A drone while camping

Some folks equate the desire to be alone to a "right" to privacy.

With photography and "right to privacy", the general rule is if you are viewable by others who are not tresspassing on private property or having to go to unreasonable lengths, then you cannot expect privacy.

If you are outside of your RV in a campsite with a road running 5ft away and no fencing or foliage blocking the view from the road, then you have no expectation of privacy. Anyone can legally stand in the road and take photos of you sitting by your campfire. They can't legally takes photos of you through the windows of your RV if you are inside. They can legally take photos of you washing your car in your driveway if they can do so from the sidewalk/road. They cannot take photos of you sunbathing in your backyard by shooting through a knothole in the fence or climbing a tree.

Even if the above photos showed detail, as long as they are not taking photos of people who are in buildings/RVs or behind fences, there is nothing illegal about it.

Your "right to privacy" only exists if you are actually in a place that has a reasonable expectation of privacy.

And, as long as the person is unidentifiable in the photo, there is nothing that says the photographer cannot profit from said photo - identifiable means that someone can look at the photo and identify you without any background information (not "I was in that campground on the day he shot the photo and if you look closely you can see my necklace"). If the person is identifiable, the photographer can take the photos but cannot profit from them - that includes entering them in contests - without a written consent from the person in the photograph.

MrWizard wrote:
Some beautiful pictures
And the only thing discernable about campgrounds, was the layout of the campsites and some people has big tt/5v with multiple slides
Could not tell brand or color or see people

But, those are the photos he chose to exhibit. The problem could arise with ones that are not shown publicly. Just because they aren't shown online doesn't mean there aren't some that shouldn't have been taken in the first place. People should have the right to privacy. And as has been mentioned if the drones are high enough you don't know they are there, which again does not negate a person's right to privacy. I, personally, don't really care that much, but I can certainly understand the issue.

Some beautiful pictures
And the only thing discernable about campgrounds, was the layout of the campsites and some people has big tt/5v with multiple slides
Could not tell brand or color or see people

fly-swatter wrote:
If I see one hovering over my campsite I'm firing away with my slingshot. I can't tell if it's a high end unit scoping out the site or some kid playing around.

Are you prepared to pay the medical bills for the kid you hit 1/4 mile away when your shot comes down? Or more likely the window you break on the RV across the campground?

In my case, I've just recently purchased a relatively inexpensive unit - I'm still awaiting delivery. What am I going to do with it? Well, it will come in handy to inspect the solar panels on the roof of my house - I'd rather not climb up there to do it! I'll use it to inspect the roof of my RV when needed. I'll use it for landscape photography where it's legal. Many uses for any technology.

I laugh at those who worry about privacy: the exact same argument was heard years ago when cameras were first built into cell phones, and look at us now! Do you grab every cell phone that some stranger is holding up while they walk past you on the street? As for something flying over your location - do you worry about all those general aviation planes that constantly fly over? Chances are they are carrying a passenger with a whole lot better camera equipment than any hobby drone is carrying...

OP here. Sorry to open such a can of worms!
But first off to those concerned that I would NOT be "taking videos of fellow campers". I want to get away from people! You have no concept of the purpose I said I wanted a drone for. I want to view the surrounding areas to find out if I want to explore more on foot, canoe or by vehicle. My intent is NOT to buzz the campgrounds, peer into windows nor lurk over head of anyone. I am interested the surrounding area.
To all the positive replies, I thank you. Gained a lot of useful info. But for now I'll have to wait and see.

thanks again to all those with a positive input.

I have a DJI Mavic Pro and fly it in legal situations which include private campgrounds. The only thing I use it for in campgrounds however is checking the top of my trailer to see if I need to hire someone to clean it off before closing the slides. I don't climb ladders any more. I have seen drones flying in NM State Parks but I have not done that yet. I don't spy on anyone but I do enjoy taking scenic photos like some of those others have posted.

azdryheat wrote:
Well, here comes another 15 page thread. Close it now.

Don't like the thread? Simply don't read it, rather than try to force your views on others. Choose the Hide option and never be bothered with it again.

Thanks to both of you!

I do photography, so am always looking at new choices.

I'll start reading up more and see if it's something I can add to my gear. I do like the wide angle aerial views - I can go pretty wide with my current gear, but aerial shots are not that easy... ;)

toedtoes wrote:
Thank you to those who identified your specific drones. I'm not the OP but was looking forward to hearing about the actual equipment and opinions on quality rather than the macho "shoot it down" comments.

It's worse than the generator threads. I think it's understood that some people don't like drones when camping. But that doesn't mean the subject of drones must be derailed like this. Generator and scare light threads aren't derailed to this extent.

Let's have a discussion on the different drones and how well they perform.

Toes,,, they are like everything, you mostly get what you pay for.
Basics,,,
Smaller and lighter tend to have less stability in any breeze.Some new high end products can buck that trend, Mavic as an example.
Pixel count on camera is listed for all, but quality of mount is what makes a video. Smoothe video comes from a higher frame count and better mount.
Bigger drones are easier to see and allow you to see to control from longer distances.
Cheap drone to learn, spend more after you have learned the basics of flying one.
If you want to shoot landscape videos and pics like the ones posted on here, generally they will be DJI either Phantom or Mavic models. Or Yuneec either Q-500 or Typhoon,
I have never flown a DJI, but I have a few of the clones, and they dont compare to my Q-500.
The Mavic though is very stable for a small drone, easy to store and I have seen some great videos from them.
One poster on here frequently uses one for You tube videos, and has some beautiful footage. (user is FirstTracks)
On my Q-500, the control has its own video screen instead of using a cellphone. Pairing is seamless and no hassel. I basically turn on my controller, then my drone and 30-45 seconds later its ready to go.

Read a little and get familar with their abilities. The cameras can be quite good, but the controls on the units dont generally zoom like a cellphone, they are always locked to a wide angle so spying is not something you can do, unless your going to spy on someone from 12 feet away.