Plans are already in the making for several trips this season, and I will be making a much better attempt at blogging more frequently this season. I have been in contact with the great folks at Rhode Island Canoe and Kayak Association about leading some flat water trips this season with their group. After speaking to the group this past fall about kayaking videography and the use of drones for video, the connections I made have are going to lead to some trips with some great company for 2018 and beyond.
This season I hope to be sporting some new gear with plans I have for new paddles and maybe some new video gear for the kayak itself. I have some wild plans in my head and we will see how far I can get with them this season. With the changes I have planned, I hope it will bring my videos to a whole new level and bring in many more possibilities.
After a long off season from paddling, I had the chance to get more time in flying the drone, and have been trying to refine my skills to smooth out the drone video and create more "professional" looking shots. Practice makes perfect with this type of gear. It's always a logistical and psychological challenge mixing such an expensive piece of equipment with the deep depths of a huge lake, or the fast moving current of a full river. These things are tough to plan flight around but control and confidence can go a long way with making these flights less challenging. Almost exactly a year ago, I put together my Assonet River video that I shot completely with the Mavic. This video has gained in views quite a bit this season, but I remember it being one of the most stressful videos I made, because of how new I was to flying, and how scared I was to lose my gear. I'll post that video below. I am hoping that with the practice I have had over the past year, I can produce something more impressive this year.
Hopefully there are some of you out there in the endless world of the internet who still pop in here on occasion to read through my poorly typed, grammatical error filled ramblings about my paddling trips. You're in for some great trips this season and I personally can not wait for it to begin!
Keep paddling!