Drone photography

QI have been hankering after a drone for a while now, but have no idea where to start. It seems that from less than £100 they include cameras, while others enable you to attach a GoPro, and I have a GoPro Hero7. Do you have any tips please? Tony Pardew

AYou can divide the drone market into two: for the fun of flying or for video and photography. Fun flying still needs a camera for a so- called first person view (FPV) live video feed in the direction the drone is flying. However, video quality is not that great, especially in the cheaper models.

Ideally, you need a drone that either has an integrated gimbal stabiliser or enough lift capacity to have one attached, along with a camera. This would be a potential avenue for using your GoPro. Some drones come with a GoPro-ready gimbal. However, you should also seriously consider a drone with an integrated camera and gimbal. This integration often means the smartphone app you’d be using to control the drone also does a great job of controlling the camera.

The drone and integrated camera package is likely to be more compact and lightweight, meaning you are more likely to bring the drone with you and actually use it. A good starter drone would be, for example, a DJI Spark. It’s small, has a reasonable flying time of about 12 minutes per battery charge and the camera is not bad at all. The new Parrot Anafi also looks good. Bear in mind you will now have to register your drone, since new legislation has come into force.