Types of Drones and How to Fly Them As a Beginner

Types of Drones and How to Fly Them As a Beginner

Drones are one of the most exciting innovations that have taken photography and videography to another level. They are an incredible tool in filmmaking and vlogging. You can get astounding aerial views and shots using them. They are easy and convenient to use, and anyone can learn to fly a drone with some practice.

Types of Drones

These days it is easier to find drones suitable for you within your budget range. Here's a look at some popular types of drones available in the market.

Single-Rotor Drones

This is one of the most basic drones employing a single rotor, usually beside the tail unit. It is ideal for longer flights and can generate more thrust efficiently than most multi-rotor drones. However, they are costlier than them due to the design. These drones are difficult to fly, as keeping them stable is not easy.

Multi-Rotor Drones

Multi-rotor drones have several rotors situated at strategic points to keep them hovering and maintain balance. This makes it easier to fly. But they don't last for longer flights due to multiple rotors. More rotors mean less time they would be in the air.

Fixed-Wing Drones

These are like controllable airplanes featuring a fixed-wing style and no rotor. Instead of the rotors, the wings on the design provide them a vertical lift. This means they only require energy to move forward.

These are ideal for long-range flying and can be gas-powered. They can remain in the air for almost 16 hours, but they can't hover like rotor drones. It's also difficult to land them as they don't have a rotor.

Fixed-Wing Hybrid Drones

These types of drones are a mix of fixed-wing and rotor-based drones. That is why it is called the hybrid drone. It has a fixed wind design with a couple of rotors attached at the end of the wings. These are not as popular as single-rotor, multi-rotor, or fixed-wing drones and are less available.

Tips to Fly a Drone as a Beginner

A drone may seem like toys, but if you don't know how to fly them, they can cause damage to the property and anyone coming in contact with it. So, it would help if you read in-depth guides about how to learn to fly a drone like this one from UAV Adviser.

Find An Open Area for Practice

Before you decide to learn to fly a drone, you must keep in mind a place for practicing. The location you chose should be open ground. The area should have no obstruction like walls, trees, or buildings nearby as you might end up crashing your drone into them.  Also, it's essential to ensure that you are not flying your drone in a permitted area. Some areas have drone flying restrictions for security purposes.

Positioning The Drone

Now, when you have sorted the place, find a suitable spot for take-off for your drone. Make sure you position the drone according to the instruction manual. The ideal position is placing it in front of you on a flat surface with your drone facing the same direction.

Connect the Transmitter to Your Drone

Sequencing is another thing that you'll need to understand before take-off. First, push the throttle way down, turn on the transmitter, and finally connect the drone's battery. You'll have to follow this sequence before taking off.

After landing, you have to follow another sequence, which is the reverse order of what you followed for the take-off: disconnect the drone's battery and turn off the transmitter.

Practice Take-Off and Landing Your Drone

Once you have prepared for take-off, you may slowly push the throttle(left stick) upwards to see your drone lift off. Keep it in place without moving to the sides or forward using the roll and pitch commands (right stick).

If you see your drone a few feet above the ground, you can then try to land it. Try to keep it steady and ensure a smooth landing by slowly pushing the throttle down until your drone reaches the same spot from where you launched it.

Practice Hovering

The next step is to practice hovering. Let your drone fly a few feet above the ground and keep it as steady as you can.  For this, you will require a lot of concentration, but once you have done it a few times, it may not be as tedious.

Keep practicing as it will improve your flying skills.  You have to ensure that you have mastered the basics of flying like take off, landing, balancing, and hovering before moving to other techniques.

Practice Rotating

Rotating is another thing you will need to learn. But for that, first, get comfortable with maneuvering the left stick's yaw control. Launch the drone, let it hover, and then slowly push the left stick left or right until your drone rotates and faces you. You will have to pay attention to drone orientation when practicing it and know its front and back.

Once you have learned all the basic techniques involved in drones flying and are familiarized with the controls, it's time to use all the techniques together to fly your drone slowly. But be careful about not damaging your drone while doing so.