Hi.
A complete newbie from Newport, South Wales. I haven’t purchased my drone yet but have my flyers & operator ID ready. I’m thinking of a DJI Flip for my first with my main interest in video/photography. Hopefully a good choice to start out with?
Would love to have some good recommendations (especially for a first flight) as the dronescene map is fairly empty around me currently
Looking forward to giving it a go.
Good afternoon @cymru welcome along 
Hi @cymru and welcome to Grey Arrows 
That probably depends on what you want from a drone 
You might want to check out some video reviews of it first, here’s one from @ianinlondon :
There are quite a few places within easy reach of Newport:
Wondering whether you can fly a particular model of drone under particular circumstances? Check out Good 2 Go where you’ll soon find the answer 
Have you seen our Members Map? You may find some members living near you.
Feel free to add yourself to the members map too!
Flying a drone is great fun but sometimes you feel the need to have a purpose for doing so and the Challenges category provides some great reasons for you to fly.
There are regular challenges which are open to all, that attract members of all abilities. Support, advice and constructive criticism is freely available; still photography, video and the techniques for editing both are involved in the challenges. Suggestions, for subjects or for complete challenges, are always welcome - take a look in the Challenges category for more information.
We’re a well established club with many knowledgeable members so it’s very likely that any issues you come across will have been discussed here before. Our discussion forum has very powerful search features which should help you find what you need but if you get stuck you can post a new question in the Questions & Answers category.
And finally, if you are new to drones and wondering what it’s all about, have a look at Resources for a beginner.
Welcome once again!
Shwmai @cymru - welcome to GADC from down the road in Swansea
Hi @cymru and welcome to GADC
Croeso from Bridgend and enjoy your time here.
Welcome to GADC from surrey just round the corner you have some great flying over there near the rivers and estuary
The Flip is a great call, versatile with a good camera and reasonable wind resistance. Plenty of places to practise flying, what part of Newport are you? Tredegar Park (sports ground between A48 & Ebbw River), open field by the Usk near Malpas Brook don’t know what it’s called, recreation ground by St.Julian’s railway bridge over the river, Bellevue Park, Mendalgief Levels, Caerleon amphitheatre grounds. Proably best to stay clear of Wetlands Reserve especially at this time of year (we’re going into nesting season),
There’s also the Gaer and Ridgeway, but you’ll probably prefer level grounds for initial practice.
Get the AirData UAV app, very useful for checking information about your flights, and can be posted here if you need comments or advice. Also, DJI’s ‘Care Refresh’; aftercare products are usually ripoffs, but this one is very good, offering no-quibble warrantied repair or replacement, and will certainly give you peace of mind!
Thanks for the good advice. I’m in Rogerstone. Re the Wetlands - is that a similar consideration for Goldcliff/sea wall as I can see that’s an SSSI too?
Yup; same goes for Peterstone Gout at high tide… You can fly over SSSIs, they are ground hazards that you need to be aware of, not restricted zones, but it is as well to be mindful of the needs of the birdies!
There’s a recreation ground in Rogerstone, between the A467 dual carriagway and the Ebbw, sort of triangular shape, that might be good for practice.
Welcome @cymru and welcome to the GADC family.
hi and welcome @cymru