I was excited to welcome the Jersey Droners to my hometown. The latest event was in Old Bridge at Waterfront Park. And I captured this Old Bridge Waterfront Park 4K Drone Video and posted it on YouTube.
Location
One great thing about drones is that they help you discover new places. I have lived in Old Bridge for eight years, and this was the first time I have visited this park. I have driven over an hour for some Jersey Droner events, but oftentimes the most amazing places are right in your backyard.
Old Bridge Waterfront Park offers views of the Raritan Bay, Cheesequake Creek, the NJ Transit Jersey Shore Line, fishing boats, marinas, and the Rt 35 drawbridge.
Flight Experience
I arrived at 5:30 am at the park. There were a few fishing boats that were headed out into the Raritan Bay. There was hardly any wind, and the bay was as clear as glass. I captured these boats with the sunrise over the Atlantic with New York City in the far distant background.
I have been working on tracking moving objects such as boats, trains, and cars. There are auto modes with the Air 2s, but I am working on doing it manually and not relying on the automated features.
Most of the boats coming out were small fishing boats, but I was able to capture the Misty Morn Fishing Charter Boat. This is a larger boat that can accommodate up to 66 people fishing. It made me eager to take my boys out on a charter this summer.
Part of the video also follows the NJ Transit Jersey Shore Train as it heads down to the Shore. It passes over a draw bridge at Cheesequake Creek. The problem is that some power lines are fairly high in the air near the bridge. I had to stop tracking the train just as it crossed the bridge (the money shot) so that I did not hit the power lines. It might be better to track it over the bridge from the other side during sunset with the bay in the background.
Overall, this was a fun event with the Jersey Droners. I was happy that the weather is getting warmer. Most all the events I have participated in have been cold. It was still cold at 5:30 am. But it warmed up quickly as the sun came up.
Edit
I edited this video using Final Cut Pro on my 16-inch MacBook Pro. The video was full of wide pano shots of boats, trains, and the bay. I did very little in the way of editing. I wanted the beautiful views to speak for themselves. The transitions are straight cuts.
I chose to use some longer clips, letting them play out. There is so much to see in each clip. Every time I watch it, I see something new. Because the clips were longer, I also used fewer clips. There were only 10 clips total in the video. I had a bunch more video I could have used, but I picked what I thought were the best clips. You can only watch so many boats.
I shot the video in Normal Color Mode because I forgot to set my Air 2s to DLog before beginning. Since I shot in the Normal Color Mode, there was little done with color correction. I made a few minor tweaks and then color graded using a custom Lut.
I added stabilization to a couple of clips to smooth out the video. And that is all I added for effects.
Final Thoughts
One of the things that makes me excited about this video is that it is recorded in my hometown. I am part of several groups on Facebook and can share some of the beauty of our community with those groups.
I hope you enjoy this Old Bridge Waterfront Park 4K Drone Video. Share in the comments any comments or critiques. I always appreciate constructive criticism as I seek to improve my videography.
If you have any inquires about any of my videos, make sure to visit my contact page. I am a Part 107 licensed pilot.
John says
Hey, I’m not trying to be a Karen or anything like that, but you may want to take down the video. Im pretty sure it’s technically illegal since Middlesex county does require permits to take off and land In there parks. I was trying to get a permit in general for the Middlesex County Parks, but was told it’s only for Edison Park.
Old bridge residents here just got a drone