Lessons Learned While Filming Cinewhoop Videos

Cinewhoop videos have become popular on social media.  The GoPro strapped to a tiny drone captures stunning fly through videos of unusual locations.

Cinewhoop videos are a type of aerial videography that involves capturing footage with small, lightweight drones equipped with high-definition cameras.  Typically drone pilots strap very lightweight cameras to their carbon fiber drone frames.  These drones, also known as cinewhoops, are designed to be agile and capable of flying in tight spaces, making them ideal for capturing cinematic footage in a variety of settings.

Cinewhoop drones open up an entire market of business for capable and experienced drone pilots.   Cinewhoop drones actually drove me (Paul) to be more inspired to fly again.  Cinewhoop is challenging, and the market opportunities for drone pilots are all about flying through buildings, small holes and obstacles.  You literally start to look at the world in a completely different light.  You begin to visualize flight paths through businesses, moving objects and so much more. The amount of lessons you’ll learn from taking on Cinewhoop will challenge your drone flight skills in a whole new manner.  I seriously recommend giving a try.

The market opportunities for drone pilots are significant.  One company “Indoor Drone Tours,” has really taken off, as we can see on instagram over the past few years. The have made an entire business of just flying tours through buildings.

Part of Drone U, is that we teach from experience. So we wanted to take on a Cinewhoop Class for students.  We had been getting requests for fly-through tour videos since 2020 during the pandemic.   In 2022, we decided to work with the Albuquerque Isotopes, we ended up making a fly through tour video for the Baseball Team.   Check out that video here:

Want to get a run down of what these fly through tours typically encompass, check out this guide.

With Cinewhoop being more challenging, these drone videos are bringing in the big dollars.  Drone pilots are forced to fly in tight spaces and showcase views we’ve never conceived before. Half the time, these videos are shot inside, so they’re not subject to FAA airspace laws.  Fly through tour videos typically include one long take of multiple scenes going on in chronological order.  Due to the complex nature of these videos, they typically require complex planning and a highly skilled drone pilot.

See how we made the isotopes video here:

Typically Cinewhoop drones have a few common aircraft characteristics that define the term cinewhoop.  Here are some of the lessons learned since we started gaining experience with cinewhoop in 2019.

1. Enclosed Props or Enclosed Drone: Typically all cinewhoops have prop guards or cages to inhibit any object from stopping a propeller from spinning. Often times cinewhoops will have ducts to increase propeller efficiency. Albiet pilots who enjoy flying cinewhoop indoors and outdoors typically leave the ducts out of the drone.
2. Typically have small form factor camera mounted to the front of the aircraft. Popular Options Include:
   1. GoPro, (Like GP11 or Small Light Weight Option “Hero Black Mini” 
   2. Sony RXO (Ultra High Speed Shooting)
   3. Wave
   4. Nameless RC Ultra LightWeight Cameras.
3. Fully Customizable Aircraft with limitless options on batteries, propulsion and flight controllers.
4. Typically flown FPV style, but have witnessed many cinewhoop pilots fly both line of sight style and FPV, which most FPV racers can’t do.
5. Want to fly slower, and smoother, reduce the battery size.

Even recently DJI launched their first “RTF,” orready to fly Cinewhoop drone.  DJI’s Avata drone offers drone pilots an easy “barrier to entry,” into the cinewhoop world.  Typically Cinewhoop drones are custom build aircraft.  While there are smaller manufacturers like iFlight and Catalyst Machine Works, cinewhoop drones haven’t yet gone mainstream. Until now.

One lesson we learned in our experience flying cinewhoops… don’t try to turn the DJI FPV drone into a cinewhoop, its just too big. (see picture)

Drones that were once full customizable are being seen in more frequent numbers.  Some of the lessons we have learned is that mass manufactured cinewhoop drones will not perform like the traditional Cinewhoop drones.  Drones like the Avata allow pilots to quickly get the hang of flying cinewhoop.  Yet the performance is extremely limited.

Lesson learned when flying cinewhoop: the size of the battery impacts performance.  Ie. We learned to fly cinewhoops with 6s batteries outside, while we would typically fly a 4s battery inside for more manageable perforamance.

Filming cinewhoop videos can be a rewarding and challenging experience, and there are several lessons that can be learned through the process. Here are a few of the most important ones:

1. Practice makes perfect: As with any skill, the more you practice filming cinewhoop videos, the better you will become. It takes time to master the art of flying a cinewhoop and framing the perfect shot.
2. Pay attention to the weather: Weather can have a significant impact on the quality of your footage. Wind, rain, and fog can all make it more difficult to fly and capture stable footage. Wind will especially affect cinewhoop drones more than other drones because there is no sensor assist, like a DJI Avata drone.
3. Plan ahead: Before you start filming, it’s important to have a clear idea of what you want to capture and how you want to do it. This means scouting out locations, rehearsing your flight plan, and making sure you have all the necessary equipment and people.  Ensure that each scene tells a story throughout the tour video.
4. Stay safe: Safety should always be your top priority when filming cinewhoop videos. This means following all relevant regulations and guidelines, as well as being aware of your surroundings and the potential risks involved in flying a drone.
5. Right Batteries: We found that using higher voltage batteries increased performance and thrust.  Try different batteries and how that effects the performance and endurance of the flight.
6. Prop Size: Try different types of propellers with your cinewhoop, test tri-props vs quad props. try props with a higher pitch on the blades if you’re flying at high altitude.
7. Have fun: Ultimately, the most important lesson to remember when filming cinewhoop videos is to have fun. Whether you’re a seasoned pro or just starting out, the process of creating cinematic footage with a cinewhoop can be a rewarding and enjoyable experience.
8. Overall don’t be afraid to try out different cinewhoop drones, the experience they have can be wildly different.
9. Lastly, having your friends try the googles while you’re flying is a blast and makes them sometimes sick to their stomach.

In conclusion, filming cinewhoop videos can be a challenging but rewarding experience. By practicing, paying attention to the weather, planning ahead, staying safe, and having fun, you can create high-quality, cinematic footage that showcases your skills and creativity as a drone pilot.

We ended up loving the Cinewhoop Pre-Build options from iFlight.  There are many awesome manufactuers.  We loved the iFlight Bumblebee v2 and v3 with the DJI Air unit.

Last lesson learned while flying cinewhoop, don’t be afraid to share with your friends.  If you have a DJI smart controller, you can show your friends what you’re watching as you fly. Download the FPV app on your smart remote and simply plug in the goggles (USBC) to the USB plug on the remote to share the viewing experience.