Bit of an oddball question but the brother-in-law is a mad keen fisherman and quite into tech, he’s been looking at the possibility of using a drone for fishing mainly to spot fish but potentially to drop a ledger line precisely where wanted and he’s asked my advice.
Now, I know from personal experience flying over the local river that you don’t see much apart from reflected light when you look into the water but I did see a thread or YouTube video about specific filters which might help for this very same reason but cannot find anything now…anybody have any tips or guidance?
I’ll leave the line dropping project for another time as that largely hinges on the fish spotting potential.
2 Likes
Hey Luke, a polarised filter would help cut down on reflections from the waters surface. How effective it would be for fish spotting I don’t know? The main problem you would have is to see the fish you would need to be relatively close to the surface and that may well scare off any fish that he found? Good luck though and let us know how you get on. Would be very interested to hear if it worked 
2 Likes
Ninja’d! @SirGunner swooped in with the answer while I was typing…
A polarising filer is what you will need to see into the water and remove the reflections.
AFAIK, the drone code specifically prohibits things being dropped from drones, whether that covers what he wants to do I don’t know.
They certainly are used in the USA for bait dropping etc. I guess the regs for that are different over there.
2 Likes
Ive seen guys at the coast sending lines out with phantoms.
1 Like
There was a previous thread … a long time ago …
1 Like
This is what i’m going to try aswell i’ve seen a few vids of drones been used to spot fish and poss find hotspots for fishing, In Carp ponds in many vids it doesn’t seem to spook the fish i dare say fish like salmon ect would be spooked quite easily
1 Like
As a fisherman myself (albeit occasionally) I think the presence of a hovering bird like shape above them they are likely to seek deeper water, take my drone with me and photograph my local Fisheries (with permission) and the water is with most commercial Fisheries are really murky.
I could not find any image of the Fisheries in question however below is some of a fishing pit at my local golf course, the same issue would be had here.
However in summer fish do rise into the warmer water and are nearer to the surface so potentially easier to spot from above.
2 Likes
Thanks all, very useful comments as always.
I think I’ll push on with the Polarised filter idea and see what’s what, I know a few places where I can readily see fish with my own eyes when they are close to the bank but I can’t see anything with a camera, it’s worth investigating out of pure curiosity to be honest.
I’ve looked at the dial type filters and they are not expensive, Freewell or Polar Pro do some that get good reviews.
I’ll let you know how I get on, and as I said before the payload question is for another day as I’m sceptical about advising someone to drop lines or anything using a drone, it seems like a risky thing thing to do and could easily end with a drone in the water.
These guys Alex and Carl fishing channel on YouTube use a drone in quite a few of their videos and they seem to capture footage of fish quite well from above! If you like fishing you probably know these guys already…
2 Likes
I tried it on a Resevoir with my mavic air 2, using a polorizing filter. There were a lot of Trout rising, I wasn’t fishing although I do. It was good for spotting ripples caused by rising fish, showing where the largest concentrations were. I didn’t see the fish but the water was dark and I didn’t get too low, as mavics can decide to land in the water ( due to sensor confusion). I would imagine it would work really well on a shallow clear river. Or a Carp pond when the fish are cruising near the surface. You would probably spot feeding bubbles when they are grubbing around on the bottom too.
Up in Scotland and in Wales I have used the Air 2 to fly out and check surface disruptions, which turned out to be mackerel. I wasn’t fishing at the time but I followed the shoals for quite some distance. It’s something I intend to make use of in future Sea fishing trips.
1 Like
Seen quite a few of there vids in fact it was what got me thinking of trying it out myself hopefully i’ll be able to get out and get some vids of fish in my area in the summer
1 Like
Trout are a different thing even trying to see them clearly from the bank can be hard most i’ve caught i’ve never even seen them lol
2 Likes
Totally agree there. Dry fly fishing you are casting to the position of a rise, usually. All other methods tend to be to features. Trout are very elusive and well camouflaged. Interesting topic though and having zoom facility may improve spotting. 
2 Likes
I’ve been fishing twice with a drone - just sayin!
4 Likes
With a drone? Or for a drone?
3 Likes
Haven never given this much thought I took to YouTube… It turns out people are doing it, with success!
Drone usage starts around 5 mins in.
2 Likes
I could sit on a beach all day watching that 
2 Likes