so ive been flying for about two years now, mostly just recreational stuff and a few small jobs for friends, and ive been seriously considering trying to turn this into actual income. i have my part 107 and a mavic 3 pro setup and honestly i feel like im at that point where i either commit to it or just keep doing it as a hobby forever.

the thing is i dont really know where to start in terms of finding actual paying clients. ive seen people talk about real estate photography being the low hanging fruit but i also hear its oversaturated and the pay has dropped a lot. i do live near a mid-sized city so maybe there's enough work? i just dont want to quit my day job and then realize six months in that im making like $200 a month.

anyone here actually doing freelance drone work as their main thing? would love to hear how you got your first few clients and what kinds of jobs you're actually booking regularly.

yeah real estate is kind of a mixed bag depending on where you are honestly. when i started out like 4 years ago it felt like easy money but now every other person with a phantom is undercutting on price and the agencies have gotten used to paying almost nothing. that said i still do it as filler work between bigger jobs, its just not where i built my business.

what actually worked for me was going after construction and infrastructure clients ? progress photos, site documentation, that kind of thing. its less glamorous than cinematic real estate stuff but the contracts are longer and the clients tend to actually value your time. i got my first construction gig just by cold emailing a local development company with a link to my portfolio. took a while to hear back but once you get one of those its usually recurring work.

also dont sleep on events, not like random weddings (those can be a pain) but corporate events, festivals, that kind of thing. the budgets are usually better and they often need quick turnaround which lets you charge more.

im kind of in the same boat as you so im watching this thread closely lol. i did manage to book two real estate shoots last month through a local facebook group for realtors which was kind of surprising, just introduced myself and said i was available and a couple people reached out. didnt make a ton but it was enough to feel like it was possible i guess.