Inspiring Drone Photography: 28 Amazing Aerial Shots
As drones with great cameras become more and more accessible to the general public, photographers everywhere are taking advantage of the unique viewpoint that drones offer. Thanks to these compact flying machines, there is a whole subset of photography that lets photographers take the sky and capture far-off horizons, dramatic vertical perspectives, and things that no one has ever seen before!
In this article, we’ll be looking at 28 inspiring drone photography images that should inspire your creativity whether you’re a drone photographer or not!
And if you’re looking to start taking drone photography, make sure you read our guide on the 10 things you need to know before buying a drone. View drone presets here.
1. Desert Dunes
One of the great things about photography, and especially drone photography, is that photographers can mess with the viewer’s sense of perspective. It’s nearly impossible to tell what is in this landscape photo, or how large it is. In fact, this photo was taken in Namibia where the sand dunes can reach 980 feet tall.
2. Aerial Archipelago
This aerial photo taken in the Lofoten Islands in Norway really shows the beauty of this region. It is a network of many small islands connected by bridges, and is incredibly photogenic from the sky.
3. A Sunny Day in Geneva
This drone photo of Geneva, Switzerland just keeps on going! it has a lot of depth, with the foreground focusing on vibrant trees interspersed with homes, the middle showing the sprawling downtown cityscape, and finally the far background with the mountains framed by puffy white clouds. There’s a lot to see here!
4. A New Perspective
We’re used to seeing the Golden Gate Bridge from one side or the other, at street level, or perhaps from under it. But rarely do we get to see this feat of engineering from above. Thanks to aerial photography, we get this unique perspective that make you realize how tall this bridge really is.
5. The Abandoned Stadium
Drone photography never looked so dramatic! This haunting image of a stadium with its surrounding empty parking lot looks like an abandoned ghost town next to the background of the city. This is a great example of playing with lighting in aerial photography.
6. Saturated Shoreline
It’s hard to resist a great beach shot. This photo from Aruba shows just how vibrantly blue the water can be in some parts of the world. And what better way to see that color than from above?
7. Nostalgic New York
This aerial shot of Manhattan is full of depth, and the editing makes it even better. The desaturated warm tones here give a late-afternoon nostalgic look to the cityscape, and the construction in the background shows the city as alive and active, despite the image only showing lifeless skyscrapers.
8. Rivers and Roads
There’s just something about this example of drone photography that is really interesting. It’s very satisfying how the straight walls of the canal line up with the sides of the photo. This photo shows just enough to give the viewer an idea of what is happening, but you get the sense that this is just a small portion of a larger scene.
9. Long Shadows
When you first see this image, you may think that it’s an image made in Illustrator. But in fact, it’s an aerial photo of a basketball court, perfectly aligned to the edges of the photo. Thge shadows on the basketball hoops seem otherworldly, and the colors seem unreal.
10. A Summer Drive
There’s nothing crazy going on in this drone photo, but it’s the sense of normalcy in this image of a Canadian roadway that makes it great. It’s easy to imagine taking a relaxing summer drive down this road.
11. Lonely Road
Speaking of driving, here is a much more dramatic image. This image brings on feelings of loneliness and isolation, and the straight-down perspective with no horizon makes it seem even more uncomfortable.
12. California Coastline
Coastal images are always fascinating, especially when we get some drone photography of the coast of California! The waves crashing around this rocky shoreline are an impressive view.
13. Flying High
Most aerial drone photography is aimed at the ground, or is supposed to capture an impressive landscape. While this forest landscape is definitely amazing, the coolest part is the colorful propeller plane casually flying over the building below.
14. Staring Down a Black Hole
There’s something fascinating about this image. The focus is on the river in the middle, but the way that the trees on each bank angle away from the camera makes staring into this photo look like starting into a black hole!
15. Questions and Cars
Here’s another great example of how straight-down drone photography can be so interesting and spark so many questions. How big is this parking lot? Why are all of the cars white, grey, and black? Why are a few of the cars red? What even is this parking lot?
16. Roadtrip to the Mountains
We’re going to the mountains of Scotland! This drone photo shows a lonely drive to the mountains, and the perspective makes them feel just out of reach. The scenery is barren but beautiful at the same time.
17. Morning Match
Just because there is an active game happening on this soccer pitch, doesn’t mean that it doesn’t look ghostly with the fog rolling in.
18. Autumn Train Ride
This image was taken on a fine October day. The train is perfectly framed by the yellow trees, and is a view that only a drone could capture.
19. Osprey Family
Drone photography is great for getting camera angles that are normally impossibly to achieve. This image defies standard convention of capturing a far-off horizon by getting up-close and personal with a pair of ospreys in a nest! This just goes to show that sometimes there is beauty in the small things, as well as the sprawling landscapes.
20. Jetski Action
Drone photography usually ignores dynamic action and captures images of static landscapes. However, this image creates a Fibonacci circle of jetski wake that is satisfying and action-packed.
21. In a Sea of Turquoise
This aerial shot of Visovac Monastery in Croatia really shows the power of saturated colors and seemingly-imaginary landscapes. Is this actually a real place?? (Yes, yes it is)
22. Blue and Orange
A lovely view of Los Angeles, right? Despite the fact that this is just smog with some city in the background, it’s an excellent drone photography shot. The blue and orange tones make this a satisfying piece of art in addition to an excellent drone shot.
23. Pristine Secrecy
This drone photo came with a great story. The photographer snapped this photo in a Canadian park where he wasn’t supposed to be flying. A Parks Ministry helicopter flew overhead, and the pilots hid in the bushes while the drone hovered 500 meters overhead. On the bright side, this photo turned out great, and really captures the extremes of the Canadian landscape.
24. Abandoned Airport
Another aerial image that leaves so many questions! Is this airplane active or abandoned? Are there miles and miles of desert beyond the bounds of this image, or is there a bustling airport just out of view?
25. Unicorns in Paradise
Most drone photography is of landscapes, buildings, or big grand environments. But here we have a great snap involving an actual person. That’s not to say that the rest of the photo isn’t great. As usual, we see a straight-down shot that brings up questions about what lies beyond the image. Plus, the contrast of turquoise water to the white and gold of the unicorn floaty really makes the subject stand out.
26. Incandescent Island
These colors are fantastic! This straight-down shot of a tropical island in the middle of the sea shows just how clear the water is with a halo of sandbars surrounding it.
27. Ice Cold
We would be remiss if we didn’t include at least one snow photo in this roundup of drone photography. This drone image of Iceland just feels cold. It’s clean and the water is reflective, making this a very satisfying image to look at.
28. Brick Buildings
This image of Fort Wayne, Indiana is a great view of a small city skyline, with a lovely teal and orange tone. It makes the image look cold and snowy while also cozy thanks to the warm brick buildings.
More to Explore: View all drone presets on FilterGrade
SEE ALSO – 50+ Inspiring Photos with Light Leaks
More photography inspiration:
- Facetime Photoshoot Inspiration with Laurent Castellani
- Top 10 Best Photography Websites for Inspiration
- Lessons I Learned When I Bought My First Film Camera
