My goal was to document the progress as a creator and on the farm plus also catalogue the memories

My goal was to document the progress as a creator and on the farm plus also catalogue the memories

11 October 2023

CASTLEWELLAN university graduate Daniel Rice has been bringing the world of Co Down farming into focus with 4k drone footage.

Danny’s has been posting his farming video tutorials on YouTube for a number of years and his viewership figures now sit at a quarter of a million hits.

His tutorials cover everything from complex farming equipment to breathtaking landscape drone shots of the Mourne mountains at sunset. 

Thanks to his YouTube success. Danny has been growing his brand, gaining him industry connections and even being coned for freelance documentary work.

Danny, a 22 year-old MA graduate from Queen’s University, started his YouTube channel at the age of 13 while still at St Patrick’s Grammar School.

Starting with simple camera footage from a mobile phone, he described the beginning of his creative passion. His first video, by his own admittance, was “not the best camera quality because of the equipment at hand”, but served as the foundation that would allow him to develop his craft. 

Soon after, Danny built his videos around providing a friendly face towards Northern Irish farming, as well as his own family farm.

He recounted some of his more memorable stories, including an incident which almost led to a field going on fire.

“I had just bought a new GoPro helmet-mounted camera. I had spent an hour setting it up and it was a nice summer’s day. I had my cargo shorts on, so figured I’d take it for a test run through the fields with the camera attached to the tractor to see what kind of footage it could capture. 

“Unfortunately, as the tractor was going at about 20mph the lithium battery in the camera came loose and got scattered in a field. That meant one of two things would happen — I would lose my evening searching around a six-acre area field with a floodlight until I found it, or the next time it rained the battery could react and cause a field fire. Let’s just say I lost my entire evening.”

Danny has amassed an impressive collection of equipment from tripods, head mounted 4k cameras, multiple drones and hand-held gimbals designed to steady camera forage when on the move.

“I haven’t got a studio budget for this sort of thing, but it was important to me both as a creator and tech enthusiast to try and recreate that higher end feeling towards the videos that I made. So, I would search eBay listings, Black Friday deals and Gumtree — just about anything and anywhere,” he continued. 

“If I couldn’t find something in working order, I would repair it myself and put it together in order to get something running for the channel. 

“I’ve still got the first drone that I bought in back of my cupboard and is mostly held together with Sellotape and superglue.

It’s strange to think of where it started as where today where my current drone is far sleeker, more compact and has double the battery life and far better quality footage.

“All the software that I use for editing is free as I don’t have access to the expensive stuff, so I must use my own ways of getting that same finished product, whether that’s designing the images by hand myself for the thumbnails in Canva or editing the videos on DaVinci resolve.”

“I had been watching videos of guys from Canada flying drones inside massive warehouses and getting this unreal footage. So inspired, I went out one cold April day without telling anyone. I started up the drone in the cow shed and unfortunately the GPS and motion sensors couldn’t track the walls, leading to it crashing into wall and then going full throttle into a bull’s pen. I had to rescue the drone and painstakingly repair the camera and blades before it got damaged any further.”

Nine years into his journey, Danny has gained so much insight and experience from his trials and tribulations. Posting his farming tutorials 

and stunning bird’s eye views of the fields around his home, Danny’s craft and content have only improved with time.

When asked about the future of the channel or his hopes of its direction, he remarked: “I think it’s a matter of a personal thing for me. My goal was to document the progress as a creator and on the farm, not to mention a way to catalogue the memories and experiences made – all being that it all stays up on YouTube, so here’s hoping.

“I have even been contacted by friends and family asking to use my camera footage for computer or phone backgrounds. I even got to do some industry work on a freelancing basis both editing and camera work.

“I’ve always tried to keep the Mournes in the background as I know many people watch my content just for the views and to get to see the scenery from the sky.”

Danny says part of his success is so linked to learning through trial and error.

“As for anyone else who might have a niche or an interest in getting started, the only advice or guidance I have for this sort of thing is just to go for it, get involved, and focus on something that you have a real drive for.

“There is something there for everyone and all you must do is get stuck in and give it your passion.”