been flying for about 2 years now got my part 107 last year and im thinking about trying to make this more than just a weekend hobby. keep seeing all these posts about people doing real estate photography and inspection work but honestly most of the gigs ive found on upwork and stuff are pretty lowball. like $150 for a whole property shoot which seems crazy when you factor in travel time and editing

so im curious - anyone here actually making enough to pay the bills doing drone work? what kind of jobs are worth pursuing and which ones should i avoid. thinking about maybe focusing on construction or solar inspections since those seem more technical

Real estate is oversaturated now everyone and their brother has a mavic and thinks theyre a photographer. I do mostly industrial inspections - cell towers, wind turbines, that kind of stuff. Takes more training and certifications but the pay is way better. Started at $75/hr now getting $120-150 depending on the job. Takes time to build relationships with the right companies though

ive been doing this for 3 years and yeah its possible but you gotta diversify. i do real estate when its busy season, some wedding stuff, agricultural mapping for local farms, and just started getting into roof inspections for insurance companies. the key is building relationships with local businesses instead of competing on those freelance sites. also learn some basic editing skills if you havent already - most clients expect at least color correction included in the price