Hello from Matthews, NC

[Aeroart]

Hi folks. I'm new to the forum and I'm a new drone pilot. I'm actually an oil painter by profession. I paint aviation art and western art. I purchased my Mavic Air 2 for the purpose of shooting high angle reference photos to use for my paintings, but one of the unexpected benefits that I immediately realized was the magnificent cloudscapes that I can now shoot! As you can imagine, being able to paint a convincing sky is a huge asset, especially with aviation subjects. Unfortunately my yard is surrounded by 40' trees which block much of my view of the sky. In order to get good sky shots I've always had to get them from somewhere other than my house. Not any more. Now if it looks like the sky might be putting on a show I can simply periscope the drone up over the trees and get magnificent 360 degree shots of the sky.

 

[dirkclod]

Welcome to the forum.
I hope you will find our site helpful and look forward to any input , photo's/video's you might post .
Don't be shy and ask anything if you can't find it by searching . ?

 

[E90RAW]

Hi folks. I'm new to the forum and I'm a new drone pilot. I'm actually an oil painter by profession. I paint aviation art and western art. I purchased my Mavic Air 2 for the purpose of shooting high angle reference photos to use for my paintings, but one of the unexpected benefits that I immediately realized was the magnificent cloudscapes that I can now shoot! As you can imagine, being able to paint a convincing sky is a huge asset, especially with aviation subjects. Unfortunately my yard is surrounded by 40' trees which block much of my view of the sky. In order to get good sky shots I've always had to get them from somewhere other than my house. Not any more. Now if it looks like the sky might be putting on a show I can simply periscope the drone up over the trees and get magnificent 360 degree shots of the sky.

Welcome from Easter NC.

 

[Mavic Mac]

Welcome to the forums - a lot of good info here. Also, the search function (magnifying glass icon upper right) is a great way to find answers to many of the questions a "newbie" will have. We were all "newbies" at one point.

You also may find this thread in the sister forums Commercial Drone Pilots interesting

Drone photography using digital art for business

I have been experimenting with with photography converting into art for a little over 11 months. Using several software to finish a project, one does stand out more than any other at this time, and that is Dynamic Auto-Painter Software. I still process the finished product using PS and CyberLink...

commercialdronepilots.com

 

[wjkrysak]

Welcome to the forum. You will find all sorts of helpful advice and support. We look forward to seeing your view of the world.

 

[BigAl07]

Welcome to the forum from extreme Western NC (up in the Smoky Mountains).

Be sure to research FAA Part 107 and NC DOT Aviation Div Commercial Drone Permit. You'll need both to stay on the "legal" side of the regulations. If you have any questions don't hesitate to reach out.

Allen

 

[Aeroart]

Thank you everyone. your replies raise a question for me already.

To be clear about what I do, I'm an oil painter (my website - Russell Smith Fine Art). I am not a professional photographer, I don't sell my photographs, and I don't plan to hire out my drone services. The photos I take with the drone are simply meant to be references for artwork, and even then I likely will only use parts of the photos. All other drone flying is simply hobby for me.

That being said, since my drone photography is simply a means to and end rather than the end result, am I still considered a commercial pilot and do I still need to take part 107?

 

[Drone Master]

Welcome to Mavic Pilots! Enjoy the forum!

 

[old man mavic]

Thank you everyone. your replies raise a question for me already.

To be clear about what I do, I'm an oil painter (my website - Russell Smith Fine Art). I am not a professional photographer, I don't sell my photographs, and I don't plan to hire out my drone services. The photos I take with the drone are simply meant to be references for artwork, and even then I likely will only use parts of the photos. All other drone flying is simply hobby for me.

That being said, since my drone photography is simply a means to and end rather than the end result, am I still considered a commercial pilot and do I still need to take part 107?

regarding your drone flying, if as you say you will only be using the images for reference in your paintings ,then that would be classed as recreational, but even so ,you still fall under the FAA rules and will need to register your drone and display the number on the drone

 

[Aeroart]

regarding your drone flying, if as you say you will only be using the images for reference in your paintings ,then that would be classed as recreational, but even so ,you still fall under the FAA rules and will need to register your drone and display the number on the drone

Very good. I already did that and I plan to stay within the parameters defined as a hobby pilot. Thanks for the reply.

 

[THE CYBORG]

Hi Aeroart Welcome to Mavic Pilots

 

[mrjohnc1]

Welcome!

 

[PistonPete]

Hello and welcome.

 

[BigAl07]

Thank you everyone. your replies raise a question for me already.

To be clear about what I do, I'm an oil painter (my website - Russell Smith Fine Art). I am not a professional photographer, I don't sell my photographs, and I don't plan to hire out my drone services. The photos I take with the drone are simply meant to be references for artwork, and even then I likely will only use parts of the photos. All other drone flying is simply hobby for me.

That being said, since my drone photography is simply a means to and end rather than the end result, am I still considered a commercial pilot and do I still need to take part 107?

If the purpose of your flight is to get DATA for anything other than hobby/recreational then the flight is Part 107. Even if only a small portion of the DATA (aka picture) is used in some way to promote or create your work it's still Part 107.

I would normally just suggest you call the FSDO for your region but you happen to be in my region (Charlotte NC region and West) so that's sort of a moot point with us LOL.

Odds are nothing will ever come of it with you not having Part 107 but if there ever was an incident (or someone reports your work etc) then it's possible we could be having a very different conversation about this.

It's so much easier to get your Part 107 so you're covered regardless plus it's VERY good to be knowledgeable about the rules & regulations. Trust me when I say people DO report non-licensed operators. I've been reported myself LOL.

FAA SAFETY Team Representative (Charlotte NC Reg)
FAA SAFETY Team Drone Pro (Charlotte NC Reg)

That means I work with my local FSDO (Charlotte NC district), and am the "education" person in the Charlotte NC district when a reported drone pilot needs to have a little assistance understanding the rules. FSDO reaches out to the reported pilot, and then reaches out to one of us if they feel the need for more info.

Allen

 

[msinger]

Welcome to the forum!

 

[Hauptmann]

Welcome to you from the wide-open spaces of Texas!

Isn't a drone a terrific camera platform? The MA2 is a fabulous machine for the beginner and the pro alike. Lots of fellow Carolinians and others of us from around the world are here to help you gain skill as a pilot and photographer. Be sure to read the manual! Be sure you practice using the “Find My Drone” App. Chances are you will and perhaps lose your MA2. Just be sure you know how to retrieve it!

Glad to have you with us!

 

[Aeroart]

If the purpose of your flight is to get DATA for anything other than hobby/recreational then the flight is Part 107. Even if only a small portion of the DATA (aka picture) is used in some way to promote or create your work it's still Part 107.

I would normally just suggest you call the FSDO for your region but you happen to be in my region (Charlotte NC region and West) so that's sort of a moot point with us LOL.

Odds are nothing will ever come of it with you not having Part 107 but if there ever was an incident (or someone reports your work etc) then it's possible we could be having a very different conversation about this.

It's so much easier to get your Part 107 so you're covered regardless plus it's VERY good to be knowledgeable about the rules & regulations. Trust me when I say people DO report non-licensed operators. I've been reported myself LOL.

FAA SAFETY Team Representative (Charlotte NC Reg)
FAA SAFETY Team Drone Pro (Charlotte NC Reg)

That means I work with my local FSDO (Charlotte NC district), and am the "education" person in the Charlotte NC district when a reported drone pilot needs to have a little assistance understanding the rules. FSDO reaches out to the reported pilot, and then reaches out to one of us if they feel the need for more info.

Allen

Thanks for the information Allen. I'll definitely be looking into 107 then, based on your advice.