7am walk up Moel Famau with the kids to have breakfast. It was a beautiful morning on a day the wind was zero and the temperature later that day hit 28c/82f.
Moel Famau is the highest hill in the Clwydian Range and the highest point (county top) of the county of Flintshire in Wales (both the historic county and the current council area). It lies on the boundary between Denbighshire and Flintshire. The hill, which also gives its name to the Moel Famau country park, has been classed as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty since 1985. It is also surrounded by several well-preserved Iron Age hill forts. It is not, as many people think, the highest peak in North-East Wales; this honour goes to Cadair Berwyn. It is also the third-highest peak in the extended AONB of The Clwydian Range and Dee Valley.
A quick flight over the entrance to the Manchester Ship Canal at Eastham, Wirral.
The Manchester Ship Canal is a 36-mile-long (58 km) inland waterway in the North West of England linking Manchester to the Irish Sea. Starting at the Mersey Estuary near Liverpool, it generally follows the original routes of the rivers Mersey and Irwell through the historic counties of Cheshire and Lancashire. Several sets of locks lift vessels about 60 feet (18 m) to the canal’s terminus in Manchester. Landmarks along its route include the Barton Swing Aqueduct, the world’s only swing aqueduct, and Trafford Park, the world’s first planned industrial estate and still the largest in Europe.
Had the pleasure of visiting the World Heritage Site of Ironbridge last week, what a beautiful place.
The wind was not on my side for getting some video of the birth place of the industrial revolution; however I did get a few shots off and pulled together my first panoramic.
Ironbridge
The panoramic is made up of 3 photos taken from above the river with my DJI Mavic Mini and then stitched together with Affinity Photo then some colour editing with Snapseed.
Quick flight over Thor’s Rock (Thor’s Stone) in Thurstaton Common, Wirral today.
Thor’s Rock – Thurstaton Common, Wirral
I was out with the family so not loads of time to get lots of footage in; but this is a great place for flighting your Drone with views across the river into Wales.
Thurstaston Hill is the location of Thor’s Stone, a large sandstone outcrop and a place of romantic legend. In the 19th century it was supposed that early Viking settlers may have held religious ceremonies here. A visit to the site by members of the British Archaeological Association in 1888 heard an account by Rev. A. E. P. Gray, rector of Wallasey, that the ‘Thor Stone’ was also known in the locality as ‘Fair Maiden’s Hall’ and that children were “in the habit of coming once a year to dance around the stone”. This part of Wirral was certainly part of a Norse colony centred on Thingwall in the 10th and 11th centuries. However, geologists and historians now think that the rock is a natural formation similar to a tor, arising from periglacial weathering of the sandstone, which was later exploited by quarrymen in the 18th and 19th centuries.
It may have looked like a beautiful day but the wind was deceptive today and the bird was not100% stable in the air. This was my first flight using my new ND filers but no color correction has been used.
St Mary Church, Eastham
A place of worship has been here since before the time of the Domesday Book, which mentions a priest at Eastham. The present church contains architecture from many periods, although a major restoration by David Walker took place between 1876 and 1880.
Some of the masonry in the north wall dates from the 12th century. The nave dates mainly from the 13th century, the tower originated in the 14th century, and the aisles in the 15th century. The south porch dates from the 16th century. The tower was rebuilt in 1752, and the chancel was restored in 1863–64 by the Chester architect John Douglas.
The church is built in stone with tiled roofs. Its plan consists of a tower at the west end with a small vestry to its south, a four-bay nave, north and south wide aisles, a south porch, and a chancel with the Stanley chapel to its north and a vestry to its south. The Stanley chapel is Perpendicular in style, as is the south porch. The tower has a broach spire with unusual gable pinnacles and three tiers of lucarnes.
MUSIC IN VIDEO: “Sappheiros – Embrace” is under a Creative Commons license (CC BY 3.0) Music promoted by BreakingCopyright: https://youtu.be/DzYp5uqixz0
I’m still in the early stages of owning my DJI Mavic Mini (Flight distance: 58773 ft) and as with everything new you don’t expect to have an issue so soon (unless you have crashed into a tree or your own face) after buying your new toy.
I however had a “Motor Speed Error” message on only my 10th flight. My lack of experience firstly had me in a panic with the bird still in the sky; a quick RTH while thinking that it is not going to make it back; but I got her home without an issue.
It indicated that the rear left propellers needed changing out for a new one. On inspection I couldn’t see any signs of anything wrong with it. No chips or damage or even any warping to the propellers that I could see with my eye.
Previous to this issue I had seen a small amount of chat online about something to do with the last firmware update driving an excessive amount of people into ordering new Propellers, but I just didn’t think that this issue should be anything to do with me and my new MM. Now that I have looked into it a bit myself; it seems that there is an actual issue but is it a money grab, safety, or something else.
Everyone agrees that the error message that people are seeing started with the Firmware update V01.00.0500
A video from QC Guy seems to suggest the issue is “not a big deal” and that as long as you have checked your props to make sure you are happy; you should just fly on. He suggests that the error is caused because of a small voltage difference in the motors due to a “bad prop”. He is suggesting that if you didn’t have this update everything would be fine as long as you are checking your props over before you get in the air. He says that the error is a “false alarm”.
Ignacio Moreno has simplified the issue down to just how people have been storing the Mavic Mini in the Fly more case. The props are just getting pressure on them while they are in the case and they are being damaged.
Jay Cents seems to think that the issue can be fixed by doing the firmware update using the DJI Assistant software on your computer instead of using the DJI Fly app. Then completing a IMU Calibration will complete the fix.
DJI is saying that the issue is an RTFM, Read the fucking manual situation and that everyone just needs to chill out and look at the little sticker that is in the Fly More Case that tells you how to put the Drone in the case.
A few posts on Reddit have hinted that the changes in the firmware increases the sensitivity of the Motor Speed Sensor and was just a way of drive additional sales of Props. Several people say that DJI is out of stock of MM Propeller since the last update and this change in the reason.
My take… RTFM
How to fold your Propellers
A friend purchased his new MM around the same time as I did and has not had any “Motor Speed Error” on his MM. The only difference between him and me… I got the Fly More Combo, he didn’t. I haven’t read any of the instructions, if I had I wouldn’t have been putting my MM in the case the way I have; the wrong way. I think what DJI has done is the right thing by improving the firmware to better detects possible errors and help prevent your bird from falling out of the sky. I think I would prefer to have this error if I do have a slightly warped prop and protect my MM from the worst. The other thing I have realized is that I need to check my IMU calibration once i have worked out what the hell that is. As far as a money grab; I do believe that they are going to make a killing on the number of props that they will sell off the back of this change. From a PR point of view if birds start to drop out of the sky and its found that DJI had a way of detecting the issue but did nothing, that would be a bigger problem than prop buying kickoffs. DJI is refining their product to be better and this will carry over to make future products better and that can only be a good thing.
Thoughts?
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So here is my second showreel from my Mavic Mini footage. The Footage is a bit jerky but at the moment I’m unsure whether that’s to do with the way I’ve edited and slow down some of the footage so if I do need to consider getting myself an ND filter to smooth the video out.
(Please note some footage was taken by Homeless Tony)
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