What’re the best drones for still photography? You can now capture creative perspectives, at an elevated altitude, using the best drones for still photography. 
It has been a long journey with cameras to arrive at drone photography. Luckily, you can also use the all-powerful DSLR camera to get the tremendous wide-angle shots for mountains, river courses, or even a landscape for photography or surveillance.
Summary: If you need a quick answer, I recommend either DJI Inspire 2 Quadcopter Premium Combo or the Yuneec Typhoon H Pro as your best drones for still photography.
Reviews: Top 9 Best Drones for Still Photography in 2024
1. DJI Inspire 2 Quadcopter Premium Combo – #1 Pick
It comes with the dual battery system, which gives the drone loner flight time, will power systems like the processors, stabilizers, & camera, safeguards against failure in case of a battery malfunction.
Features: 7km Control Range, Zenmuse X4S Camera (20-megapixel) mounted, flight time maximum of 27 minutes.
I love its versatility – it has mountable gimbals that provide room for mounting an extra camera in the future. For a quick spin (manual), the drone has C1 & C2 buttons that you can customize to 14 available options – features that, among others, ensure that the flight is safe and stable.
It has a Zenmuse X5S camera with a fantastic FPV camera (which is forward-facing) that allows one to view around the drone and hence enhance seamless controlling. Additional features include that you can also alter the maximum speed when the drone is descending (from 8.9 mph to about 20.1 mph).
Its processor (the CineCore 2.1) allows burst mode camera shooting. It has a lightweight build, with reliable motors and allows excellent control and propulsion. From a distance of 30 meters, the drone can detect various objects that you need to photograph.
The two models will allow you to unleash your photography creativity, capture those excellent aerial shots, capture still images from different angles, just like you require music videos and youtube videos.
Fortunately, this drone has obstacle avoidance sensors, dual barometers, inertial motion sensors, & dedicated processors. The Zenmuse X7 will allow you to film at 6K in RAW format – in addition to doing survey work.
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2. Yuneec Typhoon H Pro – Ultra HD 4K – #2 Pick
This Typhoon H is the old viable option to the DJI Inspire 2 and Phantom 4. Unique characteristics include the 360-degree gimbal (for panoramic images), obstacle avoidance (through Realsense), and has a landing gear (6-rotor) that is retractable in addition to having folding arms!
Features: 1.6km Control Range, GCO3 plus 4 K Camera (12-megapixel) mounted, flight time maximum of 25 minutes.
Its camera will capture in 4k resolution (shooting as 25 frames/ second) and comes with the f/2,8 (14 mm) lens. Further, you can use the 120 fps slow-motion feature.
For your still photography work, the six rotors will render the drone and the camera to be very quiet/ smooth while shooting images or filming videos.
Even with no smartphone, you can use the android controller to undertake all the camera and drone operations. It is a hexacopter drone, which means that it has six blades to give you more power and control.
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3. DJI Phantom 4 PRO Professional Drone, Hobby RC Quadcopter – #3 Pick
Next up is the DJI Phantom 4 Pro (with a hull shape), which has interestingly included the omnidirectional (5-direction) obstacle avoidance for all objects, including buildings or trees that are on its way while shooting your photographs.
Features: 7km Control Range, 20-megapixel camera (100mbps bitrate & 30FPS) mounted, flight time maximum of 30 minutes.
With its mechanical shutter and ability for burst mode shooting (at 60FPS), its camera is highly rated and will give you top quality images (that have the 4k resolution too). It can achieve about a 72 kph speed.
It has exciting photographing modes – Tripod Mode (max 4mph speed), Atti Mode, and Position Mode (enables obstacle detection & tracking) that will make your shooting fun and simple. I love the return to home function since you can make the drone to retrace its path to its initial position – and thus possibly avoiding obstacles.
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4. DJI Mavic Pro Collapsible Quadcopter Starters
DJI Mavic Pro is a highly portable, lightweight, and small-sized drone that is great for gigs and traveling still photography – mainly due to having folding props and arms.
Features: 7km Control Range, 12-megapixel camera (30FPS) mounted, flight time maximum of 27 minutes.
Luckily, it also has a very compact 3-axis gimbal, 4K camera, and can shoot stable videos even with no image stabilization. It can sense and track objects using the Optical Flow & ActiveTrack software, respectively.
Finally, with the DJI wireless goggles, it’s possible to achieve the 1st -person perspective – which is great for still photography. Read Also: DJ Headphones.
Considerations when choosing Drones for Still Photography
1. Camera Resolution
Your camera must hold a high-resolution camera that’ll hold clear and crisp images. Key among the features to check includes the camera’s sensor power, focal range, optical zoom, and the number of megapixels.
However, you might get (though at a higher price), drones that are frame & fly where you can use most of your DSLRs. Read Also: Headphones for Guitar Amps.
2. Flight Control Range
For your drone camera to work effectively, you’ll need to have some wide control range. This will allow easy remote control for your drone. But, Bluetooth, radio waves, and Wi-Fi connections have a limited range, and this will weaken as it moves to a further distance.
Accordingly, it’s essential to go for the maximum drone control range – definitely, the 10 meters drone control range won’t serve the purpose in still photography. Read Also: Noise Cancelling Headphones Under 100.
3. Powerful Blades & Motors
Your drone will mainly be working in harsh climatic conditions and pressure. The drone’s blades & motors must be solid to handle harsh winds while still keeping in its stable photographing condition.
This is a critical condition when you’re taking even photographs. Read Also: Earplugs for Concerts.
4. Intuitive Flight Control
The drone must have intelligent control traits such as anti-collision to prevent the drone from colliding with objects such as trees and thus crashing.
Every drone needs to have automatic/ advanced flight controls. Hence, the drone will take a programmed circle/ path near the objects you wish to photograph.