Photography Business

[lockidy]

I’m interested in starting an aerial photography business to work with real estate agents and developers in my small-ish town of about 30,000 people. No one has aerial shots on their sites so I think it could bring a lot of demand once they see how powerful they are.
My only concern is being able to survive solely off of aerial photography and not having any ground capability. Is this a viable idea still?

 

[brett8883]

I’m interested in starting an aerial photography business to work with real estate agents and developers in my small-ish town of about 30,000 people. No one has aerial shots on their sites so I think it could bring a lot of demand once they see how powerful they are.
My only concern is being able to survive solely off of aerial photography and not having any ground capability. Is this a viable idea still?

I certainly wouldn’t quit your day job till you have enough to keep you going. It takes a long time to get booked up.

 

[lockidy]

I certainly wouldn’t quit your day job till you have enough to keep you going. It takes a long time to get booked up.

I’m going into my senior year of highschool so I don’t have too many responsibilities to begin with just want to get something going

 

[brett8883]

I’m going into my senior year of highschool so I don’t have too many responsibilities to begin with just want to get something going

Well then you don’t really have anything to lose. I don’t think not having ground photo capability is a problem necessarily. It limits your money making potential because you have to find more clients to get the same amount of income but I don’t think you’ll lose drone business because you don’t have ground capability

 

[Ty Pilot]

I’m interested in starting an aerial photography business to work with real estate agents and developers in my small-ish town of about 30,000 people. No one has aerial shots on their sites so I think it could bring a lot of demand once they see how powerful they are.
My only concern is being able to survive solely off of aerial photography and not having any ground capability. Is this a viable idea still?

I do real areal estate photography for my wife's photography business. To keep it short and to the point, of all of the jobs my wife does - real estate shoots are about 25% of her total jobs in a given year. Of those 25%, aerial shots (in addition to the standard interior and ground) are requested less than 1 out of ten times.

The reason for this (where we live) is simple, the housing market is on fire and property here is selling without people even setting foot on the property therefore realtors only need the minimum required shots and these are all taken from the ground. Most of the shots were I am called out is when there is a property that has a proximity (usually) to water that cannot be seen from the road or some other anomaly that can only be seen from the air.

In four years there has been no (zero) requests from any realtor to take only the aerial shots.

My advice to anyone thinking of getting into aerial imaging, keep in mind what the business is - you are a photographer, not a drone pilot. A drone is just another tool that holds a camera so think about expanding into as many areas of photography as you can.

 

[BigAl07]

In SOME areas and in SOME economies you could possibly get-by as Aerial Only but that's the exception not the rule.

In addition to what @Ty Pilot said (and I agree with the vast majority of it) look at it from a Realtor's point of view.... they are wide open with no time to spare... it's your job to SAVE them TIME and help them Make More $$. By ONLY offering aerials this means IF they call you they also have to call someone else (or go themself) to take the other pictures. This is multiple phone calls, multiple scheduling the home, and multiple payments.

We started doing this years ago when I was literally the only LEGAL Commercial UAS operator in the state of NC. At that time I was in HOT demand but today "Aerials Only" is a very tough sell. I'd say out of my last 100 shoots we did Aerials Only only about 5x.

1x the Photographer's drone had been crashed
2x the photographer didn't feel "comfortable" shooting with her drone because it was a very "technical" shoot (flying through wires, trees etc)
2x It was LAND ONLY and that's something we have a very strong reputation for doing and doing well.

In todays HOT climate many REA are literally taking Cell Phone pics and selling huge listings with just a simple pic and maybe a GIS Screen Shot.... no need to spend more time, money, and effort with it sells with minimal of efforts.


Unfortunately I know of several individuals who started with similar questions like yours but they went ahead and made that leap.... I'd estimate less than 10% of them we in business more than a few months at best. an Aerial Only venture would be a very bad BAD idea. A few years ago this was a totally different answer but today it's not a good plan.

If you want to start a business do it the right way. Learn about Running A Business (it's a lot of work and a LOT of time) and how to set it up properly from the beginning. Like a house, a Business needs a strong and sufficient foundation for long-term success. Take short cuts and you'll most likely fail short term. Take some business courses, learn how to and develop a strong and robust Business Plan and you'll be well on your to to success. These don't guarantee success but they definitely make a profound difference.

I hate to pop anyone's bubble but I think you need and deserve to hear some facts without any emotion attached to help you make a more informed and intelligent decision.

Good luck

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

The good thing is (if you don't already have a normal handheld / tripod camera) you really have an arsenal of budget cameras that can do a fine RE photography job on the ground.

All you need to have (or develop) is the composition eye for what the RE and end client wants / needs.

 

[dozzn]

As you get the ball rolling you may start getting offers for other types of drone footage as well. I think you have a great opportunity. Good luck.

 

[Volatus Drones]

Go for it. At your age you have nothing to lose and you will learn a TON about how to run a business. That first paid invoice will feel great.

 

[Dan AISCF]

I’m interested in starting an aerial photography business to work with real estate agents and developers in my small-ish town of about 30,000 people. No one has aerial shots on their sites so I think it could bring a lot of demand once they see how powerful they are.
My only concern is being able to survive solely off of aerial photography and not having any ground capability. Is this a viable idea still?

First off, it's great to see a young person delve into their own business. Good for you!
To mirror some of what others here have said: Aerial Only is going to be a bit difficult, especially for the industry you are looking to procure. REA's and Dev's are going to want interior shots as well, most likely, and as was mentioned, will probably get someone who does the complete package, for time and simplicities sake. I'll tell our story, very quickly:

Prior to getting my 107 two years ago, I had shared some aerial shots I had done on my IG. A realtor contacted me and told me they LOVED the shots and the editing work and wanted to hire me (at the time it was just I) to do their shoots. HOWEVER, they wanted everything: Ground, Aerials and Video (ground and aerial). I told them to give me 2 weeks so I could get my 107 and then I had to scramble to buy and learn how to use a mirrorless camera. All in two weeks. I walked onto the property with a Sony a6000, Weebill Lab, Phantom 4 and Youtube university, like I knew what I was doing and did the shoot for them. It turned out great and I kept getting business from them. I was hired on because their normal guy didn't do aerials.

Long and short, they needed a complete package. Fast forward to today and our housing market is so hot that Realtors aren't super gung-ho with having to hire just an aerial photographer in addition to a ground photographer, or even want video anymore. Properties are moving too fast. They just want grounds, as fast as possible, with aerials IF there is something only an aerial photo can showcase. Our last shoot was done in a FL Gulf Coast community and the house had an offer on it only 1 day after the photos hit the MLS. It DID have aerials to show off the lake, but from what the Realtor told me, the person was sold at only a few interior photos.

Hopefully this info has helped a bit. If you eventually decide on groundwork as well and want some suggestions on an affordable and light ground setup, I suggest you watch Rich Baums YT channel on the Sony a6000 series or feel free to PM me... Wish you the best in whatever you do.

 

[Cymruflyer]

There now seem to be so many pseudo or faux-tographers about, it seems everyone with a camera thinks they are professional photographer. The sad thing today is, the difference between a large pizza and a professional photographer, is that a large pizza can still feed a family of four!

As for doing this work in your area OP, check to see if anyone is offering drone photography. If there are people doing that and no REA is using aerial photographs, it may be because there is no interest in showing that sort of shot.

There is a lot to being a photographer, not just owning a camera. That thought would be like just because I own some sharp knives, I am a surgeon. Be sure you understand and can demonstrate correct exposure, composition and post production work. Don't forget, just because you own paint and a canvas does not mean you can paint like Rembrandt. Therefore, be sure you understand what makes a good aerial photo and be sure you can consistently produce such work. You then may have a chance in your area, as long as aerial photos are wanted.

 

[BigAl07]

There now seem to be so many pseudo or faux-tographers about, it seems everyone with a camera thinks they are professional photographer. The sad thing today is, the difference between a large pizza and a professional photographer, is that a large pizza can still feed a family of four!

BINGO!!

 

[Forensics_Pilot]

I’m interested in starting an aerial photography business to work with real estate agents and developers in my small-ish town of about 30,000 people. No one has aerial shots on their sites so I think it could bring a lot of demand once they see how powerful they are.
My only concern is being able to survive solely off of aerial photography and not having any ground capability. Is this a viable idea still?

I would suggest that you write a simple business plan, templates of which are numerous on the web. That will allow you to organize your thoughts and strategies along with anticipated expenses and projected revenues. After that, THEN come to the forum and seek specific advice on any unforeseen problems that you may have. Do your homework first though in getting through a simple business plan. Good luck!