I got into a debate with a friend of mine about the proliferation of the people interested in flying drones and the increasing commercial usefulness for drones. First off, let's establish the fact that I love drones and I fly drones. And suffice it to say my friend does not. To this day I still don't know why he does not like drones. He really couldn't give me a legitimate answer other than he thought they were dangerous and could ultimately really hurt someone. (I think he might have gotten hit by one and won't tell me.) Ok, I will concede that drones do crash and could possibly hurt somebody.
They are after all, flying objects. There is the possibility of malfunction and to be flown recklessly by people that want to show off and be careless. But like a lot of things in life, all my friend could focus on was the negative and few instances in which he heard or read some news story about the "drone that went bad."
I choose to look at the other side, the positive side. Here are my reasons why I fly drones. First and foremost, they are pretty damn cool. As an amateur photographer, having the ability to capture a subject or image from up above just adds another dimension to my creativity. There has been no other time in history that getting awesome aerial images has been so affordable for the average person. This new found affordability allows up and coming photographers and videographers like me to compete in the big leagues by submitting images to the big stock photography companies for royalties. I like that.
These incredible flying cameras have spawned so many new ways companies and agencies can use drones to benefit for our society.
Let me name just a few since my friend could only give me one lame reason.
Drones are currently being used for:
- Search and Rescue when disaster strikes
- Surveillance of hard get to locations
- Real Estate property aerial views and inspections
- News and Sports shots
- Weddings and Special events
- Construction/Surveying
- Product and Food Delivery
- Damage assessment during disasters (See Video)
In the coming years as drones become even more sophisticated and the cameras even better, drones will play increasingly bigger roles in our everyday life as companies find new and innovative ways to use them.
