This is the first version of the Radian made by Parkzone and distributed by Horizon Hobby. Unfortunately it is no longer made and although superceded by the Radian Pro, both are now no longer available. Having flown the Pro on a couple of occasions, my preference especially for photography is still the original Radian.
To adapt the Radian for aerial photography, the area under the canopy has been modified and rearranged to house a Fuji F20 compact camera. Being made of a form of expanded polypropylene foam called Z-foam, it is easy to cut away parts of the fuselage structure to make room to house the camera and make a cut-out in the side of the fuselage for the camera lens. However, doing so meant having to relocate the battery which is now attached outside the fuselage on a plywood plate attached to the wing-saddle of the plane, not terribly aerodynamic but makes battery changes between flights simple to do without opening up the plane and allows easier positioning of the battery to achieve the correct CG (Center of Gravity) balance.
The camera is activated using two RC channels, one being used to turn the camera on and off, and the other to activate the shutter. This is done using two small servos attached to a plywood plate that is attached to the top of the camera with elastic bands. Holes in the plate allow the servo arm to press the on/off and shutter switches beneath. Each servo is connected to a separate channel on a receiver inside the fuselage of the plane so that when the corresponding switch is used on the transmitter, the servo arm moves and this controls the camera. Other RC channels are used to control the standard plane funcions; rudder, elevator and throttle.
In order to fit the camera into the fuselage of the plane, it is placed at an angle looking sideways and pointing sufficiently far forward that the wing of the plane is out of view. However, this means that during a flight it can be difficult to judge what is in view of the camera, particularly when you are trying to take a picture of a specific location such as a building or a landscape feature. One of the nice things about the Fuji F20 is that it has a live video-out capability that allows you to view on an external screen what the camera is seeing. By using a 5.8GHz video down-link mounted to the front of the wing saddle plate, the camera view is sent to a receiver and LCD screen mounted to the RC transmitter. The short video below shows the remote operation of the setup on the ground.
The wings on the Radian detach and separate into two halves, which along with the fuselage and carbon-fibre wing re-inforcement rod, can all pack into a very convenient shoulder pack which make transportation simple, particularly if you need to walk a distance across fields and open land get to your ideal flying site.
