First “paying gig” for real estate developer

[cknipp]

Shot this with original Mavic Mini. I used no filters on camera. Edited using iMovie. Did not color correction. Only edited the cuts and fades and added texts. I would appreciate any feedback. I have never shot this much property before.

Real Estate Development

Thanks!
CKnipp

 

[CanadaDrone]

Overall good first effort in my opinion.

My critiques (again mostly just my opinion):

1) The horizon does not look completely level to me in some shots, mostly at the beginning - maybe calibrate the gimbal. Could also be a bit of an illusion with the hills on the horizon or some wind blowing the drone, but it looked slightly off to my eye.

2) You never want to have movement or gimbal corrections in your final product, as those are very distracting. Just as one example, 3:00 - 3:12 or so, you make a lot of small, choppy yaw adjustments to the drone and also to the gimbal. Basically, you want to completely avoid that in your final product. Each clip should be a continuous, smooth, deliberate motion of some kind. If you do want to move the gimbal down, do so slowly and for the entire clip (I don't have a Mini but on other drones you can adjust the speed and acceleration of the gimbal to make it super smooth). If you do want the drone to yaw one way, do so for the entire clip at a constant speed, cutting out the parts where the movement stops and starts. Anytime there is brief, abrupt movement in the footage it's really obvious and looks out of place, so you just want to cut those out completely - you will never see a professional video of any kind with those types of movements. If you are making adjustments because you don't have the framing you want, it's always better to re-fly it rather than make adjustments mid-footage unless you can cut around the adjustments in post-processing without impacting your final product.

3) Avoid flying right into the sun if at all possible (eg. 2:00 mark). Because you're shooting at a constant exposure (good), when the scene changes brightness so dramatically, the whole image will wash out, the sky goes white, and you get lens flare. It would be better to fly that particular shot sequence at a different time of day or from a different angle, if at all possible. If you want to do 360 degree views/panos, noon would be the best time to do that so that the sun is as high as possible above you.

I don't know what you were asked for, or the exact intended usage, so it's hard to comment on overall length but 6min is on the longer side for a single subject matter.

Otherwise great job, I think it was shot at a good altitude and showcased the area quite nicely.

 

[Robert Prior]

Agree with CanadaDrone. I assume this is raw footage for your final product?

It seemed long and slow-paced — as a sales pitch it might be better if it was shorter and punchier. My niece the filmmaker says not to go more than a breath without something happening onscreen.

For 360, if the sun is a problem consider shooting a 360° HDR panorama, and animating it with a Ken Burns effect (which iMovie can do). Most photo editing software can handle panoramas and HDR nowadays.

This chap has some good tutorials for real estate videos:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJn5p3dpcOF0zFXlyFqKtWA

These were useful when I started flying:

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[Cymruflyer]

Way too long, you could have shown everything you needed to show in much less than half the time you used here. Look at it again and ask yourself how many times did I see the same piece of land being filmed from a slightly different angle. Then ask yourself if it added anything to the overall idea of the film. If it added nothing new, other than a slightly different angle, then it was not needed and should be cut out.

Too long an intro flight, you could have chopped that up with a side angle and a straight down angle edited into that whole long scene, plus cut the entire thing into three short sections as you flew backwards. We did not need to see the entire flight, just the start, a piece of the middle and a piece of the end, to get the same affect of that whole lengthy scene.

Cut out all flight adjustment directions and angles that you left in this footage, it shouts beginner to the viewer and non pro to the client. From what you shot, you could edit this right down and have a more punchy piece showing everything you needed and maybe change the sound track to a slightly more upbeat piece of music. Your choice was okay, but is just lulling people to sleep as they watch it.

Something to remember when filming, always leave the viewer wanting more, never show enough of anything to make the viewer feel they have seen enough, or they won't want to come back. Always leave them wanting more.

 

[cknipp]

Way too long, you could have shown everything you needed to show in much less than half the time you used here. Look at it again and ask yourself how many times did I see the same piece of land being filmed from a slightly different angle. Then ask yourself if it added anything to the overall idea of the film. If it added nothing new, other than a slightly different angle, then it was not needed and should be cut out.

Too long an intro flight, you could have chopped that up with a side angle and a straight down angle edited into that whole long scene, plus cut the entire thing into three short sections as you flew backwards. We did not need to see the entire flight, just the start, a piece of the middle and a piece of the end, to get the same affect of that whole lengthy scene.

Cut out all flight adjustment directions and angles that you left in this footage, it shouts beginner to the viewer and non pro to the client. From what you shot, you could edit this right down and have a more punchy piece showing everything you needed and maybe change the sound track to a slightly more upbeat piece of music. Your choice was okay, but is just lulling people to sleep as they watch it.

Something to remember when filming, always leave the viewer wanting more, never show enough of anything to make the viewer feel they have seen enough, or they won't want to come back. Always leave them wanting more.

Thanks for the advice! I agree.
One of my problems with this shoot is that I had the developer telling me about what length of video he wanted and what all he wanted the video to show. I totally agree that it was too long. I need to try to find the right balance between giving the guy paying me what he wants and it being a professionally done video. I definitely agree I need to clean up some of the movements etc.

Thanks again!

 

[Cymruflyer]

Tell him he knows his job and you know yours. Make the short punchy video edits, show that to him. Then when he is happy, show him the long drawn out current piece and ask him which he feels his clients would rather watch.

 

[cknipp]

Yes, I did that for the second shoot I did for him. I shot two adjoining pieces of land that was over 250 acres. After flying in cinematic mode getting everything he asked me to capture. I doubled the speed of the video cut the link down to 11 minutes. YIKES! I hated it!

I edited that down to seven minutes.

Then I edited it down even more to about three minutes.

I sent him all three!

He paid me for the shoot, but he does not communicate very well. Kind of frustrating on my end because I’m doing all this work trying to guess it what he wants. Yet, he did pay me and it’s decent side money for me.

I’m not really a pro at filming with a drone. My wife does professional photography and I do lighting with her on our shoots.

I got a Mavic mini for fun and to use for some stuff I make for church. I’m a children’s pastor full-time.

During 2020 we had to shut down church and so I started using her Canon DSLR mirrorless camera to film a children’s TV show to teach kids the Bible at home.
Next thing you know I have senior living facilities company based out of my area wanting to hire me to do production for them because they had to let go of their full-time production team.

After that this guy wanted me to shoot stuff with my drone for his property development.

It’s fun and I’m learning to be as professional as I can. I appreciate all the tips and insight!

Be blessed,
CKnipp

 

[Cymruflyer]

Hopefully you have your FAA Part 107 or else you are opening yourself to a hefty fine, if caught doing this without your 107.

 

[cknipp]

Yeah, I’m looking into taking the part 107 exam if I want to continue doing this. I technically never charged him anything for the shoots. I did it for him for fun as a hobbyist. He insisted on paying me. So I’ve kind of stumbled into it accidentally.

I never even heard of the part 107 until after I filmed 2 properties for him. I have not filmed anything else for him since. It was when I started investigating how to be better at it that I discovered the part 107.

The 2 shoots I’ve done have been in very rural areas. I’ve only been spotted by a few cows. ?

CKnipp

 

[Cymruflyer]

Even if it is for free, it is to better someone's business and that is where they get you, because that is against the current law. You don't need to worry about the cows, you need to be concerned that someone might not be happy with what you are doing and report you. Might be a competitor or local person wanting to get into that business. Just keep that in mind to keep yourself safe. You never know where someone may show what you did for them, even for free.

 

[cknipp]

Yeah, I’m looking into taking the part 107 exam if I want to continue doing this. I technically never charged him anything for the shoots. I did it for him for fun as a hobbyist. He insisted on paying me. So I’ve kind of stumbled into it accidentally.

I never even heard of the part 107 until after I filmed 2 properties for him. I have not filmed anything else for him since. It was when I started investigating how to be better at it that I discovered the part 107.

The 2 shoots I’ve done have been in very rural areas. I’ve only been spotted by a few cows. ?

CKnipp

… the clip I added here is so rough due to my inexperience and I was not actually doing it as a business to get paid. It was a rush job for sure. I shot the footage one morning then went to Starbucks and clipped it together on iMovie real quick that afternoon and sent it over. An affiliate of his (and mutual friend) was with me when editing. He was the one insisting on the length of video and what shots to included to showcase what they wanted to show these specific buyers that wanted to see the property.

They asked me how much and I told them I was doing it for them for fun and as a favor for my friend. I told them I had no idea how to price anything like that anyway. He said they would pay me $1,000. I told them that sounded great to me.

The next week I shot something for our church for free because they know I have the Mini.

Then I shot the second property for that developer.

I could only ever shoot part time because my first priority is the kids and families at our church.

In the mean time while researching drones and learning to get better; I discovered the Part 107. I really enjoy flying and filming. Just trying to decide if I want to do so commercially on the side or if it will be too much of a distraction to my priorities.

Again, appreciate the advice!

CKnipp

 

[MavicAir2Marc]

Not being a drone cop but being paid is not a criteria for being a Part 107 job. Anything that is not strictly for fun, which means flying FOR anyone is Part 107 Territory. Glad to see you're studying up for the test. You won't have to worry about that afterwards. I agree with most of the criticism already stared. People will usually stop watching on longer pieces after about 2 or 3 minutes unless there is something that keeps their attention. Thats why Hollywood trailer editors get big money for a 2 minute edit. Keep practicing and learning, you'll get there!

 

[BigAl07]

My 2 cents (take it for what you paid for it: (I've not read the other comments so this may be redundant)

1) Get your Part 107 YESTERDAY! You're already breaking the rules and that's just not a good look for anyone wanting to do the right thing and appear to be a professional. Anything you do that is not 100% Hobby/Recreational falls fully under Part 107 and you're putting you, your company, and your CLIENT at risk for anything you create without being Part 107. If you have any questions about the legality of this reach out to the Nashville TN FSDO and they can verify these statements and give guidance going forward:

https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/field_offices/fsdo/bna/

(615) 324-1300 or send an email to [email protected]

2) Great work especially for your first Drone "GIG". Keep at it.

3) Way too long.... Here's how we handle people who want a mini-series on their property:
"We charge per minute of finished video and we are more than happy to take as much $$ as you want to give away but most Real Estate videos get boring after 50 or so seconds. Any more than that they lose interest and start thinking about what they are doing for supper this evening etc. The Sweet Spot is the 1-2 minute mark. Remember you're only wanting to show them enough HIGHLIGHTS to where they say, "Oh man I've got to reach out to So-n-So and get more information on that jewel ASAP". You're not trying to show every detail/aspect of the listing in this one video. Keep it simple and keep it refined."

4) Edit out those camera/gimbal adjustments. They are distracting and pull the viewer out of the experience.

5) Change up your style/technique more. Way too many "back away/reveals" for a single video. I understand that shot has the WOW factor and is a Must Have in many videos but after one or two I wouldn't repeat it in the same video. Mix it up to keep your viewer interested and not "anticipating" your actions.

6) The feel/pace of the video seems a bit slow. Maybe speed it up just a pinch. You could speed up some sections and then slow back to normal for areas justifying the additional focus/time.

7) Don't show/highlight same areas if possible. The first portion of your video seems to keep coming back to the "clearing/landing" area. Bounce around with various Points Of Interest and once an area has been highlighted go to the next one.

8) Try to never be IN your work. Sometimes it's almost impossible to not be but we go to great extremes to never be IN the final cut. We hide behind shrubs, trees, walls etc to stay out of the shot. Once in a while you can see a pants leg or an elbow in one of our shots if you know where to look but never a full person. Also many MLS will reject a video that has people or anything identifying (license plates, Real Estate signs etc) in the video or pics. When they see you in the video/image it pulls them out of the "scene" which is the opposite of what you want. You want them picturing themself in the drone viewing THEIR property.

9) This may just have been a mistake but never show the same information more than once.... at two different places you denote the amount of shoreline which causes the viewer to again get distracted (didn't I already see that information? What am I getting it confused with?).

10) Work on getting shots from various heights. Most of your work seems to be fairly on the same altitude but take full advantage of the ability to shoot from ground level to way high (less than 400' though). Maybe a shot running along the water just a few feet above the water's surface looking at the trees/shoreline could add some WOW!

Experiment and have FUN!!

 

[cknipp]

My 2 cents (take it for what you paid for it: (I've not read the other comments so this may be redundant)

1) Get your Part 107 YESTERDAY! You're already breaking the rules and that's just not a good look for anyone wanting to do the right thing and appear to be a professional. Anything you do that is not 100% Hobby/Recreational falls fully under Part 107 and you're putting you, your company, and your CLIENT at risk for anything you create without being Part 107. If you have any questions about the legality of this reach out to the Nashville TN FSDO and they can verify these statements and give guidance going forward:

https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/field_offices/fsdo/bna/

(615) 324-1300 or send an email to [email protected]

2) Great work especially for your first Drone "GIG". Keep at it.

3) Way too long.... Here's how we handle people who want a mini-series on their property:
"We charge per minute of finished video and we are more than happy to take as much $$ as you want to give away but most Real Estate videos get boring after 50 or so seconds. Any more than that they lose interest and start thinking about what they are doing for supper this evening etc. The Sweet Spot is the 1-2 minute mark. Remember you're only wanting to show them enough HIGHLIGHTS to where they say, "Oh man I've got to reach out to So-n-So and get more information on that jewel ASAP". You're not trying to show every detail/aspect of the listing in this one video. Keep it simple and keep it refined."

4) Edit out those camera/gimbal adjustments. They are distracting and pull the viewer out of the experience.

5) Change up your style/technique more. Way too many "back away/reveals" for a single video. I understand that shot has the WOW factor and is a Must Have in many videos but after one or two I wouldn't repeat it in the same video. Mix it up to keep your viewer interested and not "anticipating" your actions.

6) The feel/pace of the video seems a bit slow. Maybe speed it up just a pinch. You could speed up some sections and then slow back to normal for areas justifying the additional focus/time.

7) Don't show/highlight same areas if possible. The first portion of your video seems to keep coming back to the "clearing/landing" area. Bounce around with various Points Of Interest and once an area has been highlighted go to the next one.

8) Try to never be IN your work. Sometimes it's almost impossible to not be but we go to great extremes to never be IN the final cut. We hide behind shrubs, trees, walls etc to stay out of the shot. Once in a while you can see a pants leg or an elbow in one of our shots if you know where to look but never a full person. Also many MLS will reject a video that has people or anything identifying (license plates, Real Estate signs etc) in the video or pics. When they see you in the video/image it pulls them out of the "scene" which is the opposite of what you want. You want them picturing themself in the drone viewing THEIR property.

9) This may just have been a mistake but never show the same information more than once.... at two different places you denote the amount of shoreline which causes the viewer to again get distracted (didn't I already see that information? What am I getting it confused with?).

10) Work on getting shots from various heights. Most of your work seems to be fairly on the same altitude but take full advantage of the ability to shoot from ground level to way high (less than 400' though). Maybe a shot running along the water just a few feet above the water's surface looking at the trees/shoreline could add some WOW!

Experiment and have FUN!!

Thanks! I appreciate your detailed feedback. And I don’t mind some redundancy. If several of you are saying the similar things that only confirms I’m getting good feedback. ?

Blessings,
CKnipp

 

[umanbean]

My 2 cents (take it for what you paid for it:

Thank you, and the others who replied, and the OP.

I learned a lot from this thread!

 

[Pilot Adam]

Yes, I did that for the second shoot I did for him. I shot two adjoining pieces of land that was over 250 acres. After flying in cinematic mode getting everything he asked me to capture. I doubled the speed of the video cut the link down to 11 minutes. YIKES! I hated it!

I edited that down to seven minutes.

Then I edited it down even more to about three minutes.

I sent him all three!

He paid me for the shoot, but he does not communicate very well. Kind of frustrating on my end because I’m doing all this work trying to guess it what he wants. Yet, he did pay me and it’s decent side money for me.

I’m not really a pro at filming with a drone. My wife does professional photography and I do lighting with her on our shoots.

I got a Mavic mini for fun and to use for some stuff I make for church. I’m a children’s pastor full-time.

During 2020 we had to shut down church and so I started using her Canon DSLR mirrorless camera to film a children’s TV show to teach kids the Bible at home.
Next thing you know I have senior living facilities company based out of my area wanting to hire me to do production for them because they had to let go of their full-time production team.

After that this guy wanted me to shoot stuff with my drone for his property development.

It’s fun and I’m learning to be as professional as I can. I appreciate all the tips and insight!

Be blessed,
CKnipp

It's good that you have assistant to do editing. I didn't see the clip, but keep at it!