so ive been flying part 107 for about two years now, mostly doing real estate stuff on the side while keeping my day job. lately ive been getting more inquiries and had a few repeat clients and i keep thinking like... could this actually be a full time thing? the money per job is decent but its so inconsistent.

my buddy who does wedding videography says the feast or famine thing is just part of freelance life and you get used to it, but drone work feels even more weather dependent than regular video so idk. i live in the midwest so winters are basically a dead zone for outdoor shoots anyway.

curious if anyone has actually made the jump to doing this full time and what it actually looks like day to day. not just the flying part but like finding clients, dealing with contracts, all that stuff nobody talks about. is real estate even worth focusing on or should i be trying to get into construction or infrastructure inspections instead

made the jump about three years ago and honestly the first year was rough. real estate kept the lights on but the margins are thin because everyone with a mavic thinks they can do it for $150 a shoot and clients shop around hard. where i started actually making real money was getting into construction progress documentation ? developers want regular site visits, like weekly or biweekly, so you build these ongoing relationships instead of one-off jobs. way more predictable once you land a few of those contracts.

the inspection side is where the industry seems to be heading but you need additional certs and sometimes specific equipment depending on what you're inspecting. cell towers and roofing are probably the easier entry points. id say keep the day job until you have at least 3 months of expenses saved AND a couple of retainer-style clients locked in. thats what i wish i had done instead of just jumping

following this thread because im kind of in the same boat. just passed my 107 in the spring and been doing a few jobs here and there but havent really figured out how to market myself yet. the real estate thing seems super saturated in my area at least