Around campus, there has been buzz about construction of the new library. Those in the Union community are watching the building grow before their very eyes.
There is now a new perspective available to Unionites. That view is aerial.
Recently, Tim Simpson Jr., senior media communications major, and his father Tim Simpson Sr. experimented with drones to get an aerial view of the library construction.
Simpson’s father came to Jackson one day from their hometown of Memphis, Tennessee for a visit and had his drone with him. The two wanted to see what the library construction would look like from a different perspective. They got Safety and Security’s permission and began to fly Simpson’s DJI Phantom drone.
Simpson directed the flight while his father flew the drone. When flying a drone, the goal is to “concentrate on getting a good image while avoiding all the obstacles,” Simpson said.
That is the greatest challenge of piloting a drone. It becomes necessary to have one person piloting while the other is directing the flight path.
“[Flying a drone] is more about avoiding obstacles,” Simpson said. “Trees, power lines, stuff like that.”
Simpson and his father have been piloting drones since they bought one a few years ago. They film a variety of subjects and see the activity as a hobby. There is a possibility for more drone footage to be shot through the production of the library.
Simpson and his father do not currently have another set date to film more shots, but they are open to the idea. There were no intentions for what the film would be used for, but the university has posted it on various social medias.
“We have offered for Mr. B [Beverly] to use some of the shots in broadcasts,” Simpson said.
Drones may be helpful in future cinematographic ventures for the university. Union hires a helicopter annually to take aerial shots of campus, but using a drone instead could potentially minimize cost.
“You can get similar quality shots or potentially better because a drone can do more because of its size versus that of a helicopter,” Simpson said.
Video courtesy of Tim Simpson Jr.
