Real estate accounts for a large portion of SkyVision Drone Service's business. Owner Lamar Gillespie hopes to take on project requests involving building inspections, roofing inspections and phone tower inspections.A music teacher by day and a drone pilot by night, Rossville resident Lamar Gillespie founded SkyVision Drone Service in May, and has since seen his new business take off.
SkyVision offers professional aerial photography and videography for the Greater Chattanooga and North Georgia area and takes on projects related to real estate, special events, construction projects, golf course virtual tours and more. All projects are delivered to customers fully edited and ready for use, Gillespie said.
In full compliance with Federal Aviation Regulations, he said SkyVision operates registered drones. Gillespie received his Part 107, a requirement for the operation of a non-hobbyist, unmanned aircraft, in February 2017.
While Gillespie sees the sky as the limit in terms of project requests, he has found that commercial and residential real estate are in high demand of drone photography services.
However, he said anyone can contact him, and while prices greatly vary depending on the project, 10-15 aerial photos could cost as low as $100.
SkyVision Drone Service owner Lamar Gillespie says the idea to launch his own business took flight after seeing the scenery able to be captured using the unmanned aircrafts.
Rossville resident Lamar Gillespie utilizes drones to offer aerial photography services."We're currently working with a Realtor in Spring City and we are pretty much their full production company," he said. "We do their interior photos as well."
For a typical session, Gillespie sends a drone up 200 feet to thoroughly document the area by snapping photographs, then sends the drone up 400 feet to repeat the same process.
With help from his wife, who handles most of the photo editing, Gillespie said he has managed to create a professional niche business in a matter of months, without impacting their day-to-day lives. He also teaches music to kindergarten through second-grade students at Battlefield Primary School.
"I teach during the day and I don't get off until 3:45 p.m. I'll drop my 6-year-old off at home, and get out to the project location by 4:15 p.m. or 4:30 p.m.," Gillespie said. "I'll usually spend, depending on the project, an hour to an hour and a half."
Gillespie became fascinated with drones when he first watched an internet video featuring scenery captured by the small crafts.
"I was completely captivated and mesmerized, and I immediately started researching to find my first drone," he said.
Once the opportunity arose for him to make a business of it, he jumped on board.
"I just kind of happened to come across an article on the internet talking about flying and getting paid to fly and take pictures and videos, and this was well before they come out with a Part 107," he said. "At that time, you had to have a pilot's license to fly commercially with a drone, but I kept up with it. Once they came out with the Part 107, I started studying and took the test."
As his business grows, Gillespie said he hopes to take on project requests involving building inspections, roofing inspections and phone tower inspections.
For more information on SkyVision or to request photography or videography, visit myskyvision.com.
Contact Sarah Turner at 423-757-6579.