Drone use for TV and Movies

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evapilotaz

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Gilbert AZ. VFR All Year Baby
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Drone airspace abuser
I noticed how a lot of drones are used for filming shows and movies. You can tell a drone is being used even though you don’t actually see the drone. Maybe I notice it more because i fly drones myself. You all may bash drones but it certainly changed how we see things on a screen.
 
I started calling out "drone shot!" whenever I saw one on a TV show/movie/advertisement. My wife and in-laws got tired of it pretty fast :(
 
You probably already know this, but if you have a pilot’s certificate, any grade, and a current Flight Review, you can get a Remote Pilot Certificate with Small UAS Rating which, among other things would allow commercial operation of drones under 55 lbs. It’s an IACRA process, requires a pretty simple online quiz, and is free. The key advantage of flying under Part 107, which might be occasionally useful for even the casual drone operator, is that many of the restrictions that would apply if flying it as a model aircraft are FAA waiverable through a fairly efficient process.

It didn’t require a waiver, but I recently shot some Mavic Pro 2 footage of a few homes and properties for a buddy who’s a real estate agent. Even though I didn’t charge him anything, that would be illegal without a Remote Pilot Certificate. It was fun though, and he liked the footage and editing so much that next time I’m going to charge him.
 
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"Hey wait! Whaddayamean 'charge me'? The last one was free!"
"Yeah, that was your free sample"
 
evapilotaz said:
I noticed how a lot of drones are used for filming shows and movies. You can tell a drone is being used even though you don’t actually see the drone. Maybe I notice it more because i fly drones myself. You all may bash drones but it certainly changed how we see things on a screen.
Click to expand...
Nearly all of the HGTV shows use them. It's a cheap way to get good low level aerial footage.
 
He offered to pay me since it was the agency that was paying. I declined because I’d never done that kind of video/photography before, had no idea what to charge, and didn’t want to get paid thereby committing to a quality level I might not be able to deliver. As it turns out, a) it was a lot of work b) I’m pretty good at it c) I’ve had other real estate agents call me and d) it appears to pay pretty well.

I’m going to draw the line at weddings.
 
wedding-drone-fail.gif
 
At the last wedding I attended, it was the groom (my engineer nephew) who flew the drone.
 
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