a buddy of mine does wedding videography and keeps asking me to come shoot aerials at events with him. ive done it twice now as kind of a favor and it went fine but im wondering if its actually a viable thing to pursue on its own or if its just always going to be a side thing you bolt onto other video work.

the main thing that makes me nervous is the airspace situation - most venues are either in controlled airspace or have weird temporary restrictions and every time i look it up its a different answer depending on the day. got authorization both times through laanc but it felt like i was cutting it close on the timeline. also not sure what to charge, my buddy just gave me like 200 bucks each time which felt low but i didnt want to make it weird since hes the one with the client relationship.

curious if anyone does this regularly and how they handle the logistics and pricing side of it.

200 for event aerials is definitely on the low end, especially if youre handling your own airspace authorization and bringing your own gear. i usually charge somewhere between 400 and 600 for a few hours at an event depending on complexity and whether they want edited footage or just raw files. if your buddy is billing the client for video services he's probably making enough that cutting you in more fairly isnt a big ask - worth having that conversation, just frame it as you wanting to make it a proper arrangement going forward.

the laanc stuff gets easier once youre used to it, i barely think about it anymore. the bigger headache for events honestly is the crowds and the unpredictability - someone always walks into your landing zone, batteries run out at the worst moment, that kind of thing. its manageable but you do need to stay sharp the whole time in a way you dont when you're shooting an empty field or a rooftop.

yeah the pricing thing with friends is always awkward. i did a few gigs cheap for people i knew and then it kind of locked in an expectation that was hard to walk back later. not saying dont do it but just be intentional about what rate you set early on becuase people remember what you charged them the first time.