1. Vertical Panos

The vast majority of drones are unable to rotate the camera gimbal to allow you to shoot in portrait format. The DJI Mavic Pro was one model able to do this, but the Mavic 2 Pro and Mavic 2 Zoom are unable to do so, which is a shame but there is a simple way around it. Vertical panoramas are just like traditional panos, but instead of shooting horizontally, you shoot vertically.

2. Aerial Abstracts

One of the most interesting aspects of flying a drone is that you’re able to see the world from above, which often reveals that from this perspective everyday objects and features of the landscape can look completely different to how they do when viewed from ground level. One of the most enjoyable aspects of using drones is searching for patterns and abstract shapes.

3. HDR

Believe it or not, some filter manufacturers produce basic ND grad filters for some models of drone. It’s a nice idea, but with no control over the positioning of the grad over the lens, you’ll often find that the wrong parts of the frame have a reduction in exposure. For video, this is a small price to pay but for stills drone photography you can achieve much better results using HDR.

4. Top-down shots

A viewpoint that’s unique to drone photography is the top-down view, and
it has understandably become something
of a classic choice in the world of aerial photography. This is a simple technique where you shoot straight down towards subjects on the ground that’s directly below the drone and the result can be incredibly interesting and, of course, creative.

5. Shoot at Golden Hour

The way that light hits the earth when viewed from an altitude can look completely different to when you’re standing on the ground, so you can often shoot great images at times of the day where you wouldn’t normally. The times around sunrise and sunset, however, still provide the best light and are the recommended times to be out shooting with your drone.