<p>Here's a guy hanging a 360 camera from a Mavic air 2. He had some issues getting the drone to land or automatically landing during flight but his rig might work for your needs</p>
<p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vo4yg8lsHQw" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vo4yg8lsHQw</a></p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-03-11T00:55:28.850Z
What are some aspects of the Mavic air 2 that make it a good option? Considering that the OP asks for a cheap and durable drone, do the benefits of the Air 2 outweigh its relatively high price?
Jacob B
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-12-12T22:58:12.237Z
A used DJI Phantom 3 pro would be a good fit since these are no longer made and relatively cheap.  This model includes return to home and some optical avoidance.  The drone has a good surface area for camera attachment and landing gear to attach counterweights if needed.
GBG
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-03-10T19:59:46.137Z
2022-03-10T19:59:46.137Z
avianate
<p>Can someone please recommend a drone I could use for amateur 360 HDR sky photography in the USA? I hope recommendation requests like this are on-topic here.</p>
<p>Requirements:</p>
<ul>
<li>I will be mounting a Ricoh Theta Z1 360 panorama camera weighing less than 200 grams on top of the drone.</li>
<li>The camera will be atop a 0.5 meter mast above the drone, so the center of mass will be high (This is so the drone itself will occupy a relatively small region of the panorama image)</li>
<li>The drone must be able to hold a moderately steady position for about a minute while acquiring the multiple images needed to construct a high dynamic range sky image (True HDR, not just tone mapped).</li>
<li>The altitude during image acquisition will be roughly 30 meters, to be above nearby trees, power lines, and buildings; so distant sky, clouds, sun, and mountains are the main focus of composition.</li>
<li>I'm technically skilled, so I can do some assembly and simple electronic work. But I don't want to make a PhD thesis out of this.</li>
</ul>
<p>Optional:</p>
<ul>
<li>The drone should be constructed of narrow struts, so the drone itself occupies as little of the panorama image as possible.</li>
<li>The drone should be paintable, so I can use color to help edit out the drone image in postprocessing.</li>
<li>I am a novice pilot; so I also want a recommendation for a cheap durable drone I can use to develop piloting skills before operating my real drone.</li>
<li>It would be nice to have some way to alternately mount my camera 0.5 meters <em>below</em> the drone, for landscape images, but while also protecting my $1000 camera during landing and emergencies. Remember that this camera takes an image in every direction at once, so surrounding the camera with a cage or landing gear is not an option.</li>
</ul>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-03-10T01:24:13.053Z
This sounds difficult. If you didn't have to have a perfectly spherical sky, I'd say just use an Air 2S. Having a mass half a meter above the drone is going to adversely affect the stability.
avianate
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-03-10T16:02:58.043Z
@Nate Graham Maybe I could put a counterweight below to keep the center of mass in the center of the drone. I could mount my camera on top, and use the on-board camera, pointed down, for optical feedback stabilization. Please consider posting an answer describing the positive qualities of the Air 2S.
Christopher Bruns
CC BY-SA 4.0
2023-05-31T20:38:54.597Z
What is the budget of this drone?
Simon Fox
<recommendations>
Recommended drone for 360 HDR sky photography?
Christopher Bruns
# Recommended drone for 360 HDR sky photography?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2021-03-05)

Can someone please recommend a drone I could use for amateur 360 HDR sky photography in the USA? I hope recommendation requests like this are on-topic here.

Requirements:

* I will be mounting a Ricoh Theta Z1 360 panorama camera weighing less than 200 grams on top of the drone.
* The camera will be atop a 0.5 meter mast above the drone, so the center of mass will be high (This is so the drone itself will occupy a relatively small region of the panorama image)
* The drone must be able to hold a moderately steady position for about a minute while acquiring the multiple images needed to construct a high dynamic range sky image (True HDR, not just tone mapped).
* The altitude during image acquisition will be roughly 30 meters, to be above nearby trees, power lines, and buildings; so distant sky, clouds, sun, and mountains are the main focus of composition.
* I'm technically skilled, so I can do some assembly and simple electronic work. But I don't want to make a PhD thesis out of this.

Optional:

* The drone should be constructed of narrow struts, so the drone itself occupies as little of the panorama image as possible.
* The drone should be paintable, so I can use color to help edit out the drone image in postprocessing.
* I am a novice pilot; so I also want a recommendation for a cheap durable drone I can use to develop piloting skills before operating my real drone.
* It would be nice to have some way to alternately mount my camera 0.5 meters *below* the drone, for landscape images, but while also protecting my $1000 camera during landing and emergencies. Remember that this camera takes an image in every direction at once, so surrounding the camera with a cage or landing gear is not an option.

**Tags:** recommendations
> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: This sounds difficult. If you didn't have to have a perfectly spherical sky, I'd say just use an Air 2S. Having a mass half a meter above the drone is going to adversely affect the stability.  
> **username_0**: @Nate Graham Maybe I could put a counterweight below to keep the center of mass in the center of the drone. I could mount my camera on top, and use the on-board camera, pointed down, for optical feedback stabilization. Please consider posting an answer describing the positive qualities of the Air 2S.  
> **username_2**: What is the budget of this drone?  

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2022-03-10. Score: 0

Here's a guy hanging a 360 camera from a Mavic air 2. He had some issues getting the drone to land or automatically landing during flight but his rig might work for your needs

<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vo4yg8lsHQw>

> **Comments:**
> **username_3**: What are some aspects of the Mavic air 2 that make it a good option? Considering that the OP asks for a cheap and durable drone, do the benefits of the Air 2 outweigh its relatively high price?  
> **username_4**: A used DJI Phantom 3 pro would be a good fit since these are no longer made and relatively cheap.  This model includes return to home and some optical avoidance.  The drone has a good surface area for camera attachment and landing gear to attach counterweights if needed.  

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