Drone News Roundup: Tour of Greenland with the DJI Ronin 4D, Using a Drone instead of a Crane for Movies, and More!

This week we’re covering a beautiful tour of Greenland shot entirely on the DJI 4D Ronin camera system.

We’re also covering a video making the case for using drones instead of cranes in shooting movies and T.V., a story about police using a thermal drone to nab a thief in Texas, Jedsy’s delivery drones that attach to windows, and Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg’s vision of how drones can be used to support smart cities.

Now on to the links!

Take a Tour of Greenland with the DJI 4D Ronin

This epic new video made by Benjamin Hardman for DJI showcases the kinds of shots you can get with the company’s Ronin 4D camera system. Created throughout the icy, austere beauty of Greenland, Hardman’s goal was to show how the system deals with rugged conditions like being on a boat or walking across a glacier, allowing you to capture stable, pristine footage despite unstable positioning. Take a look for a tour through this incredible winter country, and a glimpse at what the Ronin 4D can do.

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Why Cinematographers Should Use Drones instead of Cranes

A crane—also called a jib in movie language—can get you aerial shots, but it’s hard to set up and take down, time-consuming, and expensive. Of course, most of us in the drone industry already know this. But someone you’re pitching to at a movie or T.V. production company might not. This video from Furious Pugs Aerials could help you make the case for going with your drone piloting over their jib. Take a look for some great drone shots, and save the link for your next cinematic pitch. (Hat tip to Russell Spurlock, who shot the drone footage in the video and reached out to share it with us.)

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Thermal Drone Helps Police Catch Thief in Texas

The Port Neches Police Department in Port Neches, Texas recently used a drone equipped with a thermal camera to catch a thief. After receiving a call about suspicious activity, they arrived on the scene and gave chase to a car driving quickly with its lights off. The vehicle stopped and a passenger fled on foot. That’s when officers put their DJI Mavic 2 Enterprise Advanced in the air, using its thermal sensor to find the suspect in under 15 minutes. The officers found bolt cutters and wire saws in the suspects’ car, and determined they were likely guilty of cutting down AT&T phone lines in the area to steal the copper found inside them.

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Jedsy’s Delivery Drone Attaches to a Window to Drop off Packages

Jedsy, a drone delivery company based in Switzerland, has a unique approach to how it gets packages to people. The company’s drones can land directly at a window, attaching themselves to the wall to make a delivery. They can also land on balconies, and they can take off from either. According to the company, its drones are the only ones out there that have this unique capability. Watch the video to see how it works.

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Pete Buttigieg’s Vision of Smart Cities includes Drones

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Smart cities were all the rage not too long ago, but the idea seems to have fallen out of sight lately. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg wants to bring the idea back through an investment of almost $95 million in federal funding. Some of those funds will go to investigating ways that drones can be used to improve city processes, including using drones for delivery. Seven of the smart city projects that will receive funds aim to test drone delivery for medical supplies. Inspections are also on the list of things drones will be tested for—according to Buttigieg, drones are a “classic example” of a technology that could do a lot of good.

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