(gentle music) - [Narrator] Floating, up high over Maryland, looking down at her beauty seems almost effortless.

But filming "Maryland By Air" took months of planning and effort.

(upbeat music) From its thundering shoreline to its majestic mountains, pilots, cinematographers, and directors chartered a course over Maryland, covering the furthest reaches of the state.

They flew a helicopter to capture wide sweeping vistas, (upbeat music) and sent camera drones into low altitude airspace to get up close and intimate views.

(upbeat music) This is the story of how "Maryland By Air" was made.

Climb aboard as we take you a behind the scenes.

(upbeat music) (plane engine roaring) It's dawn, and the throttle opens, lifting the Silver Queen into the skies over Maryland.

(upbeat music) The crew of this World War II era biplane would be tour guides, showing audiences a special bird's eye view of the state.

- Well, my airplane's a good friend.

It's nothing like it, as you all can see, and it's enjoying this filming operation as much as I am.

(upbeat music) - [Narrator] Tailing the Silver Queen, filming the aerial sequences is the crew of this Bell 407 helicopter, director, cinematographer, and pilot.

- I love the plane.

I didn't know what it was gonna look like until this morning, but it's a very pretty plane.

It's very nostalgic, and it's been fun flying next to it.

- [Narrator] Flights occurred in late summer and early autumn, when the air was clear and the sun lower in the sky, bathing the plane in a golden light.

- It's amazing.

I mean, the sun hits the airplane, the helicopter's following.

We just got some amazing shots.

It's just, it's one of those things where you have to get up early, you get the first light, but it's really worth it.

(upbeat music) - So air to air is when you have one aircraft sitting next to another aircraft, filming 'em from one aircraft to the other.

(upbeat music) Sometimes we'll fall in behind, and sometimes we'll fall on the other side, sometimes above, sometimes below.

(upbeat music) - [Narrator] Filming air to air, with one aircraft chasing the other, demands precision piloting.

- [Richard] It is kinda like a dance in the sky.

We are obviously talking to each other all the time, so he knows where I'm at and I know where he's at.

Yeah, it is, it's like a ballet, if you will.

(upbeat music) - [Narrator] Months before liftoff, locations were remotely scouted, and flight plans developed.

- It takes a lot of work to show Maryland from above.

I mean, we've got helicopters, we've got a steerman here.

A lot of coordination, a lot of preplanning, just to get all these moving parts into place, especially with, you want good weather, we want sunshine.

You want to show its best light.

- [Narrator] The crew must calculate the time it takes shuttling from one target to the next, and the time spent over the target to acquire the necessary shots.

- [Richard] The challenge for this whole project is trying to coordinate where we're supposed to be when we're supposed to be there.

Of course, there are always things that pop up that you weren't expecting.

Just happened to see a really nice shot that you hadn't planned on, and you gotta figure out on the fly.

Do we want this shot or do we wanna go to the next one?

(upbeat music) - [Narrator] Every two hours, they must have land the helicopter and refuel.

- We flew just about seven hours yesterday.

I'm sure we'll get about six hours maybe today.

So there are long days.

So right now, we're about halfway through the day, but it's only 9:00 am, so back in the saddle.

(laughing) (upbeat music) - [Narrator] Cinematographer Richie McDonald bolted a special remote-controlled gyro-stabilized camera to the nose of the aircraft, which he operates from the comforts of the cockpit.

(upbeat music) The gyros are remarkable.

They buffet the camera from high wind, turbulence, and the vibrations caused by the rotors.

This footage shows the bounce and vibration of the chopper in flight.

But the camera gyros eliminate the shake.

The shots are rock steady.

- [Richard] Richie and I work together.

He's working the camera, I'm flying.

So for me, it's just keeping as steady of a hand as possible with a stick, but that camera happens to have a gyro in it.

So even if we do get bounced around, you'd never know how windy or bumpy it is.

(upbeat music) - [Narrator] Whether flying out in the middle of the bay, (upbeat music) over Chesapeake Bay Bridge, (upbeat music) into Baltimore's inner harbor, (upbeat music) or circling Thomas Point Lighthouse, (upbeat music) every shot had to be as smooth as silk.

While the helicopter crew captured sweeping vistas, (drone flying) pilots flew drones for more closeup views of the state.

(upbeat music) They threaded the needle into special places, some remote and solitary, (gentle music) others old and charming, (gentle music) taking viewers right into the heart of Mother Nature.

(gentle music) Pilots even obtained permission to fly in restricted airspace.

- And I'm gonna use the camera to-- - [Narrator] Only a remote pilot in command who is licensed by the Federal Aviation Administration and has obtained the necessary waivers can operate at a pro sporting event.

(gentle music) It takes a professional pilot to conduct such an operation, and would be dangerous and illegal for amateurs to try.

The production used 360-degree cameras that can see everything in just one shot, no matter where the camera is pointed.

(gentle music) Here, the 360 cam was clamped to a hang glider in flight.

- Woo!

(gentle music) - [Narrator] 360 cameras were also mounted to the wing wires of the biplane, seen here as it taxis for take off.

(gentle music) Up in the air, it's almost as if the 360 cam is now a bird, flying alongside the Silver Queen, looking back at her crew.

(gentle music) In shots like these, both the thrill of flight and the beauty of Maryland are unmistakable.

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