ok so i got interested in drones after seeing some realy cool aerial shots on instagram, a friend told me to just buy one and figure it out but i feel like ill crash it on the first flight. i live near some open fields so space isnt the issue its more like i have no idea what im doing at all. is there something out there thats kind of idiot proof? i dont even know the right words to search for honestly. someone mentioned return to home being a thing, is that real and does it actually work well enough to trust

return to home is definitely real and on most GPS drones it works pretty reliably as long as you let it get a good GPS lock before takeoff. the thing people mess up is launching before the drone has locked onto enough satellites and then RTH doesnt know where home is. most drones will tell you when its ready. for a self-flying type experience the DJI minis are genuinely close to what youre describing, they have beginner modes that limit speed and height and the hover stability on those is really impressive. you can basically let go of the sticks and it just sits there

yeah RTH works, used it a bunch. though one time mine came back and landed like 8 feet from where i was standing so its not perfect, wind was pretty bad that day though so maybe thats why. i'd say just go for it, you'll figure it out faster than you think flying in an open field. the first few flights are weird but then it clicks