so ive been flying for about 2 years now, got my part 107 last spring, and ive been doing a few small jobs here and there for real estate agents in my area. nothing huge, just maybe 3-4 shoots a month and its honestly been going pretty well. the agents seem happy, i get decent reviews, and one of them has been sending me referrals which i did not expect at all.

but my actual day job is just... exhausting. and lately ive been wondering if i could actually make this drone thing work full time. i know everyone says the market is saturated but like, is it really that saturated if youre actually good and reliable? the guys i keep hearing complaints about from clients are people who showed up late or delivered garbage edited footage. i feel like just being professional puts you ahead of half the competition already.

has anyone here actually made the jump to full time? what did your first year look like, was it terrifying, did you diversify into other things like inspections or mapping or stick mostly to one niche? genuinely curious how people structured it

made the jump about 3 years ago and yeah the first 6 months were genuinely stressful. i kept one foot in my old job doing part time consulting just to keep the lights on while i built up the client base. the real estate work is fine for getting started but the margins get squeezed fast once you factor in editing time, travel, gear maintenance. what really changed things for me was picking up a couple of construction companies that needed progress documentation - they want flights every two weeks, same site, nothing glamorous but it's recurring income which is everything when youre freelance.

your point about reliability is spot on honestly. i got a long term client literally because their previous guy no-showed a commercial shoot. just showing up and being easy to work with goes a long way. not saying talent doesnt matter but professionalism will get you further faster than you think

following this thread because im in almost the exact same boat lol. part 107, doing real estate on weekends, wondering if its sustainable. one thing i heard is that mapping and photogrammetry work pays way better than photo/video but you need different skills and software. anyone gone that route