First Commercial Job

spamgnome · Feb 28, 2019

Hi guys / gals,
I'm looking for some suggestions on what would constitute a "creative video" shot of a commercial property. In this case it's pretty much an empty lot next to a fairly busy road. This will be my 1st paid gig, so I kind of want to get it right

Needs to be about 30s or so

MapMaker53 · Feb 28, 2019

Probably best option for a 30 second vid would be an orbit around it (maybe a 45 degree shot) with point of interest at the center of the lot. It will not only show the property itself, but also the properties that border it. That type of footage provides a lot of spacial references for the viewer.

spamgnome · Feb 28, 2019

MapMaker53 said:
Probably best option for a 30 second vid would be an orbit around it (maybe a 45 degree shot) with point of interest at the center of the lot. It will not only show the property itself, but also the properties that border it. That type of footage provides a lot of spacial references for the viewer.

Thank you!

BigAl07 · Feb 28, 2019

Try to emphasize ease of access since it's near a busy road. When you're up in the air also take notice of anything less desirable in the area and try to NOT emphasize that.

TreeLineView · Feb 28, 2019

Don't be afraid to ask your client what they are going to showcase to sell the listing. I had one on Cape Cod Ma. Not near the water and it had a huge power line running just back the back yard. 12 Condos to be exact. Found nature trails, lake and bike trails nearby to help sell.

spamgnome · Feb 28, 2019

Yeah, I'm trying to get some more details. This is through Dronebase, and the info is a bit "odd." They want me to film an area that's about 750' X 2,600', but there's not subject in particular. It's also in a VERY busy part of town.

R.Perry · Feb 28, 2019

A thirty second video can cover a lot of ground, but I doubt if you can cover almost 2 million square feet in thirty seconds. Personally I would suggest two or three panos from about 300 feet depending on what your are flying and what camera you have. With my client they like the videos but the love the panos. If you are going to do a video of that much acreage I would figure on a minimum of two minutes.

GadgetGuy · Mar 1, 2019

spamgnome said:
Yeah, I'm trying to get some more details. This is through Dronebase, and the info is a bit "odd." They want me to film an area that's about 750' X 2,600', but there's not subject in particular. It's also in a VERY busy part of town.

The fact that this is through Dronebase, and is also your first paid gig, and you are coming to us for how to shoot it says more about Dronebase than you. Clearly, you are being low balled for the job, and Dronebase's client's standards are very low, and they are more interested in cheap than good! I suspect anything you deliver will be sufficient!

skiptv · Mar 2, 2019

Congrats on your paid gig. Drone Base gives you a great opportunity to gain experience and build your reel while getting paid. They don’t pay much. I looked at it as paid internship. Thanks to the houses and commercial properties I shot for them I was able to secure work from one of the biggest construction companies in SoCal and biggest Developer in Vegas all by showing them the paid work I did for drone base.
My suggestions in working for drone base just do exactly what the ask in the mission base.

mccubbinaerial · Dec 27, 2019

With commercial buildings with size a good run the wall and plateau with the roof or vice versa with a low roof to horizontal wall drop look good and symbolize depth or scale or property.
Also dont forget about the wonderful HYPERLAPSE a tool I use alot with my info videos where the properties are near alot of traffic just be ready to tweak colors in post if you do it through djis setup... But a neat trick. You can also do a POI with the hyperlapse.. hope that helps. cheers!

Tabeer mubin · Oct 22, 2021

We now have a great opportunity for an experienced sales professional to join the team as our new Commercial Business Manager based in Wellington.

Reporting into the Central Sales Lead, you will be critical in our growth agenda as you build new and leverage existing partnership opportunities across key sectors (Education, Building & Trade & Government) within the Wellington region.

BigAl07 · Oct 27, 2021

Tabeer mubin said:
We now have a great opportunity for an experienced sales professional to join the team as our new Commercial Business Manager based in Wellington.

Reporting into the Central Sales Lead, you will be critical in our growth agenda as you build new and leverage existing partnership opportunities across key sectors (Education, Building & Trade & Government) within the Wellington region.

@Tabeer mubin ber Could you give some more information into this job opportunity? Who to contact? Where is Wellington region? I'm sure anyone interested would want to know how to get MORE INFORMATION or maybe even how to APPLY for the position. . . .

Midsky8778 · Oct 30, 2021

skiptv said:
Congrats on your paid gig. Drone Base gives you a great opportunity to gain experience and build your reel while getting paid. They don’t pay much. I looked at it as paid internship. Thanks to the houses and commercial properties I shot for them I was able to secure work from one of the biggest construction companies in SoCal and biggest Developer in Vegas all by showing them the paid work I did for drone base.
My suggestions in working for drone base just do exactly what the ask in the mission base.

@skiptv I agree and share this viewpoint but am curious as to how you went about using materials from Dronebase jobs in a portfolio or solicitation? I personally stopped taking most jobs from them because their standard agreement with pilots states it’s purely “work for hire” content, a nifty phrase the US copyright office uses to say “you have no rights” to the content you create when hired independently to do so (similar to creating content as an employee for an employer - it’s not technically your content).

Being familiar with this as a professional photographer and recognizing how important it is to show your work, I now follow the standard practice of including non-exclusive and portfolio use language in all my service agreements/contracts. Obviously Dronebase won’t modify their terms for just me, or any single operator I imagine. So plenty of pilots I’m sure are doing the same thing without knowing they’re technically infringing on copyright.

I would also add that Dronebase’s standard agreement with pilots is terrible and leaves the pilot exposed legally through an indemnification clause, as well as the practice of asking pilots to “stay out of photos” which we all know means parking and launching somewhere besides the subject property, i.e. trespassing somewhere nearby to get it done quickly (more legal liability) or spending an excessive amount of time securing proper access nearby (operating on another property still means increased liability risk whether you’re there legitimately or not).

I take issue regarding that last part with other brokers as well, but I think I’ve derailed this thread enough. Can’t pass up an opportunity to warn a new professional!