects: the yaw (rotation) and throttle (altitude).
Yaw
Pushing the left stick along the x-axis (left and right) triggers the drone’s rotation clockwise or counterclockwise. This helps the user position the drone to face other directions without making the drone leave its current spot.
Throttle
Pushing the left stick along the y-axis (up and down) changes the drone’s altitude accordingly. Users often control the throttle when flying, usually in conjunction with the functions of the right stick, so it’s important to get comfortable with this particular function.
RIGHT STICK: Roll & Pitch
The right stick controls actual movements of the drone along the x-axis: the roll (side to side) and the pitch (forward and backward).
Roll
Pushing the right stick along the x-axis (left and right) makes the quadcopter fly and “roll” along the left and right sides. This is particularly helpful for avoiding trees and other obstacles without changing the drone’s altitude or position on the y-axis.
Pitch
Pushing the right stick along the y-axis (up and down) moves the drone forward and backward accordingly. It may seem incredibly easy, but using this with the throttle and with the drone facing you instead of the other way around makes it more challenging, so it’s necessary to spend time on practice.
Important Things to Remember Before Flying
Man operating drone at eye level
Image via Shutterstock
Secure a Drone Pilot License
Every drone operator who intends to fly for commercial purposes is required to obtain a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Remote Pilot Certificate before attempting to fly a drone. Interested pilots aged 16 and above will have to pass a test, which currently costs $150 for the initial exam, at any FAA-accredited Knowledge Testing Center.
After passing the test, the pilot will have to complete the FAA Airman Certificate and/or Rating Application (IACRA) for the pilot certificate. In case you fail the test, you can retake it after 2 weeks.
If you plan on strictly being a recreational drone user, you don’t necessarily need to get this license. It’s not listed as a requirement under the FAA’s Special Rule for Model Aircraft (Public Law 112-95 Section 336), which restricts you to recreational use and only obligates you to register your drone with the FAA, follow a specific set of safety guidelines, fly your drone within your visual line-of-sight, and adhere to a few other rules.
Register Your Drone
The next important thing to remember is to register your remote-controlled aircraft—any sUAS (small unmanned aircraft system) weighing between 0.55 and 55 pounds—with the FAA and mark it with a registration number. This helps make owners accountable, in case they end up damaging power lines or causing any kind of accident with their aircraft.
Registering drones with the FAA is now as easy as creating an account on their website, although you can choose to register by paper as well. It will cost you a minimal fee, but registering now will cover the next three (3) years. Check out the video below for step-by-step instructions on how to register your drone with the FAA:
Get to Know the Rules and Regulations
For everyone’s safety, including your own, it’s important that you abide by the laws set for recreational drones. Here are the basic rules that you’ll need to follow every time you fly your drone for fun.
Remain under 400 feet
Keep flight speed at or below 100 mph
Fly only during daytime
Aircraft must weigh under 55 pounds
Yield right of way to manned aircraft at all times
Keep aircraft within line of sight at all times
Fly in accordance with community-based guidelines
Notify airports and air traffic control before flying within five miles of an airport
Do not fly over humans
Do not fly from a moving vehicle
Download “No Fly” Apps
As you may already know, there are areas in every state where drones are not allowed to fly. These are called “no fly” zones, and breaking the rules could get you fined. On top of that, there’s also the weather to be worried about.
Fortunately, there are apps that you can download in order to find and watch out for these “no fly” zones. You can easily search for lists of trusted apps for the job or you can directly check out the following:
B4UFly – FAA-developed app for indicating fly/no-fly conditions and more.
UAV Forecast – A good alternative for the B4UFly that provides detailed information on weather conditions in specific areas from a small aerial vehicle perspective.
Hover – Great for beginners who want simple displays of real-time weather reports and fly zones (and a fly/no-fly indicator), as well as a flight log for recorded flight data.
Tesla Field Recorder – Handy for detecting, measuring, and recording magnetic disturbances that could potentially disturb flight operations.
Instead of asking yourself or other people if you can fly your drone in a particular area, you can find the answers right on your mobile device.
Read the Instruction Manual
One step you absolutely should never overlook is to read the instruction manual. From your drone’s physical parts down to its flight features, familiarize yourself with all that you need to know to minimize problems and inconveniences later on.
Step-by-Step Instructions for Flying a Drone
After acquainting and familiarizing yourself with your drone and its basic commands, it’s time for you to put them to good use by actually flying the drone. Here’s a step-by-step guide that you can follow for a fun—and safe—drone flying experience that will help lead you to successful drone photography.
1. Charge the battery: It goes without saying that you’ll need a fully charged battery in order to enjoy undisturbed flights. Make sure that you use only the battery and charger that came with your drone. Should you wish to bring backup batteries, ensure their compatibility before using them with your drone.
2. Secure an open area for practice: If you already have a drone or are at least thinking of purchasing your own, you probably already have a place in mind for practice. It can be any open outdoor area, as long as it’s safe and free from obstructions so you don’t end up crashing the drone into a tree, wall, or possibly even other people. Also, make sure that the place permits the usage of drones so as not to break any laws.
3. Position the drone: First and foremost, find a good takeoff spot. Make sure the drone is positioned according to the instruction manual—ideally in front of you and on a flat surface, with you and the drone facing the same direction. Do this before every flight and don’t attempt to do otherwise unless you’ve gained enough confidence and experience in flying your drone.
4. Connect the transmitter to the drone: There’s one more thing that you’ll need to remember before takeoff: sequencing. Here, we start with the steps that will require practice.
Right before you switch on the transmitter, push the throttle way down. Turn the transmitter on, and then connect the drone’s battery. This is a very important sequence that you’ll have to follow both before taking off and after landing. After your flying session, follow the steps in reverse order: disconnect your drone’s battery and then turn off the transmitter.
Before Takeoff After Landing
Push throttle way down
Turn transmitter ON
Connect drone’s battery
Disconnect drone’s battery
Turn transmitter OFF
5. Practice takeoff and landing: After following the previous steps for preparation before takeoff, you may slowly push the throttle (left stick) upwards and watch the drone lift off. Keep it in place without moving forward or to the sides with the help of the roll and pitch commands (right stick).
Once you’ve successfully launched the drone a few feet above ground, try to land it as smoothly as you can. Keep it steady and slowly push the throttle (left stick) down this time until it reaches the same spot on the ground.
6. Practice hovering: The next thing you’ll be practicing is hovering. Lift off (step 5) a few feet above ground and hold the drone as steadily as you can. It will seem pretty tedious for first-timers as it requires concentration, but practicing this will help improve your flying skills (especially at the start and end of your flying sessions) and keep your drone safe.
Focus on mastering these basic maneuvers (take off, balancing, and landing) first as it will help you have an easier time executing more complicated flying techniques later on.
7. Practice rotating: Another important maneuver you’ll need to be comfortable with is the rotation of the drone using the left stick’s yaw control. Now launch the drone, hover, and then slowly push the left stick right or left until the drone rotates to face you.
Many find it difficult at first since you’ll have to pay close attention to the drone’s orientation, particularly where its front and back are, but experience definitely makes it easier.
8. Imagine being the pilot: To aid you in flying the drone no matter where it’s facing, create a mental image of you being inside the drone and flying it. This is how experienced professionals stay on course no matter how much the drone spins and turns, and helps them envision how they should fly the drone to achieve winning aerial photographs.
If you still don’t get it on your fifth try, don’t fret. Many don’t get it even on their tenth. What’s important is that you are slowly (but surely!) becoming more used to controlling how the drone behaves.
9. Get used to the controls: We’ve explained the basic controls on your transmitter, but surely this isn’t enough. Eventually, you’ll need to get used to your controller until you no longer have to look down on it every few seconds.
Similar to playing with a video game controller, you’ll need to practice until you can “forget” about your controller and focus on that mental image of you being the pilot. This way, you can execute different maneuvers as easily as you can move your limbs, and focus on achieving well-composed high-resolution aerial imagery.
To gain a better understanding of how your quadcopter is able to move in specific directions, the graph below shows how the propellers behave during each movement.
