People Droning People

Top AirVuz contributor Lucaputzer earned a spot as a Drone Video of the Week Finalist as well as a FPV Pilot to Watch for this fantastic first person view (FPV) piece featuring the work of the Iraqi Special Forces.  Formally known as the Iraqi Special Operations Forces, this elite couner-terrorism force was established in 2007.  Structured as three brigades, the Iraqi Special Forces played a key role in the bloody war which ran from 2013-17 between the Iraqi government and the Islamic State.  

Muhamad AbuShakra is one of the world's top aerial videographers, with 650k followers on Instagram as of mid-2023.  He has a highly distinctive filming style which often involves placing himself and his traveling companions into videos shot in stunning scenes of nature; the juxtaposition of "small" humans compared to their surroundings makes for some incredibly compelling content.  While many of his videos were filmed in the Alps, in this video you'll see him use his trademark style to show off the stunning natural scenery of Iceland.   

Hong Kong enjoys a special status within the People's Republic of China, to whose control the city was transferred in 1997.  Since March of 2019, Hong Kong has seen a series of protests aimed at a new law that facilitates extradition to the mainland.  In this remarkable drone video by top contributor Droneland, you'll get a bird's eye view of one of these large gathering as it was disbursed by security forces. This video won the Narrative/Documentary category at the 6th Annual New York City Drone Film Festival.

Following the death of an unarmed Black man named George Floyd at the hands of four police officers in Minneapolis, Minnesota on Memorial Day of 2020, millions of people around the world took to the streets to protest against race-motivated police brutality.  In this moving drone video by top AirVuz contributor and pilot rememorales, you will get an aerial view of a large and very peaceful protest in New York City.  This video earned a nomination in the Narrative/Documentary category at the 6th Annual NYCDFF.

Check out this fantastic drone video of a VERY brave and skilled climber ascending one of the tallest skyscrapers in Paris, France, compliments of first-time AirVuz contributor Aira.  Filmed with a DJI Air 2 drone, the video captures a climber ascending, without any safety ropes, the Total Tower (Tour Total).  Part of the La Défense business district a few mi./km west of the city center, the 48 floor tower stands 623 ft tall (190 m), making it the third-tallest skyscraper in La Défense and the fourth-tallest in all of Paris.  

In this highly creative short film, contributor Chrisxgxc teamed up with his five year old son and used his DJI Phantom 4 drone with some very clever editing to create the impression of chasing his son piloting a World War I era biplane.  The video was the winner of the 2017 AirVuz Drone Video Awards in the Originality category and was also a winner at the Los Angeles Drone Film Festival.  The backdrop is area of northwestern Oklahoma known as the Panhandle, which is located in the heart of the USA's Great Plains. 

The Mayan people, indigenous to the land stretching across parts of Central America and the Yucatan Peninsula portion of Mexico, were known for their sophisticated perspectives on science, engineering, and the arts.  Contributor and drone pilot Dronebros spent two years traveling the Mayan lands and created this video.  His work earned nominations for the AirVuz Drone Video of the Week and Drone Video of the Month, and was the Winner for the 2nd Annual Drone Video Awards' People & Lifestyle category. 

Created by the Belgian contributor Kelly's Heroes, "Drift" is a short that tells the story of a young boy named Oscar and his imaginary friend.  The film uses a drone photography technique that the creator calls Anamorphic retrozooms, which can only be understood by watching the film.  Suffice to say it's an extremely creative use of the power of the modern drone to make incredible content.  This video was chosen as a finalist for the first annual AirVuz Drone Video Awards in the Originality category.  

Belgian contributor and pilot Kelly's Heroes created an instant drone video classic with this amazing film, which was created to help promote the Comic Arts Museum and Hotel in Ghent, the great medieval city in the country's Flanders region. It tells a human story, set against a beautiful backdrop of the Benelux landscape of plains intermixed with hills.  The video combines both elements beautifully, and it was nominated for the Drone Video of the Week Award in one of the contest's first weeks.  

Panvelvet is one of the top content creators in the AirVuz community, with multiple Drone Video of the Week/Month wins, a Drone Video Award, and most recently a win at the 6th annual New York City Drone Film Festival.  All good reasons to check out this stunning piece from the great Chinese metropolis of Shanghai.  The video features human subjects perched atop some of the skyscrapers and bridges of the city on the Yangtze River Delta, China's largest and one of the world's most important financial centers. 

The creative potential of drones to tell powerful stories is astounding.  In this video, the acclaimed Italian composer and pianist Ludovico Einaudi is filmed playing a piano on an iceberg broken off from the Wahlenbergbreen, a glacier on the coast of Svalbard, in the northern reaches of Norway.  The music video was created to build awareness of global warming and its visible consequences in the Arctic, and was selected as a finalist for the 2017 AirVuz Drone Video Awards in the Originality category.  

With over a million views, this viral aerial video from the eastern coast of Australia is worth a watch. Cinematographer and drone pilot Jaxon Roberts, along with yogi and social media influencer Sally Mustang, brings us dolphins, horses, palm trees, beaches, and more in this must-see drone video of the beautiful Byron Bay.  Byron Bay is located in the northeastern corner of the state of New South Wales, just a bit to the south of Gold Coast in the neighboring state of Queensland.

Former Drone Video of the Week Finalist ViDeo Creator jP created this stunning drone video of a woman in a white dress wandering the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah.  One of the Southwestern USA's most visually distinctive spots, the flats are the remains of an ancient lake that's situated about a two hour drive due west of Salt Lake City.  The flats cover an area of about 40 square mi. (around 100 square km) and the thickness of the salt crust varies from about five ft. (junst under two m) to a few inches/centimeters.  

Lion's Run, an entertainment company founded in 2013, aims to be the world's premiere automotive lifestyle event. With annual trend-setting drives, this Drone Video of the Week nominee shows just what the adventure looks like. The Summer South 2018 run started in Paris, then traveled to Vicy and Toulouse, France, driving through to Bilbao and Saragossa, Spain, culminating in the epic party capital of Ibiza. Enjoy the ride in this Drone Video Awards' People & Lifestyle category nominee. 

Six months of travel across eight European countries confirmed both HikeTheWorld's passion for traversing scenic locales on foot.  The video includes footage of their native Slovakia plus stops in Austria, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Italy (the Dolomite mountains), Bosnia & Herzogovina, Croatia, Montenegro, and Albania.  This video was nominated for Drone Video of the Week in October 2018 and subsequently for the second annual Drone Video Awards in the People & Lifestyle category. 

Despite its relatively modest size, Bali is one of the best known islands in the giant archipelago of Indonesia.  The island, which lies just to the east of much larger Java, is considered one of the world's top beach destinations.  Contributor andn pilot Tiffany3ui brought some friends and a drone to Bali in 2017 and created this remarkable travel video.  Watch it to get an aerial glimpse of glimpse Bali’s markets, beaches, and resorts, from the unique perspective that only a drone can deliver.

Drones are not only showing up at weddings but on honeymoons afterwards. Ride along with top contributor Robin Maeter as he and his lovely bride embark on an epic two-destination honeymoon trip to Thailand and the Maldives, equipped with a drone and a GoPro. From scuba diving to seaplanes to elephants, their adventures create not only amazing memories, but an amazing drone video souvenir for us all to enjoy! It's a great example of how talented content creators are combining drone and ground camera footage to create epic travel videos.

AirVuz contributor and first person view pilot Grid_FPV is a king when it comes to micro quads. His locations, technique, and editing style make him a pilot to remember and be inspired by, which is why he was nominated in the 2nd Annual Drone Video Awards for his micro work. His latest video takes us through the densely populated city of Tokyo where locals are getting outside for their yoga practice while the sun sets. The city skyline dominates the background while he weaves around the dozens of yogis participating in the class.

Lucas Pinhel, who has over 200k followers on Instagram, has made a name for himself by combining drones, fashion models, and exotic locations. In this amazing video, he collaborated with a fashion model to create this unique aerial tour of Cartagena, the Colombian port city on the Caribbean. Cartagena is one of the great cultural centers of Colombia; during Colonial days it was the largest port in the Spanish Empire. You will be amazed by the blend of human, architectural, and natural beauty you will see in this work.

What, exactly, is a foilboard tuxedo?? Obviously, it's riding a powered foilboard wearing a tuxedo - in New York City's East River, no less!  Yes, you got that right, and it's all captured via drone in this remarkable piece by top content creator and drone pilot memmi, whose video "Drone Drifting - East Coast Bash 2018" was a finalist for the second Annual Drone Video Awards.  This is one you really need to see to believe it; words don't do it full justice.  If you think you've seen it all, think again.  

What's a bored dinosaur to do? Take an adventure through the Alps Mountains of Europe, of course! This unique and hilarious piece comes from the imagination of contributor and drone pilot Borsch. Watch Dino do "touristy" things like observing nature, hitch hiking, and snowboarding against a dream-like background of the snow-capped Alps mountains in the heart of Central Europe.  This video was picked as a Finalist in the Originality category for the second annual Drone Video Awards. 

The famous stone pillars of Meteora, Greece are the backdrop for this amazing drone video of an extreme aerial dance routine.  Contributor and drone pilot Badios filmed Katerina Soldatou 250 meters (over 800 ft) in the air in this magical area of northern Greece, where a half dozen of the original monasteries which were built here survive.  It's an example of the kind of footage that was simply impossible to obtain prior to the advent of drones, which are creating new avenues for artistic expression like this one.

The Moreeb Dunes in the United Arab Emirates contain some of the highest sand dunes in the world.  The highest stands 300 meters (1k ft) above the desert floor, with a slope of nearly 50 degrees.  Contributor Paul Vlad used the dunes as backdrop for this stunning drone video, featuring aerial footage of a car driving through the endless desert as well as a model standing atop one of the dunes.  The Dunes are in a part of the Arabian Desert commonly known as the Empty Quarter, one of the world's largest contiguous desert areas.  

New AirVuz contributor SKYCINEMADRONES is one of the top commercial drone piloting companies in Russia.  In this excellent video, they give us a behind-the-scenes look at the work they did for a major Russian motion picture which was released in 2019.  It's called Salvation Union, and it's a historical drama about the 1825 Decembrist Revolt, in which a group of army officers challenged the assumption to the throne of Tsar Nicholas I.  The key scene battle scene filmed in the video was shot outside of Moscow.

Prepare to be amazed by this stunning first person view (FPV) drone video from contributor and FPV pilot EPIFANOVKZ.  He filmed a woman in a bright, billowing red dress skiing down a mountain in the Almaty Mountains of Kazakhstan in Central Asia.  The mountains lie to the south of Almaty, Kazakhstan's largest city and erstwhile capital, along the border with fellow Central Asian republic Kyrgyzstan.  They are part of the Tian Shan range, home to some of the world's tallest peaks. This video was picked for the FPV PIlots to Watch list.  

Multiple Drone Video of the Week Winner brings us another stunning drone video, this one from the Namib Desert of Southern Africa.  Shot with a Zenmuse X7 camera mounted to a DJI Inspire 2 drone, the video follows the path of a girl who is "lost" in the vastness of this giant coastal desert, which covers the entire Namibian coastline as well as parts of Angola to the north and South Africa to the south.  Formed an estimated 55-80 million years ago, the Namib is believed to be the oldest desert in the world.  

This video by Traveltoarmenia will give you a look at the natural and cultural beauty of Armenia.  Shot with a drone, the video shows a traditional dance being performed in the highlands of this Caucasus republic.  With the men in bright yellow shirts and the women wearing brilliant red dresses, the video will give you a sense of the unique culture of this ancient land which sits at the crossroads of Europe and Asia and which was the first country in the world to adopt Christianity.

Hohenzollern Castle sits on a mountaintop over the town of Bisingen, Germany. It is one of three castles built on the site, after the first two were destroyed by war, between 1846 and 1867. At one point, in 1945, is was home of the former Crown Prince Wilhelm of Germany. The castle houses historical artifacts of Prussian history, as well as other artifacts like letters from the American Revolutionary War between President George Washington and Baron von Steuben of the Hohenzollern line. See Hohenzollern Castle via drone in this video.

Burning Man is an annual multiday concert and personal discovery event held in the desert of Nevada in the western United States.  The event began as a modest affair in the mid-1980's in San Francisco, switching to a desert location the next decade.  The modern era Burning Man see tens of thousands of attendees, many of whom camp in the desert during the run of the event.  Contributor and pilot Memmi used a DJI Inspire 2 drone to fly over the Burning Man grounds, treating us to this amazing aerial video.  

If you want to see an example of the cinematic power of drones to create people-focused content in scenic environments, check out this drone video by OOO Photography.  He filmed a ballet dancer in a park in the mountains of northern Mexico.  The setting is the La Huasteca climbing park outside of Monterrey, in the state of Nueva Leon.  The most amazing footage captures the dancer on a small point at the edge of a rock ledge set against the backdrop of the magnificent Sierra Madre Mountains.

Filming human subjects with drones is surprisingly difficult, in part because it's difficult for people to stand out with any kind of distance.  That's one of the reasons why deserts, with their wide-open and typically monochrome spaces make the perfect backdrop for these types of videos.  To see what we're talking about, check out this fantastic piece from Sinbad the Aviator, who filmed some beautiful and colorfully dressed women in the desert of the United Arab Emirates; note the distance from which they can be recognized as humans.

Award-winning panvelvet brings us this fantastic drone video from the top of one of the world's highest skyscrapers.  Located in the city of Shenzen in the southern state of Guangdong, 115 story Ping An Center stands 555 meters at the roof (just over 1.8k ft.).  At the time of its completion in 2017, it was China's second-tallest building and the fourth-tallest in the world.  The video features jaw-dropping shots of some very brave individuals standing at the tower's apex.  Shenzen is China's fourth-largest city as of 2022.  

Forget Burning Man (the legendary music festival held in the desert of Nevada in the USA), how about the Burning Hand? Yes, you heard that right.  Contributor and drone pilot Dice Travels was in Kenya and was given the opportunity to film a truly epic New Years' Eve celebration in this African country.  As the title suggests, the highlight of this particular blowout was a giant hand made of straw which was set afire in a lake, music and lights a-blazing.  It's a truly unbelievable sight, especially when seen via a bird's eye view.  

In this epic drone video by contributor and pilot Damardhaval, you'll get an amazing bird's eye view of thousands of people participating in an Indian folk dance.  It's part of the United Way Garba Celebration at Vadodara, Gujarat, the westernmost state of India.  The occasion is Navratri, a nine-day Hindu festival that occurs in September/October every year.  In other parts of India, it is celebrated at different times of the year and in some cases with greater than annual frequency.  

Muhamad AbuShakra is one of the top content creators in the AirVuz community, with multiple Drone Video of the Week wins to his name.  His drone videos from the Alps Mountains of Europe feature some of the best aerial footage ever captured from this spectacular alpine region.  All good reasons for checking out this amazing video, which was created to help one of his friends plan a honeymoon in the mountains.  The video features spectacular aerial footage from Germany, Austria, Italy, and Switzerland.

Cinewhoop style quads are taking first person view (FPV) drones into the heart of mainstream media.  To see what we mean, check out this fantastic piece by top AirVuz contributor and FPV pilot Xizmo Media.  He worked with ABC TV's Good Morning America to create a unique "opener" for a segment on the 2021 Oscar Awards.  Watch how the drone flies through the control room and on to the set of the popular show, which is filmed in New York's Times Square.  This video was picked for the FPV Pilots to Watch list in May, 2021.

We have to admit, this one was a first of its kind for us at AirVuz. AirVuz contributor and first person view (FPV) pilot Wacken flew his HD, micro drone through a strip club in Nantes, France, getting up close and personal with several of the performers. The cinematic Shedrone Squirt V2 was probably the perfect choice for this type of flying, considering its size and camera.  For his creativity in the use of emerging "cinewhoop" technology, our contributor was awarded a spot on the FPV Pilots to Watch list in May, 2019.

If you're familiar with the aerial cinematography work of top AirVuz contributor freeway prod, you know there are no limits to what they will drone! One of the top commercial drone piloting companies in France, they work all over the world, taking on highly demanding jobs for clients like movie producers and sporting event organizers.  In this exciting drone reel, they show off some of their best footage captured from high-profile events ranging from the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii to Fashion Week in Paris, France. 

AirVuz contributor and Instagram phenom LucasPinhel has earned a worldwide social media following from his travel Vlogs that artfully combine drone footage and people.  In this video you can join him to fly the skies of two Mexican vacation destinations, Cancun and Tulum. Both lie on Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula on the Caribbean Sea.  These drone shots will let you join him and his friends as they make the most of their trip living in swimsuits in the sunshine and celebrating life along the beautiful coastline!

The Indonesian island and province of Bali is one of the most famous retreat destinations in the world. Whether you’re heading there for rest and relaxation, a spiritual or meditative retreat, or for an adventurous vacation, it’s the spot to go. Accomplished pilot and Drone Video Awards Nominee jantrnkaproductions headed to Indonesia’s most famous island recently to film a campaign for the activewear company, STRONGER where they captured a yogi as she performed her impressive poses. 

In this video from the Bahamas, AirVūz Cinematographer Jay Christensen partnered with Sports Illustrated model Haley Kalil, and models Catalina Freer and Courtney Byrd to create this aerial film emphasizing the new, dynamic angles those in the fashion industry can expect with the advent of filming with drones.  Prepare to be amazed by the bird's eye views of these beauties frolicking in the warm waters of this archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean, which cosists of over 700 individual islands.

On this episode of The Drone Dish, host Tyler talks with Chris Castor (AirVūz Profile: chrisxgxc), a visual artist turned filmmaker from whose breakthrough video "Cardboard Cadet" won the 2017 Drone Video of the Year in the "Originality" category.  Chris's videos (including his more recent video "The Last Dronie", which was nominated as a Finalist in the Dronie category for the second annual DVA's) are all shot against the backdrop of the Great Plains in his native Oklahoma.