ok so i finally tried to do some of the moves i keep seeing in fpv and cinematic content ? like the slow reveal pull-back, orbits around a subject, that kind of thing. i have a mavic 3 classic and ive been flying for maybe a year but mostly just point and shoot stuff, getting locations, nothing deliberate.

the orbit especially is just humbling. i know you can use the automated quickshot for it but i wanted to learn to fly it manually because the quickshots always feel a little sterile to me. anyway the combination of yaw rate and lateral movement to keep a subject centered while also managing altitude is just a lot to think about at once. my first attempts look like i was flying drunk, the subject kept drifting out of frame and my altitude kept creeping up without me noticing.

i guess my question is whether this is just a reps thing or whether there's some mental model i should be thinking about that makes it click faster. i've seen people suggest flying the orbit while looking at a fixed point on the ground in front of you rather than the screen but i dont fully understand how that translates

the orbit took me forever and im still not great at it in manual. what actually helped was breaking it into two separate problems ? first i just practiced yaw while hovering stationary until keeping a subject centered felt automatic. then i added the lateral movement without worrying about keeping anything in frame, just to feel the coordination. only after both of those felt comfortable did i try combining them. trying to learn the whole thing at once is why it feels impossible.

altitude creep is super common, i think its because your brain is busy with the other two axes and throttle just kind of does whatever. some people tape a mark on their throttle stick as a reference point for a specific altitude but honestly i just check my telemetry more often now until it becomes instinct.

yeah the quickshots are fine for client work but you learn nothing from them. manual orbits are genuinely a skill that takes time, dont let the youtube guys fool you with their 4 month progression posts, some of those people have thousands of hours in sims before they ever touched a real drone.

the looking at a ground reference thing is real though. your eyes want to go to the screen but if you look up and track the physical drone against a landmark your body kind of takes over the stick inputs more naturally. hard to explain but try it in a big open area with something obvious to orbit around, a tree or a parked car or whatever. the screen is actually working against you when youre learning because it introduces lag in your feedback loop