my buddy has been asking me about drones for months and i flew a phantom 3 like 6 years ago so i know enough to be dangerous but not enough to actually give him good advice on whats out there now. things have changed a lot since then obviously.

he wants something beginner friendly, he mentioned wanting to do some photography but also he lives near a pretty densely wooded area so i was thinking something small maybe? he doesnt have a huge budget, i think he said around 300 but might stretch a bit. mostly just wants to have fun with it and maybe get some decent shots of his property and the surrounding trails.

is the mini series still the go-to or has something else kind of taken over in that price range? last i checked autel had some stuff but i dont really know how they compare these days

mini series is still probably the safest bet for a beginner at that price point, specifically the mini 3 if he can swing it, the mini 2 SE if budget is tight. autel evo nano is decent but the software ecosystem isnt quite as polished and finding help online when something goes wrong is way easier with dji just because theres so many more users. for wooded areas tell him to take it easy at first, obstacle avoidance on the cheaper minis is pretty limited or basically nonexistent so he'll want clear open areas while he's learning the feel of it.

yeah dji mini 3 would be my call too. also worth mentioning that flying near trees is genuinely nerve wracking even when you're experienced, wind does weird things around them. might be worth him practicing somewhere flat and boring first before he starts doing anything near the treeline. learned that one the hard way with my own setup lol, lost a prop on a low branch i didnt see