Despite vague governmental regulations, drones are becoming quite handy in a variety of commercial applications in the Tahoe/Truckee area, especially by real estate agents who use the unmanned aerial vehicles to showcase properties. So while the Federal Aviation Administration develops rules for the fast-growing technology, local businesses are extolling the benefits of the small aircraft.
“We feel using drone photography highlights the location of the property. Real estate is all about location; being able to showcase that via aerial footage is prime,” said Sabrina Belleci, office manager and partner at RE/MAX North Lake in Incline Village. “It is really good marketing.”
Belleci said her company has been using drones for aerial photography for the past three months, and views it as another tool to market properties. It is especially useful when showcasing a high-end property with lake views, she said. Vince Scott, managing broker at Sierra Sotheby’s in Nevada, agrees, noting that he uses drone photography for large properties and to sell not only the house, but the surrounding area.
“You’re selling the lifestyle — creeks or streams or horses. It’s a lot less expensive than a $6,000 helicopter ride with a camera man hanging out the window,” said Scott, who has been using drone technology for a year. “It is cost effective on larger listings over $1 million … It is improving the real estate world.”
Kayla Anderson, marketing manager for the Incline Village General Improvement District and Diamond Peak, also sees the advantages of using aerial images from drones, and recently used drone video footage in a marketing campaign.
“Drones do a great job of capturing the sweeping vistas and bird’s eye views of our properties while showing our proximity to the lake,” Anderson said. “It’s nice to use that aerial footage in marketing to showcase what we have to offer.”
INDUSTRY TAKES OFF
Lloyd Garden, a Sierra Nevada College senior, was introduced to the advantages of using drone footage while interning for the International Ski Federation in Switzerland last fall. He got his friend and fellow ski business major Brad Flora on board and they started Drone Promotions, taking their 3-pound drone with an attached GoPro to the skies in Tahoe, Vail, and other ski resort towns. Originally, they just wanted to rate ski resorts and used the drone footage to showcase the mountains, but they quickly learned that drone photography was a growing market.
“We thought, ‘This will make us unique in the marketplace,’” Garden said. “We didn’t realize how unique it was and that we could make a whole business out of it. People are picking up on it as a business model.”
Now Garden and Flora take their $1,728 drone — equipped with a GPS, a wireless video system, and a gimbal system to steady the camera during flight — and market their services to real estate agencies, ski resorts, and other businesses. The duo prides itself on not only its photography, piloting, and editing skills, but also on its careful consideration of privacy and safety of others while flying the drone. Those using drones locally say they fly under 400 feet and ask permission before flying on private property.
“Safety is one of our highest concerns. If it’s not safe, we’re not going to fly,” Flora said, noting that wind and weather conditions are a huge concern when flying. “We’re not just two guys flying a drone. We are trying to get ahead of the curve so when the rules are in place, we are already there.”
The regulations from the Federal Aviation Administration around drones are vague, and federal agencies are grappling with rules while the popularity of the unmanned aircraft continues to rise. Drones were banned in Yosemite and Zion national parks in May, and Congress has ordered the FAA to integrate them into U.S. airspace by September 2015. In March, the FAA tried to impose a $10,000 fine on a man in Virginia who was shooting a promotional video, which was swiftly dismissed by a National Transportation Safety Board judge who said the agency had no authority over small, unmanned aircraft. And a coalition of more than two dozen industry groups, including the National Association of Realtors, have asked the FAA to set guidelines that would allow them to utilize drones in advance of official regulations.
“These aircraft operate very differently and they operate in the same airspace with a wide variety of other users,” FAA Administrator Michael Huerta told National Public Radio recently. “We see the potential of these and we’re going about it in a very thoughtful and deliberate manner to ensure that it is done safely.”
But while the federal government figures out where drones fit into the airspace, local drone companies will continue to proliferate. Truckee native Justin Brooke, who started his drone company Tahoe Aerial three months ago, said he has run into liability issues while filming at local ski resorts, but takes privacy concerns seriously.
“They are worried something will fly out of the sky and hit someone. It takes a little practice and knowing your surroundings,” Brooke said. “[But] it really puts a whole new perspective on shots you can’t get without a drone.”
~ Check out the local drone footage and tell us what you think about this new technology below.
