Working as a North East-based drone pilot and operator, I’ve watched the television landscape change dramatically over the last few years. Budgets are tighter, productions are changing, and there’s certainly more uncertainty around where the next job is coming from.
But I’m starting to realise it’s not all doom and gloom.The skills you build as a television drone pilot — planning, risk assessment, operating professionally around people and locations, capturing cinematic footage,... Read more
Working as a North East-based drone pilot and operator, I’ve watched the television landscape change dramatically over the last few years. Budgets are tighter, productions are changing, and there’s certainly more uncertainty around where the next job is coming from.
But I’m starting to realise it’s not all doom and gloom.
The skills you build as a television drone pilot — planning, risk assessment, operating professionally around people and locations, capturing cinematic footage, understanding light and composition, working to tight briefs and delivering broadcast-quality material — are incredibly transferable.
There’s a whole world of drone work outside television.
Property and construction progress photography, roof and building inspections, tourism and hospitality content, land and estate imagery, social media content for businesses, stock footage, weddings and events, and even creating aerial assets for local companies can all provide additional income streams.
Some can become regular repeat work, while others can be more passive — such as building a library of high-quality aerial stock footage or licensing existing footage.
Television might still be a big part of what we do, but perhaps the future is about not relying on just one sector.
The drone skills are still valuable. We just need to look beyond the screen we’re used to seeing them on. 🚁
#DronePilot #DroneOperator #Television #FilmAndTV #AerialFilming #DronePhotography #NorthEast #Freelance #DroneIndustry
If you'd like, I can also make this more personal and LinkedIn-style, with a stronger North East voice and a few specific examples of how TV drone operators can turn their existing kit and skills into additional income.
But I’m starting to realise it’s not all doom and gloom.
The skills you build as a television drone pilot — planning, risk assessment, operating professionally around people and locations, capturing cinematic footage, understanding light and composition, working to tight briefs and delivering broadcast-quality material — are incredibly transferable.
There’s a whole world of drone work outside television.
Property and construction progress photography, roof and building inspections, tourism and hospitality content, land and estate imagery, social media content for businesses, stock footage, weddings and events, and even creating aerial assets for local companies can all provide additional income streams.
Some can become regular repeat work, while others can be more passive — such as building a library of high-quality aerial stock footage or licensing existing footage.
Television might still be a big part of what we do, but perhaps the future is about not relying on just one sector.
The drone skills are still valuable. We just need to look beyond the screen we’re used to seeing them on. 🚁
#DronePilot #DroneOperator #Television #FilmAndTV #AerialFilming #DronePhotography #NorthEast #Freelance #DroneIndustry
If you'd like, I can also make this more personal and LinkedIn-style, with a stronger North East voice and a few specific examples of how TV drone operators can turn their existing kit and skills into additional income.
