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PLEASE CRITIQUE - First commercial job, new Culvers!

UAV_C_A

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fox lake illinois
Good day to you, new member here.
I had the pleasure of taking some drone shots at the request of the owner of my local town's newest restaurant..CULVERS!

PLEASE critique this photo and if you want, head to the flikr link for the rest Culver's Fox Lake
I need to know what to work on, to improve our drone communities reputation around me locally!

THANKS GUYS, HAPPY TO BE A PART OF THE FORUM

 
Nice picture of the marina but the subject is hard to see. I suggest shooting same picture when sun is 180 degrees different and maybe a bit lower.
Man, that place has a clean roof! Must be brand new.
 
The parking lot and the ugly HVAC equipment are the most prominent things in the photo. Just because it's a drone doesn't mean it always needs to be 50ft in the air, none of the guests of the place will ever see it from that perspective.. Drop down to roughly the altitude of the flag, get the restaurant logo prominently in view, keep the flag in the shot if you feel patriotic, hide the HVAC gear behind the top of the building.. the whole thing is just too busy and honestly if you didn't mention it I wouldn't even notice it's a restaurant..
 
Nice picture of the marina but the subject is hard to see. I suggest shooting same picture when sun is 180 degrees different and maybe a bit lower.
Man, that place has a clean roof! Must be brand new.

Thanks for the reply. I was at a bit of a time constraint between personal plans and plans inside this Culvers, so I had to make due. Also, the building is at an angle and right on a main stretch of roadway so this angle was the only one I could do for a shot like this. The brightness of the sun in the upper left is an issue for me, but I had to deal with it. And there is no post work done on this photo, so I didn't correct it.
I did want to get the entire area in the photo to show the surrounding area for building placement. This photo will be hung up in this building this weekend.
Yes the building was finished just 1 week prior, this is at a time when the restaurant was not even open to the public yet!

Thanks for the photo review!
 
The parking lot and the ugly HVAC equipment are the most prominent things in the photo. Just because it's a drone doesn't mean it always needs to be 50ft in the air, none of the guests of the place will ever see it from that perspective.. Drop down to roughly the altitude of the flag, get the restaurant logo prominently in view, keep the flag in the shot if you feel patriotic, hide the HVAC gear behind the top of the building.. the whole thing is just too busy and honestly if you didn't mention it I wouldn't even notice it's a restaurant..
I agree with you, I was trying to get the entire area and from a high vantage point. Didn't quite realize the business of the roof during this shoot. Plus it was 2 degrees out so I was feeling rushed to get it done!
thanks for this feedback!
 
Did you get paid in ButterBurgers for life? People all rave about In N Out here in SoCal but they've never had a ButterBurger from Culvers :)

Nice shot, my advice would be to shoot lower to reduce roof exposure, also shooting at a later or earlier time of day with a lower sun angle will reduce the hard blown out light and create some nice shadowing.

Grab some ButterBurgers from the stock room next time as well and send them to Advexure.
 
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As the others mentioned, I recommend coming down a bit lower and center up the restaurant logo.

You need to make it clear straight up that the restaurant is your subject.

Otherwise it looks like quite a peaceful area. If you could capture some of the water to the right of the restaurant, it could work well.
 
Yep I think darn good advice from all the posters above! Lower, think about composure more.
And maybe invest in LR or something???
First impressions count, so if this is your first commercial job, you need to make it POP!
Praps tell the new owner s that this was a quicky, but you'll come back with the actual photo in a day or two, then knock em outa the ball park!!
none.jpg none.jpg
 
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Did you get paid in ButterBurgers for life? People all rave about In N Out here in SoCal but they've never had a ButterBurger from Culvers :)

Nice shot, my advice would be to shoot lower to reduce roof exposure, also shooting at a later or earlier time of day with a lower sun angle will reduce the hard blown out light and create some nice shadowing.

Grab some ButterBurgers from the stock room next time as well and send them to Advexure.
WILL TRADE your In and Out Burger for our Culver's !! anyday ! ...... I miss my home state,
 
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Guys I think that Culvers wanted the shot just like it is, do to the fact they wanted the water and surroundings of the new place.
 
WILL TRADE your In and Out Burger for our Culver's !! anyday ! ...... I miss my home state,

Deal. Where do we sign? :D
 
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HAHA No Culvers for life:(
-Yeah the whole "idea" was to capture the entire environment of the restaurant as to what was around the building in the water. I was almost over the highway in that shot so it would have been just that much more difficult to go back any and include the electric wires directly behind the drone so yep, I had to deal with this shot.
I am going back this Saturday morning, there is a small section of airspace that will allow me a lower, more "subject based" photo, but I may lose the surroundings in the back.

Just have to wiggle that little drone all over the place and fill up that card, bound to get that PERFECT photo!
 
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Yep I think darn good advice from all the posters above! Lower, think about composure more.
And maybe invest in LR or something???
First impressions count, so if this is your first commercial job, you need to make it POP!
Praps tell the new owner s that this was a quicky, but you'll come back with the actual photo in a day or two, then knock em outa the ball park!!
View attachment 28934 View attachment 28934

Thanks, nice edit. LR is a good program I will get this today. It was first commercial job, did it as a favor to the owner!
 
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Good day to you, new member here.
I had the pleasure of taking some drone shots at the request of the owner of my local town's newest restaurant..CULVERS!

PLEASE critique this photo and if you want, head to the flikr link for the rest Culver's Fox Lake
I need to know what to work on, to improve our drone communities reputation around me locally!

THANKS GUYS, HAPPY TO BE A PART OF THE FORUM


Take this fwiw from someone who shot 700+ properties last year - real estate whether it be residential or commercial is about angles. This angle would have been one of 10-20 that I would have provided along with the other suggestions like coming down and being closer to the building/sign. I would have also captured all four corners plus a top-down shot. Speaking of the time of day, I would have shot it closer to sunrise or sunset given the fact that the entrance and sign face North West, and there will never be sun on that side of the building (even on the longest day of the year). I could see a a shot around 30-50 feet from the North East entrance side, utilizing the golden or blue hour. If you bracket (HDR) the images, you also might have better control. If you attempt this shot, also make sure that all the building lights are on.
 
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Take this fwiw from someone who shot 700+ properties last year - real estate whether it be residential or commercial is about angles. This angle would have been one of 10-20 that I would have provided along with the other suggestions like coming down and being closer to the building/sign. I would have also captured all four corners plus a top-down shot. Speaking of the time of day, I would have shot it closer to sunrise or sunset given the fact that the entrance and sign face North West, and there will never be sun on that side of the building (even on the longest day of the year). I could see a a shot around 30-50 feet from the North East entrance side, utilizing the golden or blue hour. If you bracket (HDR) the images, you also might have better control. If you attempt this shot, also make sure that all the building lights are on.

Here are all photos provided that day Culver's Fox Lake
 
Here are all photos provided that day Culver's Fox Lake

I think the very last one works.

Using that same angle, I would have pulled back and lowered the altitude to just above the flag pole. Doing this allows me to crop and not have so much of a downward angle that could distort the building. There have been times where I have not used a drone and instead opted for a camera pole (18-foot painters pole with a 5DMKIV & 14mm fired by Canon Connect app).
 
I think the very last one works.

I agree with you Sir!
However, overall, I think I would reshoot it and get it spot on!!
The OP has a distinct advantage in that he did the shoot, posted it up for us to critique, then go back and get the gun shot!!!
For us, the shoot may be the only chance we get!!
And man....700 jobs for the year? wow!! Good stuff!
 
I agree with you Sir!
However, overall, I think I would reshoot it and get it spot on!!
The OP has a distinct advantage in that he did the shoot, posted it up for us to critique, then go back and get the gun shot!!!
For us, the shoot may be the only chance we get!!
And man....700 jobs for the year? wow!! Good stuff!

Real Estate photos are my main source of income during the week (I shoot commercial, weddings, kids sports leagues and corporate events too). A majority of that 700 was residential, and of that, 5-7% was aerial stills/video. I have to look back at my numbers, but I think I might have done more pole shots (camera on pole) than aerial. I know several times where an aerial order would be submitted, and I made the call not to fly because it didn't make $ense. My realtors trust me enough to make that call, so those times that I did, they would get elevated shots via a pole. I am hoping that 2018 aerials will be 10-15% of my work.
 
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