Te Manatu Park - Miko, Momo and the HoverAir X1 flying camera

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Here's an afternoon stroll around the park with Miko and Momo the labradors filmed on the HoverAir X1 flying camera. I hope you find it relaxing.

This is a three-jobs-at-once situation. I get to exercise myself, walk the dogs and try out the new drone's various features. I plan to take this drone to HiveFest, so it'll be good to set a small challenge to familiarise myself with it first.

Miko thinks that all drones are his personal toys, and he knocked this one out of the sky a couple of times. That was useful because I got to see how the drone reacted. I was impressed! This little drone detected the knock, regained control and then landed itself. It has good crash recovery and response, lightweight and enclosed propellers. Wow, the HoverAir X1 is a super safe little guy, so I had much more confidence to fly it around people at HiveFest.

The image quality is also decent, if somewhat over-saturated. There is too much contrast when flying into the sunlight. The drone was also surprisingly stable around slight breezes - the footage is relatively smooth.
Miko eventually calms down and lets the drone follow. He's pretty good when he's on a lead by himself, but Momo had never been lead trained, so she runs about sniffing things. When the dogs are on a Y-lead, Momo tends to drag Miko about, but it's easier walking them this way because they stop each other from straying too much.

My shoulder bag is a British Ministry of Defense Gas Mask Bag in MTP. This bag and the earlier C95 DPM gas-mask bags are great for electronic gear because they're a little padded, rugged, and protect against the elements. I have this bag slung on a modified shotgun sling to have a wider strap, and it sits where it feels comfortable. I'm wearing a DPM-patterned cool shirt with an MKM Originals Tasman Vest. The cool shirt covers my arms from the sun and provides cooling, while the vest prevents me from getting too cold. It worked, but I wouldn't say I liked the combo much compared to wearing a merino t-shirt. The vest is terrific - they also have it in jersey and hoodie form. It's just so warm, but being wool, it's not too warm.

The walk around the park is about 1 kilometre. When I have time and energy, I walk around a few times.

I completed this video before HiveFest but didn't upload it. I did take the HoverAir X1 to Mexico and shot more footage there. I'll upload some later.

Until next time.

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