One year in….

On 16th June this year, i will have officially held my Permission for Aerial Work (PFAW) from the CAA. It has been the best ‘working’ year of my life.

Not the best financially, but certainly in terms of passion for my job, creativity and variety. Oh ant not spending everyday sat in an office.

I have so much to discuss about my first year; from clients i’ve worked with, customers i’ve worked for, fellow Pilots i’ve completed jobs beside. The skills i have picked up along the way, all which im planning on sharing, but will be doing a video instead of a blog post, its so much quicker and easier to ‘show and tell’

I terms of applying for my renewal, this was a quick and straight forward process.

Updated Ops Manual… basically changed some dates, and added my second Inspire. Done. They required a Pilot log, this took me 5 minutes, just a copy and paste exercise from the DJI Pilot App. Done. A copy of my recent Insurance (see video for more details) and the Standard CAA UAS Application form.

Time to complete 30 mins.

Cost £56

Sent 1st July

Received 3rd July

Yes two days!!!! Compared to the 2 months it took last year. The CAA have certainly improved their game. And a reduced price of £56 from the £113 you pay initially. I did consider using Euro USC and having an updated ‘BNUCs’, however it makes no difference to my insurance, the CAA don’t require annual renewal, and it costs £75, which is more than the actual PFAW, so its a waste of money in my opinion.

Right, i’m off to make a start on my video. If anyone has questions regarding the PFAW, renewal etc, please get in touch

 

Thumbs Up!

Thinking of becoming a UAS Pilot

In the last year, the commercial UAS industry has grown by over 1000 new operators!

In February 2015 i blogged about the CAA list of approved users, a list that is not user friendly whatsoever. The list had approximately 420 UAS companies registered in the UK. As of Feb 8th, the last now has 1416 operators.

https://www.caa.co.uk/Commercial-Industry/Aircraft/Unmanned-aircraft/Unmanned-Aircraft/

Click to access 08022016%20RptUAVcurrentDates.pdf

Is the market becoming saturated? Yes, to an extent. It really depends on your approach to business, and what market you are choosing to specialize in.

If you have been watching virtually any TV programme in the UK these days, you can be sure footage from a Drone is likely to appear. They are almost a staple part of TV production now. If you want to work with major TV companies, you are most likely going to be disappointed. There are a number of well known and established companies that complete the majority of TV work….. but thats a good thing! Typically these companies/pilots have been flying for years and tend to use bigger platforms. This has two benefits to clients such as the BBC or Channel 4 – Bigger platform = more lift = better camera = better footage. Secondly better platforms have much better redundancy (how well it performs if it loses a prop). Its generally safer to have a octo/hex than a quad. These are usually over £12000, all in, and who just starting out in the industry has money like that?

Better to think smaller.

It is better to approach small/medium size companies in your area, whilst you build up a portfolio, a reputations, and some skills! We all know, ‘you don’t learn to drive, until you pass your test’.

And think bigger!

It is very unlikely if you are reading this, you are an experienced UAS pilot, chances are you are just starting out like i was 18 months ago.  Until our industry grows, chances are you will be a one man band. If this is the case, you are going to need to be more than a pilot. Sales and account management aside, you are going to need to think about these things.

Company Name. Logo/Branding. Web Domain. Build a Website (i recommend wordpress). Phone Number (ideally local land line, small businesses prefer dealing with other local firms). Email address.

Next; welcome to the world of editing!

Once you have this all up and running you need to think about your showreel. This didn’t enter my mind, until about 4 months into the process. How was i going to show all of my epic footage i had captured, whilst training for my BNUCS? I loaded up imovie on my Mac, watched a few Youtube videos, and put together something. To begin with, imovie was fine, then i started actually charging for work, and realising that once its live on Youtube, thats you’re reputation live for everyone to see and judge.

My next suggestion, if you haven’t already, is decide if you are going to edit with Windows or Mac, Premier Pro or Final Cut Pro? Im a Mac man, and i use Final Cut Pro X, i also use Photoshop CS5 to improve my pictures, and im currently learning how to use Apple Motion.

Why? Why do it myself, why not out-source?

Well firstly, i’m a finisher. i like to see a task through to the end. Im also a big believer in starting at the bottom to work to the top. I can better sell a product or service, if i know how it works. Learning to fly, film, edit etc means i have a better grasp on time scales, costs and what to bill a client. Because we work in a new industry, you are your own pioneer of what works and what doesn’t.

Also cost. If you have to pay someone else out of your profits then there is less for you!

There will be times and jobs, that all you will be expected to do, is simply fly your UAS and film/shoot images, and give the client, the Raw, unedited files. But more often than not, you will have got the job, because you will approach a business and tell them, that using a UAS will improve their profits, social media or something of that ilk.

In my next post, i will be discussing some of the clients/jobs i have completed, over the last 6 months. How i got them, how i approached the work, and costings/chargers.

Good to be back

Thumbs Up!

 

 

1000 UAS Operators in UK

1036 as of September 2015.

The 1000 Milestone, was reached some time in the last month. I tend to keep an eye on the CAA register to see who is who. On the 2nd Feb, i blogged about the CAA UAS database, which at the time had 483 registered Pilots. I predicted 1250 licensed pilots by Feb 2016, so lets wait to see if i’m right. I think i might have under estimated!

http://www.caa.co.uk/docs/1995/SUA%20Operators%2011Sep15.pdf

Hopefully it won’t be long until a proper UAS Pilots register is established. This needs to happen. From the perspective of the public, business and actual UAS companies. A central hub for all things UAS in the UK is essential.  Place for Pilots to register their business, share comments and ideas (not like facebook forums – a blog for later!). A source of information for the Public and Business, to access clear and concise information about legal UAS operations, and a place to actually source a qualified UAS company.

The CAA register is great for those in the know, but as of yet, this isn’t particular user friendly, and not at all publicised by the CAA. I know there are a few ‘not for profit’ organisations that have set up similar things. But the problem with ‘not for profit’, is that it is completed in peoples spare time, and without significant personal funding, will never get properly exposed to the public……..

…..Which really needs to happen. A BBC report released a few hours, states that 3 Police Forces confirm over 200 complaints from the public about Drones this last year.

First off, there is absolutely no context for this report, which is kind of annoying. A what constitutes a ‘rightful’ complaint? How many of these are just people calling the Police because they think someone is actually spying on them…from 100 meters away, on a go pro camera, erm yeah.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-34607121

It would be good to know how many of the 200, the Police actually followed up on.

Anyways more point is this, with ever growing numbers of registered UAS operators, more of the public buying them for recreation, and an increased number of complaints, surely now is the time for proper legislation, insurance for all and a proper UAS Pilots database.

Thumbs Up Gents!

Waiting for CAA UAS Approval?

My Ops Manual has just been sent to the CAA. According to the CAA website, and my contact at EuroUSC, it takes approximately 28 days for it to be passed off and ‘permisson to fly’ to be granted. I’ve sketched the 26th May, into my mind, including weekends, so it might be longer.

So what do you do while your waiting. Or more appropriately, what can you do?

I have been toying with the idea of approaching a few local businesses, telling them about what i do, and what i can offer them. I decided on monday this week, that i would do just that.

Today i visited my first client, a prestigious Golf Course in my local Town. At 1pm this afternoon they gave me the keys to a Golf Buggy and gave to free run of the Grounds.

This is the only image of the Course, the Club’s website currently has…..

I have offered my Aerial Photography services free of charge. Why? Well, until i have received ‘Permission for Aerial Work – PFAW. Secondly, there are lots of Golf Courses in my area. Golf Courses have money and their members are generally wealthy. Its not about getting my grubby mitts on their cash, its about Networking, building a client base.

Filming a Golf Course will help improve my portfolio, i’ve tended to fly over fields and rivers of late. I spent over 4 hours on location today, this allowed me to conduct a thorough ‘pre’ on-site assessment. Using GoogleMaps on my Ipad i was able to spot local hazards. My Regional VFR Map to identified the Course is within Regional Class D Air Space, so i will need to contact my local ATC.

I cannot wait to get started in ernest. I plan on visiting the site again later this week, and the Course Manager has asked that i look to film in a few weeks, allowing the foliage to fully bloom, and the course to look its best. This gives me time to plan my shots and angles. Because i was given a Buggy, i was able to drive around the entire location, so i already have an idea of the shots i want to get.

An additional Camera Operator is going to be essential to get the best shots. Luckily the Course Pro is a UAS fan, he had already pitched the idea to the Board! He knows the shots he wants, so i will be taking some of my ‘direction’ from him.

I will post more when more happens!

New CAA UAS Regulations

Just a quick post and link to the latest CAA CAP 722 Unmanned Aerial Systems Operations in UK Airspace – Guidance

http://www.caa.co.uk/application.aspx?catid=33&pagetype=65&appid=11&mode=detail&id=415

Have a read and fly safe.

TU