Even if you have lived in Gravesend all your life, it is unlikely you’ve ever had the chance to see it quite like this.

Amateur photographer Darrell Mills, born and bred in Gravesend and now living in Thong Lane, has used his state-of-the-art drone camera to snap pictures of the town from hundreds of metres up in the air.

Arguably his most eye-catching shots were taken at night above the pier, with buildings lit up by street lights and people settling in at home after a long day at work.

Those who head to the 38-year-old’s Facebook page, however, will be greeted with an immersive 360 degree panoramic shot of the whole town, which you can rotate and manipulate to look at from multiple angles.

If you have a virtual reality headset — the latest technology trend gripping high-end mobile phone users — you can even put yourself in the middle of the photo and look down on Gravesend as if you were in the sky yourself.

“The drones can go very high but there’s a 400 foot ceiling you can’t go past legally unless you get special permission,” Mr Mills said of his gadget.

“It was about £1,000 for the drone, plus the additional equipment like batteries and a tablet to see what the drone can see.”

Mr Mills sends the drone up using a remote control and can beam its view down to a tablet so that he can snap the pictures. They have been a big hit on social media, where he has become something of a local celebrity.

Last month his panoramic video of Hoo Marina, Fort Hoo and Fort Darnet in Medway, was watched by more than 15,000 people, and the Gravesend footage has already been viewed thousands of times.

Recalling how his hobby had started somewhat more modestly, Mr Mills said: “A few years ago my wife bought me a little remote control quad-copter to fly round the house at Christmas.

“Photography has always been a hobby. It was mainly just taking pictures of the family on my phone and stuff like that, but I’ve always had an interest in getting the best pictures I can.”

Eventually the two interests combined and now he is keen to keep growing his online presence. Being from Gravesend, he has been especially happy with how well his most recent shots have been received.

He added: “There’s a lot of history and culture and a lot to do, but people also look at Gravesend in a negative light — it’s dirty, all the shops are shutting, it’s not a very nice town.

“Gravesend’s potential is there, it’s just about showing it to people.”

To suggest somewhere for Mr Mills to film, or to see the 360 degree panoramic shot of Gravesend, search Creative Sky Media on Facebook.