📱 Best Platforms
Pond5, Shutterstock, Adobe Stock
📖 The Hustle
Film 4K drone footage of your city's skyline, bridges, parks, university campuses, and downtown areas at golden hour and blue hour. Video production companies, news outlets, and YouTube creators all license B-roll footage of cities. Drone clips sell for $50-200 per license — far more than still photos. A 15-second clip of your city's skyline at sunset could earn royalties for years with zero additional work.
🚀 First Step
Get FAA TRUST certificate (free, 30-minute online course), check airspace restrictions on the B4UFLY app, then film 10 short clips of your local downtown skyline during golden hour (1 hour before sunset).
🔑 Keys to Success
- Film in 4K at 60fps — editors can slow footage down for smooth slow-motion or use it at normal speed, and 4K future-proofs your clips as standards increase
- Shoot multiple angles of the same subject (wide establishing shot, medium orbit, close detail) — video editors need sequence options when building projects
- Include model releases for any recognizable people and property releases for identifiable private buildings — platforms reject clips without proper releases, wasting your upload effort
🛠 Tools & Resources: DJI Mini drone ($300-500), FAA TRUST certificate (free), B4UFLY app, Pond5, DaVinci Resolve (free video editor)