Julius Santos
Remote-controlled unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), commonly known as “drones”, are flying through skies around the world, delivering high-impact images (both still and motion) and increasingly enjoying usage by both professionals and hobbyists.
Approximately two years ago, some countries and regions – including the US – began imposing restrictions and bans on the use of drones, with reasons ranging from fears of surveillance and privacy violations to concerns about potential accidents.
In fact, the reception has been so mixed that some governments have had difficulties imposing a law to control the use of these “gadgets.”
Back in April 2013, the northwestern state of Idaho was one of the first states in the US to pass a law that drew little distinction between private citizens’ drones and law enforcement drones. Idaho State Senate Bill 1134 declares: “No person, entity or state agency shall use an unmanned aircraft system to photograph or otherwise record an individual, without such individual’s written consent, for the purpose of publishing or otherwise publicly disseminating such photograph or recording.”
But are these concerns really founded? Julius Santos, a passionate local hobbyist and one of the first people in Macau to own a drone, doesn’t believe so. He says most drones have a 28-millimeter [wide angle] lens.
“You have to be pretty close, really, to see anybody. It is really for aerial photography, mapping and other stuff,” Santos said.
“People who don’t understand it – of course they want it deeply regulated, which is normal in this world. They worry about privacy and many other things. But I can say that I never took a picture of any building where you can see people. You just can’t see people; it’s a wide angle lens, not a zoom lens.”
Santos, who works in the local hotel industry, thinks that there are no reasons for so much concern about flying safety. He says that the manufacturers have already considered this issue from the start and equipped the UAVs with technology that is capable of recognizing potentially dangerous situations.
“What’s interesting with these new drones is when you get within a certain distance of a plane, the drone comes back to you. It will not fly anymore; it just comes back, which I think is part of the technology. They have a kind of geomap that alerts you when you get close to a restricted area and if you insist, it just goes back to the base,” he told the Times.
According to Santos the beauty of flying drones is that “when you are up there, you see things from a different perspective I took pictures of things in Macau that I’ve never seen and people would have never seen before. I’ve made a little album on Facebook that has been shared over one thousand times by people that used to live in Macau and a lot of Macau people.”
For him, his hobby is “a way of relaxing” and unwinding after work. “I find it very relaxing. Some people go to the bar. I just take pictures. It’s therapeutic.”
Besides leisure, drones have proven useful in many fields and Santos highlights some relevant examples: “I think you can use it when there is a disaster, to fly over the area to see what’s going on […] Imagine that there is a fire on top of Coloane mountain. You are not going to climb up there to see what’s happening, so you can set a drone in about three minutes and fly it to see what would be the best approach to take. Besides that, it can map things. A lot of people use it in large farms, for instance, to check what’s going on or to look for lost cattle. Other uses include something that is quite useful in Macau – that is, to check on large construction sites in real time.”
In the hobbyist’s opinion, the call for more regulation is due to lack of public knowledge about UAVs.
“I think it’s mostly misunderstood. Of course there are some crazy people out there that push the drone to its limits. But in any industry (or activity sector) you always have people that push things to the limit. It is like allowing people to drive. Some will drive drunk, and others might speed. It’s a matter of being responsible and having good common sense, like, you don’t fly over a lot of people! But that would be the same as not driving fast when we have a lot of people in the middle of the road.”
“Unfortunately,” he continued, “we live in a world where there are people that are not of sane mind and body, so no matter how it is utilized [or potentially misused] you can’t ban [UAVs] for that. If a guy drives a car into a crowd, you can’t ban all the cars because of that. The issue is not with the motor transportation but the driver. I think you need to learn how to fly it so you can be responsible for it.”
André Branco
André Branco, creative director and CG artist of Crane Productions, uses drones professionally. “Every week we’re called out for something, whether it is for photography or video filming. One good shot from a drone can do all the work of one crew on the ground. A bird’s eye view creates wonderful imagery that we are not used to [seeing] from the ground.”
In his opinion, drones and “aerial shots” bring more interest to their work as “more clients are starting to call on us to create this sense of awe,” he said.
Some of the great advantages acknowledged by the company are “not only the replacement of helicopters – [UAVs] are easier, cheaper and more versatile” but also the fact that “we are showing the world and our environment in ways we’ve never seen before.”
Branco cited a recent documentary about George Chinnery, where drones helped to get what he calls the “money shots”. In the video production industry, drones often replace camera cranes because of their freedom of movement and comparatively low cost.
Regarding the current regulations and the possible implementation of further restrictions, Branco believes that “it’s important not to over-restrict [the gadgets] because drone filming offers unprecedented views that we couldn’t even get with helicopters.”
The producer thinks that the territory offers filmmakers “wonderful views, both day and night, of historic urban areas; as well as the modern views of the world-class resorts.”
However, he is not completely opposed to the idea of introducing a requirement for “licensed operators” with flying experience and awareness of safety needs and standards.
Nevertheless, Branco argues that major restrictions on the use of drones on the video production industry would only have a negative impact.
“Our best tourism imagery would be denied a chance to grow and develop in line with the rest of the world […] nowadays, a drone is as important as any other piece of equipment of a video production crew.”
The Times also spoke with Kevin On, associate director of communications for DJI in the APAC region. DJI is a global developer and manufacturer of camera technology and aerial robotics for recreational and commercial use. According to Oppenheimer’s February 2016 Drone Industry Report, it holds approximately 70 percent of the global UAV market.
“DJI was founded and is run by people with a passion for remote-controlled helicopters and experts in flight control technology and camera stabilization,” he says. Although sales figures are a “well-kept secret”, On says the company’s revenue has more than doubled from 2011 to 2015.
“Like smartphones, it is difficult to determine how the drone is being used, whether it’s for recreation, work or both. As an example, a customer could be using their drone to do aerial mapping for their construction business and for recreational purposes with family on the weekend,” On said, revealing that consumer products are still the most popular.
In terms of usage, he said people, businesses and organizations are mainly using drones for emergency response, mapping, inspection, agriculture, construction and broadcasting. However, the drones have many other uses, from firefighting to sports training.
On sees the future of UAV as dependent on the ways people start integrating the devices into their daily lives, and how companies find new ways to incorporate the products into their work.
Making drones user-friendly
Kevin On says drone technology is seeing new developments. “We are focused on improving things like battery life, smart features like collision avoidance and more accurate navigation, form factor (size and weight) and most importantly, making our technology easier for people to use,” he said.
‘Both the company and regulators seek the same thing – safer skies’
Safety is a “top priority” for the DJI. According to Kevin On, the company welcomes the introduction of new regulations, as “both the company and regulators seek the same thing – safer skies.”
To ensure that safety rules are not breached, DJI “has been doing its utmost to educate customers and operators through different channels, including a ‘New Pilot Experience’ program, online safety tutorials, and geo-fencing technology,” he added.
Speaking to the Times, the Office for Personal Data Protection (GPDP) said, “there is no specific law on the use of drones” relating to personal data protection.
However, under paragraph 2 of Article 3 of Law 8/2005, the ‘Data Protection Law’, the processing of personal data in drones is subject to this regulation, except when their use “falls within the course of a purely personal or household activity that is not intended for mass communication or dissemination.”
Euphemia Lam, a senior public relations officer from the Civil Aviation Authority (AACM), told the Times that the draft of a bill to revise the regulation on drone usage for aerial filming and photography is “going thorough the legislative process.”
The amendment that specifically aims to control the use of these equipment was reportedly submitted to the Chief Executive by the president of the AAMC, Simon Chan, earlier this year. There is still no precise date to discuss the amendment.
Details on the bill and which restrictions will be imposed have yet to be released. Chan said previously that it would “aim to strike a balance between public safety and the needs of drone users.”
Until then, local UAVs will just have to wait for bluer skies in which to explore their full range of possibilities.
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