This week on the Drone to $1K Podcast, you’ll get to hear from Derek Cameron of 3805 Productions.   Derek does photography and videography, as well as 3D mapping and modeling.   Derek first started his business just before the country shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic. As a result, he’s had to overcome many obstacles to build his business.   Since then, Derek has worked with many different clients, including local business owners, realtors, construction companies, and even a...

Our guest on this week’s episode is Jeff Carrillo from Tarillo Vue.   Over the past few years, Jeff has used drones to do creative work and inspection work for clients in many industries. One of the services he specializes in is drone thermography.   During the episode, Jeff talks about how he got started with his business, how he learned how to do thermography, and some of the cool projects he’s worked on.   If you’re interested in learning more about how drones are being used to...

Merrill McKee from Northern Perspectives joins us on this week’s episode of the Drone to $1K Podcast.   Merrill went from listening to the Drone to $1K Podcast and hoping to someday achieve what our guests have accomplished, to now being a D$1K Podcast guest himself – which means that he now owns and operates his own successful drone business!   During this episode, Merrill tells us all about his aerial photography and videography business, which is based in northern New York.   Since...

Our guest this week is James Grace of JMG Aerial Imagery. James provides aerial photography and videography services for clients in the construction and real estate industries.   Before starting his own drone business in early 2019, James worked in post-production at Warner Brothers and Sony Pictures. While there, he learned the editing process, and he built a LinkedIn network of 10,000+ connections.   James has used his previous industry knowledge, as well as social media, to start and...

This week, Kevin Olson of Maryland Drone Guy joins us to talk about his aerial photography and videographer business, which he’s successfully grown over the past year.   Kevin first started flying drones at the beginning of the COVID pandemic and got his Part 107 license last July.   Since then, Kevin has had the opportunity to work with many local businesses, including wineries and breweries, restaurants, gyms, a drive-in movie theater, an engineering company, and more.   Kevin has...

DRONE TO $1K PODCAST SEASON 4 / EPISODE 1 WITH JEN ALLEN   Season 4 of the Drone to $1K Podcast is officially here!   In this week’s episode, Jen Allen of Wildwood Media tells us all about how she’s used drones to capture aerial photos and videos for her real estate and wedding clients.   Jen has been doing wedding photography and videography with her husband for years, but when the coronavirus pandemic started, the majority of their weddings were rescheduled. Jen has been able to find...

DRONE TO $1K PODCAST SEASON 3 / EPISODE 10 WITH CALEB RANDALL   On this week’s episode, Caleb Randall of Randall Productions joins us to talk about how he’s used drones to grow his business to making 6 figures a year.   Caleb started out doing wedding videography, but eventually shifted to creating marketing and branding films for businesses. He’s worked with big-name companies like Geico, as well as smaller businesses, to tell their stories through the art of video.   Caleb discusses...

DRONE TO $1K PODCAST SEASON 3 / EPISODE 9 WITH JORGE CASAMIQUELA   This week, Jorge Casamiquela, our student support manager here at Drone Launch, joins us to talk about how he has successfully built his drone business, all while working part-time for Drone Launch Academy.   In this episode, Jorge tells us all about how he landed his first clients, the lessons he learned along the way, and the advice he has for anyone who’s thinking about starting their own drone business!   Don’t...

DRONE TO $1K PODCAST SEASON 3 / EPISODE 8 WITH RUT PATEL   In this week’s episode, Rut Patel of Voyager Industries tells listeners how he grew his engineering business to the point where it’s making hundreds of thousands of dollars per year. A few years ago, Rut quit both of his jobs to pursue his passion for drones and engineering full-time. Now, he has a team of employees and a company that made well over $300,000 in 2020.   How did he do it? Listen to find out!   Don’t forget to...

DRONE TO $1K PODCAST SEASON 3 / EPISODE 7 WITH PHILIP HURST   Philip Hurst is the owner of Philip Hurst Media.   Introduction   Philip got his first drone about a year ago. He was working for an architectural company and had the idea of using a drone for roof inspections. He ended up using his drone to take videos of ongoing construction projects, as well.   Philip felt like he was really onto something with drones.   He pitched the idea of incorporating more drone work into his job...

Jonathan Stettler is the owner of Steady Focus Media, a business that specializes in providing photography and videography services for businesses and real estate.   Introduction   Jonathan has always been into drones. The first time he saw a drone, his friend was flying one of the original DJI Mavic Pros. Jonathan thought it was cool, but he didn’t actually buy a drone until years later.   Jonathan’s background is in photography. He had tried wedding photography, but he didn’t love it....

DRONE TO 1K PODCAST SEASON 3 / EPISODE 5 WITH ALEX CASTILLO INTERVIEW BEGINS AT :00, ENDS AT 43:46 Alex is the owner of LA Aerial Image Introduction Alex was the first guest when the podcast came out about a year and a half ago. Alex was an original RC plane flyer. Then when he was older, he was able to afford this stuff. One day at the airfield, he saw some guy with a quad copter and knew he needed to have one. Then he decided that he didn't just want it to be a hobby. So he took his...

From flying drones in the military, Spencer KNEW he wanted to do something with drones. He wanted the rewards of owning his own company even more. After starting Aerodrone in mid-2020, he failed to get a single response from his first media campaign in the small town he lived. His perseverance through more personalized messaging did pay off; four months into it, he made more than $1000 in one month. Spencer says specializing, marketing yourself and being professional is what it takes.

Using social media to its fullest potential--hashtagging, tagging and posting frequently, along with what he describes as "good and hard work" Chris' lifelong enthusiasm for photography has become a profitable drone business. When Chris takes time away from his FT gig as a Chef, he's able to pursue his passions while showing the beauty of his hometown of Phildelphia to those who would pay well--and recommend him too.

In this episode, we learn how Nick took his creativity from a simple desire to produce videography that was better than what was out there. He holds no punches about how important it is to walk in to offices, hand out your card and tell EVERYONE what you do. On top of that, he says, detail is everything...it's the touches of awareness and enthusiasm that will win clients and business.

Liam Abrigg has been a drone enthusiast since high school--filming his first wedding at 16. Now, at 21, Liam's hard work and dedication have helped him create a network of realtors and contractors that love what he creates as much as he does. What's his secret? Liam says he owes a lot of his success to word of mouth created by a web of opportunities he's gotten by talking to people and creating friendships.

Fred has been in real estate video tour/videography business for 15 years, admittedly having just "fallen in" and not being able to get out. However, his vast amount of experience, coupled with a simple approach based on knowing clients (and people), has made him a sought-after photographer in the Northeast real estate world. Listen to Fred talk about his video shoot process to show the best light of ANY property.

Cody developed an interest in drones--along with a passion for entrepreneurship and leadership--early on, so becoming his own boss was a natural next step after being a successful salesperson. Rather than just flying his drones and making six figures doing it, Cody is just as interested in helping promote other pilots through network technology.

Jeremiah's company, Beardhouse Media, started with an invitation to present to a large group of real estate agents in Lexington, Kentucky. By doing the research, showing up and building the case for drones, he got new opportunities right away. Since then, he's also started Overland Pioneers, an outdoor lifestyle marketing business. Let him tell you how he's become successful by always giving his clients the kudos.

Preston formed Jensen Air while still getting his license, having an a ready market of clients from his brother, a local real estate broker. Operating his business part-time and seasonally in the cold winds of North Dakota, Preston is an-the-go learner, always open to new opportunities and ways to differentiate himself and work within his market.

Leo knew he had a vision of being an entrepreneur with a nationwide business. In 2016, he started flying his drone and creating a portfolio with that intention in mind. When it was time to move into a full-time drone business, Leo availed himself of network groups and connections, while paying attention to market saturations and opportunities. Little by little, his idea of building a unique pilot network came to fruition. Listen to him tell you how...

Mike Jensen started doing aerial photography many years ago by renting planes to shoot from. As a professional who likes to stay ahead of the game, when drones came upon the scene, Mike not only jumped in, but saw great opportunity to do 360VR wedding work. As he continues to differentiate himself with his unique style of commercial filming talents, he also lives his philosophy of always giving more than anyone expects. This combination is what he believes makes him successful.

After living in LA and becoming a seasoned videographer, photographer and camera operator, Alex returned to Phoenix and found his niche in corporate film-making and video production. With strong ethics and having fun filming local spots while branding himself, Alex came to offer breathtaking scenes. He's a respected instructor in drone photo/video work--you can count on him for knockout visualizations of anything he sees through the eyes of a drone.

Dustin has created a successful home inspection business using drones by coupling networking and planning with a vision. In his own words, "I could see it all in front of me; I knew the only way I could fail would be because of me." His strong passion and clarity have created relationships that bear fruit and allow him to enjoy his family and his dreams.

Beginning with using a drone to survey roofs more closely for solar installation, Sinuhe and his partner Riley have built a full-time successful business. Focusing on his former roofing contacts and building his network through unintimidated and practical cold-calling methods, his business does large installations that have changed the solar and roofing industries and enabled him to stay safe for his family.