A photographer named Jason Lam has created the SkyShutter Aericam, a Erector Set-like remote control helicopter that you can mount a digital SLR to in order to film aerial shots easily and cheaply.
It’s probably not the safest way to get your best shot, but it is a huge money-saver in terms of hiring a full crew. The rig is about 30 pounds and can carry a payload/camera up to 7 pounds. The entire camera and helicopter require two people to control — one to steer the helicopter and the other to control the movement and direction of the camera. A kit costs $9000 and a completely assembled version costs $12,000.
If you want to check out some sample shots from this setup, watch the video below. Otherwise, enjoy the nice looking photos after the video.
Vincent Laforet released the short film he shot using the Canon 5D Mark II this past Monday and already he is getting a lot of skepticism about whether or not the entire thing was shot with the 5D. This skepticism is just a testament as to how incredible the video quality is from this dSLR. It truly is HD-quality in every sense of the word and people just can’t seem to believe it!
