PLANNING

The very first step in starting a commercial job is the initial conversation with the client to understand what exactly they would like in respect of images and footage.

The second step is to clarify exactly where the job is and what airspace I will be flying in. And whether it is safe to do so on the operation day. I use a number of different resources for this stage.

· Ordnance survey maps

· NATS – Drone Assist app

· Google maps satellite

· DJI Fly safe geo zone map

· NOTAMS

There are other sources but these tend to be my basic go to, if I am already familiar with the area.

So If the operation can go ahead, dependent upon all the planning already completed, it is time to complete a site assessment and a risk assessment. These two documents are the most important for the operation as they contain the exact information for the job. They include safety information and critical contacts such as emergency services information. It is also the time that we mitigate risk to the lowest that we possibly can. I do this by looking at obstructions on the ground, take off/landing sites, minimum and maximum heights, whether I need to cordon off the area, What we will be flying over ie: people or structures.

So once the site and risk assessment are completed and the operation risk is made ALARP or ‘as low as reasonably possible’. I check the weather and ensure that that the firmware on the drones is current and up to date.

DAY OF FLIGHT

The previous evening I have ensured all my batteries and the controller are fully charged. With The DJI Phantom 4, this will give me just short of an hours flight time. A quick check of equipment also includes cones, high vis, fire extinguisher and first aid kit to name a few…

A final check of the weather and I set off to the destination. Upon arrival I always have a walk of the proposed flight and check the site against my site and risk assessment. This is a final check to ensure nothing has been erected or built since the planning stage. In a rural area this would also be the time to check for livestock and wildlife that could interfere with the operation.

ACTUAL FLIGHT

There are a lot of pre-flight checks, but we won’t cover those today, I will cover these in a future blog. As you can see from my flight record. I minimized any risk by keeping my flight above the areas that did not include any structures, people, housing or vehicles. I also maintained a height of 185ft. This ensured that I was 50m away from everything mentioned above and flying within the parameters of my permission to fly commercial operations.

This particular job was to photograph some derelict land that is under review for development. A local Parish Council contacted me and having lived within the particular village, I was familiar with the area that needed recording.

RESULTS

Thankfully the actual conditions on the day were almost perfect. My only gripe would be that the takeoff and landing site were a little muddy!! But I did manage to capture exactly what was required in the brief without any problems or issues either with my equipment or the general public.

SHARING

Actually sharing the resulting images and footage from an operation will depend on the particular job. For instance with a Wedding or Special event I will use a memory stick. This will include edited and raw images from the day. For instance I guarantee 20 images edited and a short film of the day, but I will also include everything as an unedited package.

With this particular operation the images were needed ASAP, so it is easier to share the results via a private page on my website. To see this particular job follow this link. You will be prompted for a password which in this case is the word – regent . This page contains the images and a link to a download of the actual flight.

After all of that work the actual flight time was 9m 58s on the day. I was happy that I achieved the brief and that the operation had been conducted safely. Even better the client was happy, and this is always the best result I can hope for.

A commercial job.