Late last month the Federal Government changed drone laws in Australia making more commerical photography work legal, however there's a condition that might surprise some surf photographers.

Till now, the only legal way to fly drones for commerical use has been to acquire a complex and costly licence before launching, hence many drone users inadvertently or otherwise broke the law by flying unlicensed drones and capturing surf images. Imagery sold to surf media fell into this category, as did a video uploaded to YouTube if the user received ad revenue.

The legislative amendment approved last week allows for operators of drones under two kilograms to conduct commercial work without needing the aforementioned license. CASA’s Director of Aviation Safety, Mark Skidmore, said the changes to the remotely piloted aircraft regulations maintain appropriate safety standards while cutting red tape.

“While safety must always come first, CASA’s aim is to lighten the regulatory requirements where we can,” Mr Skidmore said.

“People intending to utilise the new very small category of commercial operations should understand this can only be done if the standard operating conditions are strictly followed and CASA is notified."

Interestingly, although the amendment cuts the red tape there is an operating condition that forbids drone flight at some of Australia's best waves. That rule states that no drone user can fly within 5.5 km of any airport.

Waves which fall into this no fly zone include Snapper Rocks and Kirra (Coolangatta Airport), Lennox Head (Ballina Airport), and Black Rock (Jervis Bay Airport). It also includes some waves that are not cool to mention here, meaning it's even less cool to fly a drone and record a session.

Whether the no fly rules get policed - or in fact, how they might be policed - remains to be seen.

The new drone laws come into effect on 29th September 2016.