All for an aerial view

While photographers scrambled for space during the crowded immersions this Ganeshotsav,Airpix sent its copter-cams into the sky,capturing the festivities from a new angle.

“Our services are being used for real estate advertisements,weddings and sports events. Recently,a real estate company wanted aerial-view photos from different levels in its multi-storey tower. They wanted to show consumers the view from each floor.”

While aerial photography is affordable for consumers in the US and European countries,it is still relatively new to Indian consumers. “We want to make the technology affordable,” said Mane.

Mane and his friends set up Airpix in a modest room at Belapur January this year with an investment of Rs 5 lakh.

The company has since built helicopters such as quad-copter,hecta-copter and octo-copter equipped with multiple fans for better stability and control. “The camera is housed in the copter built of Kevlar-fibre and is operated through a remote control. The portable copter is 60cm in diameter weighs just 1.5 kg,” said Mane.

“This Ganeshotsav,we captured photos and videos of the visarjan. Although we could not enter Girgaum Chowpatty because of crowds,we took pictures from the opposite street,” said Mane.

With the wedding season approaching,the company is gearing up for challenging assignments. “Covering destination weddings is a great experience. Recently,we covered a wedding held at a palace and the client wanted a bird’s eye-view of the palace while the celebrations were on.”

The company charges Rs 60,000 a day for weddings. It is also considering using the technology for security purposes. “Private firms can hire our services for video surveillance,too” said Mane.