How I Combined DJI Mini 3 Pro Drone Video with Photoshop AI to Create a Story Inside a Terrarium

Shot In Rural Alberta | Edmonton Video Productions

Turning a Family Drone Shot Into an AI-Enhanced Art Piece

One of my favorite creative experiments last year brought together everything I love about drone cinematography, AI-assisted editing, and storytelling through imagery.

While hiking in the Alberta mountains with my family, I sent up my DJI Mini 3 Pro to capture a simple overhead shot — the six of us gathered on a massive rock surrounded by the rugged landscape. The frame was peaceful, honest, and full of life.

Back in the studio, I decided to explore what Photoshop’s Generative Expand could do with that single image. I pulled the still from the drone video and began experimenting — extending the edges, reshaping the environment, and using AI to blend textures and tones.

Slowly, the rocky mountainside transformed into something unexpected: a glass terrarium on a desk, as if my family was preserved inside it.
A real memory reimagined into a symbolic piece — nature, family, and time contained in a tiny world.

I paired the final edit with Lenny Kravitz’s “I Build This Garden for Us,” which gave the whole piece its rhythm and emotional tone. The music, the moment, and the message all came together — turning what began as a simple family snapshot into a story about creation, connection, and gratitude.

This project represents what I love most about combining AI with visual storytelling — it doesn’t replace emotion, it amplifies it. With tools like Photoshop’s Firefly 3 and Generative Expand, even one image can become a layered, living narrative.

Check out my surreal selfie taken with a Mini DJI 3 Pro drone and edited in Photoshop AI to create a stunning family portrait video placing us inside a glass terrarium.  

Cheers
David Mathew Bonner
Edmonton Video Productions