ANGOLA — Drone technology is taking to the sky to capture promotional video material for the Steuben County Tourism Bureau.
Chris Sanchez, an independent contractor, has been retained by the tourism bureau to create aerial video productions of Steuben County events and attractions over the course of 12 months.
“My primary focus right now is getting this video done for Steuben County. It will be a 12-month project. We will go all four seasons,” he said. “As we’re going along, we will be posting 60-second clips, 90-second clips as teasers.”
“We want to make sure to capture the beauty of the area during all four seasons. We are lucky to have a strong infrastructure of winter visitor activities, centered around (Pokagon) state park, but we also want to highlight the snowmobile trails, ice fishing, etc.,” said June Julien, executive director of the tourism bureau. “We want to showcase the natural beauty of the area and increase our visitation. We want to image the county.”
It is believed this is the first use of drone technology to produce a promotional tourism video in Indiana, Julien said.
“Chris called me one day and said, ‘Hey, I am buying a drone, want to do a video, it will be great?’ I just said, sure, whatever. I thought it was just one of his crazed ideas. At the time, it was all over the news about drones being used in war and the controversy, so I really didn’t think he was serious. A few days later, he sent me a video sample and I still thought he was kidding — until he emailed me a picture of his drone and some samples. Now I am really excited. I think there will be numerous applications for these videos and that they will only improve with time,” Julien said.
Using an electronic drone that is controlled on the ground and employs global positioning satellites to assist in guidance, Sanchez has been compiling video of the county since early July. Once done, the video can either start or end with Fourth of July and Angola Balloons Aloft scenes.
“This type of photography is an awesome benefit, especially when it comes to capturing unbelievable nature scenes like Steuben County. I know farmers who are using drones to inspect their fields, golf courses, apartment buildings, etc.,” Sanchez said. “I use this mainly for travel and tourism.”
His work so far has focused much on the lakes and has included video at Lake George, Lake James, downtown Angola, Pokagon State Park and Trine State Recreation Area. Beach and boating scenes were created last weekend. Some of the first work included scenes at the Lake James Antique Boat Show and shots at Glendarin Hills Golf Club.
Sanchez, of Warsaw, has been working with the tourism bureau since 2007, creating its website and other electronic messaging systems.
Julien said she wants to have cutting-edge technology put to use to help promote Steuben County.
Sanchez has two drones, but the one he is using in Steuben County has a camera attached to its underside that shoots ultra-high-resolution video. The drone, which is powered by carbon, helicopter-like blades, has a range of nearly a mile, but Sanchez keeps the unit close to his subjects.
Under Federal Aviation Administration rules, the drone cannot fly more than 400 feet above ground. Sanchez said he does not fly higher than than 125 feet in the air.
“We are not flying in high-risk areas, and I personally never fly my drone above 125 feet, which is far below the FAA rules of 400 feet,” he said.
While he often is shooting in public spaces, Sanchez gets permission from his subjects when flying over them or their land. He typically does not fly directly over people.
As the video is being created, it will be uploaded to the tourism bureau’s website for the public to see. Once the entire 12 months is shot, a compilation of Sanchez’s work will be created.
State law and FAA regulations governing use of drones has been evolving. Just this year, Gov. Mike Pence signed into law a measure that bans the use of drones by law enforcement agencies for warrantless searches, with limited exceptions.
As companies like Amazon make news with their intent to deliver packages with drones, the FAA has been reviewing its rules. There also have been tests of FAA rules in courts that are determining how companies like Sanchez’s can use drones for commercial applications.
For example, Sanchez does not charge the tourism bureau for the video or photography he records from his drone because the FAA does not allow that. Sanchez gets his fees through editing the content that he provides to the Tourism Bureau.
The cost of the 12-month project will be approximately $7,000.
Because this sort of work is new, Julien said she was open to the ideas presented by Sanchez.
“We wanted to stand out and offer something others are not at this point,” Julien said.
Sanchez has also created electronic visitor information kiosks for the tourism bureau, and recently has been placing digital information systems for the bureau in high-traffic visitor areas.