The high-pitched whine of a small aero engine overhead usually means one thing on Phuket: the Helicam team is at work. Philippa Peters met the team, and didn’t mention “joystick” or suggesting that business has “taken off” once.

Running parallel to the pace at which Phuket’s real estate is developing is surely the increasing number of billboards dotted around the island showing aerial pictures of new and existing residences and land projects.

This bird’s-eye-view is captured with extraordinary precision, and the people behind it are Helicam, a technical team of highly experienced pilots and cameramen.

Standing squarely on terra firma, these professionals control mini-helicopters, equipped with cameras in order to obtain aerial pictures or motion images.

In short, Helicam provides Phuket and its environs with a unique, cost effective way of achieving aerial photography by using remote-controlled helicopters carrying high-resolution digital cameras.

The application of such systems range from surveying to exploration to military uses, although in Phuket advertising is the main thrust of the business.

The pioneers of Phuket’s aerial photography industry are: Phil Clark, founder and pilot; Jonathon Russell, Helicam’s manager; and Wayne Galvin, their technical manager.

That’s the team, but what got the pioneers of Phuket’s aerial photography industry started, and where – apart from up, up and way – are they going?

Phil explained to me that the timing of the company’s launch in 2004 was impeccable.

“It coincided,” began Phil, “with so much development on Phuket. Jobs came in fast and furiously from hotels, marine companies, event organisers, real estate companies and cruise ships.”

Business continues to pour in and Helicam’s dedicated team rises – literally – to the challenge.

Eager to see how the photography is achieved, Phil and Jonathon took me upstairs where the equipment is stored.

Wayne – almost oblivious to all around him – was in there, too, absorbed in the construction of a new “toy”, details of which I promised not to reveal.

Wayne’s explanation of the technical side of Helicam could, thankfully, be understood by any layman or laywoman.

“The remote controlled camera mounting system allows pan, tilt and roll movements, while a wireless onboard video transmitter downlinks the live signal to Phil, the pilot.

“Images can be recorded both on the camera on board the helicopter and on the ground. Two operators – the pilot and the cameraman – with independent controls respectively fly the helicopter and shoot the images,” he said.

It all sounds so utterly straightforward and easy, but the crew perform similar functions to a fast-jet’s duo of a pilot and weapons systems officer. Their working relationship is symbiotic; their reliance on one another indicates the ability to work in complete harmony.

One of the advantages helicams have over full-sized rotary aircraft is their flexibility – and their small size. The system can be flown practically anywhere. All it needs is a small spot for takeoff and landing.

Because the helicam is a custom-designed and built aerial-observation platform, vibration – the blight of many a good photograph – has been engineered out. Images taken are far superior to those taken from a manned helicopter.

Another advantage is that flying at lower altitudes – Helicam’s aircraft have maximum service ceiling of around 400 feet – allows the operator to shoot an aerial photo below the clouds.

Wide-angle lenses (Helicam’s newest feature is a lens that can now provide 360บ aerial virtual tours) are, for example, used offering views that are comparable with, if not better, than those taken from full-size aircraft.

And of clouds, I asked about poor weather conditions affecting or delaying a job. Jonathan answered saying, “We work very closely with our clients from the outset, and we make strong recommendations according to the weather forecast, but if the client insists, we let him take the lead.

“Safety and security, though, are of enormous importance to us and we will always have the last word on that. For example, we ensure there are no mobile phones in use to cause disturbance. We put civilian safety first by going to the area we will operate in and making certain that we have a clear space on the ground and in the sky to avoid any mishap,” he continued.

“No precaution is too much.”

Nothing seems to faze the team and their professionalism and enthusiasm have made for satisfied customers time after time.

Testaments to the quality of their work abound and as one well-known developer put it, “I found the Helicam service very professional. The technology used is brilliant. I walked away with exactly the pictures I wanted on disc and for the money I paid the results are terrific.

“What a nice bunch of people to work with. I look forward to doing business with them again in the near future.”

Phil, with a trace of modesty and English self-deprecation, reminded me that nobody’s perfect and he told me bout the unfortunate occasion when a media representative went out on the field with them only to watch the helicam make an unscheduled and rather rough landing.

“It crashed,” said Phil.

Phil was making model aeroplanes from kits and adapting them the way he wanted even as a young lad.

He sent his first helicam up at his Newcastle school and took an aerial shot of it – a feat indeed without the modern technology used today.

It was trial and error in those days, and Phil had to send the aircraft up several times to take 30 to 40 shots and then simulate the images before a final shot with the school in the centre could be achieved.

After graduating from college, Phil worked in advertising in Dubai before taking up the reins of another challenge – Helicam – in Phuket.

Billboards, of course, are not the only results of Helicam’s labours. They make brochures, posters, videos, pictures and any type of promotional material for businesses in Phuket and, more recently, outside Phuket.

“We’re getting jobs in Bangkok and Samui,” said Phil “but it’s too involved to get the equipment on board an aircraft, so we drive our van over or up there. We’re considering opening up offices in these other locations to satisfy demand”.

I ventured to suggest the world, or at least Asia, is their oyster. No-one disagreed.
Success is one thing and loving what you do is a fabulous bonus. It is quite clear that every member of this ebullient group of people absolutely adores what they do.

As Phil put it, “I’m doing what I always dreamt of – flying helicopters every day of my life!”

Visit www.helicam-asia.com for more details.