ok so a guy from my neighborhood found out i fly drones and asked if i could do aerial photos for his restaurant — exterior shots, some rooftop stuff, maybe a short video for their instagram. he wants to pay me which is great but ive never actually done a paid job before and im stressing a little about making it look professional and not just like some random dude with a drone.

my gear is a mini 4 pro which i think is fine for this kind of thing? but im wondering about the business side more than anything. do i need a contract for something small like this, do i invoice him, does my part 107 cover me here or do i need extra insurance for commercial work. i have my 107 but i never really looked into what it actually covers liability wise. sorry if these are dumb questions

not dumb questions at all, these are exactly the things people skip and then regret later. yes get a simple contract, even just a one page thing you find online and modify. it protects you both and honestly it makes you look more legit not less. invoice wise just use wave or even a paypal invoice if its a small job.

on the insurance front — your part 107 cert doesnt include any liability coverage, thats a common misconception. you'll want hull and liability insurance for commercial work. Skywatch and Verifly both do pay-per-flight coverage which is pretty affordable for a one-off job like this. like a few dollars for a few hours depending on the coverage amount. definitely worth it

mini 4 pro is totaly fine for restaurant content, dont stress about the gear. just make sure you scout the location beforehand if you can and check for any airspace stuff in your area. nothing worse than showing up and realizing you need a LAANC authorization you forgot to pull. happened to me once and it was an awkward conversation with a client lol