Capturing 101 Fwy Footage

I need a new drone. It’s easy to justify the cost, but that’s what I always say. It gradually dawns on me, my DJI Osmo Pocket 3 – if I could get it up in the air, would it do the job?

A recent video would have benefited with a little 101 Fwy traffic b-roll, so I remembered the nearby Anapamu St pedestrian bridge over the 101; I’ve biked over it many times. I could capture oncoming traffic from this overlook.

At first I thought, “perfect drone shot,” but I didn’t feel ready to go flying over the freeway, someday, sure, but not today. So I came up with what I call the poor man’s drone – cheaper, safer, a skill I should practice – simply place the Pocket 3 at the tip of a selfie stick.

I had a new selfie stick that had been just hanging around, waiting for the right requirement. Today would be its maiden voyage. I had all the parts, but didn’t try putting them together: selfie stick with an elastic GoPro/phone mount on the grip.

The Telesin carbon fiber 3m selfie stick – is it the standout in its class? Only $63.99 on telesinstore.com.

Next item, the wrap-around iPhone mount, stretch this elastic mount over the selfie stick handle, mount the iPhone here via the Telesin phone mount with the corresponding GoPro to 1/4” screw, so you can see what you’re shooting and control the Pocket 3 via the DJI MIMO app.