Emily and I have been really enjoying our time on the coast. It’s closer for her to get to work and it’s a photographer’s dream for me. Today I wanted really test out my new DJI Mavic Pro 2 on the coast of Oregon so I headed with Leo down to Ecola State Park to do some flying hoping that mid-week it wouldn’t be too busy. Leo and I had a wonderful afternoon hiking from Indian Beach up to “Hiker’s Camp” along the Tillamook Head trail. Along the way I found a perfect little spot along the cliff edge to take off from to check out the Tillamook Lighthouse in the far distance. The lighthouse was a good distance off shore but I was a little surprised when I got out there to photograph it that it was nearly 2 miles away!
The Mavic Pro 2 had a clear line of site to me the entire way and the streaming video feed back to my controller and iPhone was perfect. In sport mode by the time I got out to the Lighthouse I was down to about 70% battery so I did a couple big orbits until I was down to just under 50% battery and decided to head back. On the way back I noticed I was going a little bit slower and realized there was an offshore wind! I had seen so many YouTube videos of pilots not thinking about this and losing their drones into the water because they weren’t able to fight the wind back with enough battery power! Thankfully I was able to make it back safely to me, throw in a new battery and head back out for a few more photos and fly-overs, this time returning with a little extra battery just in case the winds picked up.
The history of the lighthouse is truly fascinating with it being built in the late 1800’s and then passing through many hands, even becoming a place where people sent their loved one’s ashes! It now looks like a post apocalyptic sea lion city. Sea lions were everywhere heading up and down the steps and in and out of the main building as if they were conducting business!
Enjoy this fun little video I put together and check out the gallery of photos below.
Gallery & Prints Here
One thought on “Tillamook Head Lighthouse”
I am enjoying your craft, Good Sir. Initially I found you at the Rowena Crest viewpoint, and now- I’m enamoured with the stuff you do. This Tillamook Lighthouse reminds me of this very cool video of Eddie Vedder – some artist like you filmed him strumming…as the drone is flying over a little island surrounded by Whales as he strums an excellent and passionate ukalele. Keep on shooting and your writing is really funny, Sir! Michele
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