Scroll Top

3 Simple Reasons Why Drone Photography Will Make You Money Faster

Drone photography has genuinely changed our view of the world that we live in. Although drones are used for a wide range of things in our world, real estate photography is a place that more and more drones are being sought after. Finding a realtor that can handle drone and aerial photography is becoming an essential part of properly listing a home for sale. However, there are a few things to know about drone photography and how it can help get a home sold. Here are three reasons why real estate drone photography is essential.

#1 – Entire View of the yard

Whether you are a realtor or a homeowner, you may not fully understand how great your home can look from the sky. If a home has any type of outdoor features, the aerial photography will do a much better job of showcasing it. 

Truthfully it can be hard to get a good look at the size of a yard without aerial photography. When looking from above potential buyers can see how the yard compares to the house and driveway size. 

It gives buyers an idea of the outdoor layout and whether or not they will have to make changes to the outdoor space. For people with large yards, this is essentially important. Especially in Middle Georgia, where we experience all the seasons, having room for a pool or an outdoor fire pit is a great selling point. 

If the house has extensive landscaping and is done well, these aerial photos will give buyers a better idea of the money invested in the home. Another great thing you can see from the sky is the relationship between the front yard and the back yard. Photos taken on the ground can make these things quite difficult to envision.

#2 – Proximity/Location

Real Estate Drone photography can give potential buyers a much better idea of the location and positining of a house. This is important to be able to see how close neighbors are, where the house is located in the middle of the block, and potentially the location to a beneficial part of the community. 


Let’s not forget that real estate is all about location. People are typically very concerned with the location of the home that they purchase. If a house is a corner home or has a street or a train running through the back yard, people will want to know about it. Although some won’t mind, this can be a deal-breaker for others. 

On a more positive note, if a house is only a few blocks away from a local park or a downtown restaurant, the aerial view can show people the local community’s amenities. If the house for sale is near a city center where people may work, the aerial view may show them their commute length. 

Anytime someone can commune by walking or bike riding, it is certainly going to help sell the home. Buyers are pretty savvy and will start searching for aerials views of the home, and it’s location if you don’t provide them. Stay ahead of this and provide the view directly with the listing. The photography will be cleaner, better looking, and help the house to stand out.

#3 – Out Market Your Competition

We know that the real estate shopping game has become largely image based. If you don’t have the right images of a home, it will often get overlooked. People are looking more at the pictures than they are at the facts of a home. 

If you have drone photography of a house, it will instantly make it stand out from the competition. In addition, since the real estate photography market is not flooded with drone photographers, it looks like the home is a higher end choice. 

People will assume that if the seller is interested in paying for drone photography, they considered this to be a high end listing. The home will have likely been taken care of through the years, and it may make a very good investment. 

Adding drone photography to a listing can genuinely make it appear as though it is a better listing than the others. Since the pricing of drone photography has started to drop in recent years, this type of photography is available to more and more sellers. Sadly, not enough to take advantage of these helpful ways to get a home sold.

Do All Real Estate Listings Need Drone Photography? 

Of course, drone photography will add another expense to the cost of listing a house for sale. Since this is another added expense, many sellers are going to question whether or not it is worth the price.  If the neighboring properties have a messy yard or there are a lot of trees blocking aerial views, drone photography may not be right for you.

A great real estate photographer will tell you that not all listings are going to benefit from drone photography. Sometimes it won’t matter as there is not much to show from the sky. If you remember from our essential reasons, the yardwork, the location, and the competition are three major reasons to choose drone photography. 

Ask yourself these three basic questions if you are deciding whether or not drone photography is a good investment. 

  1. Does the property have outdoor elements that are worth showcasing? 
  2. Is the property located close to the beach, mountains, hiking trails, parks, restaurants that would be appealing to others? 
  3. Are there lots of other properties for sale in the area that will steal attention from this property? 

If you answered yes to any of these questions, you will probably want to take a serious look at adding some drone photography to your listing. Chances are the money that is invested will be earned back when the home sells for top dollar, and quickly!

Is Drone Photography More Expensive Than Traditional Real Estate Photography?

Drone photography is going to be an additional cost to add to the price of traditional real estate photography; however, there are several reasons behind this. In addition to having to learn to use a drone, a real estate drone photographer also has to go through quite a bit of training and licensing. 

To be a drone pilot, you will have to get FAA certified. This is not something that just anyone can go and do. It takes time, patience, and money to become FAA Certified for real estate drone photography. 

In addition, a real estate photographer will need to have insurance. Things can go wrong when you are flying drones through the air, and insurance is a must. The cost to carry the insurance and to learn the art of drone photography certainly warrants the extra cost. The safety priorities of a drone pilot should be something you stop to consider.

Taking a picture of a house while holding a camera is going to be much different than taking aerial photography of the home. Another factor to consider is that sometimes the time of the day and the weather conditions will impact the drone photography. Being a bit more limited with the schedule will also make the pricing slightly higher. 

If you are a realtor, find a local real estate photographer that you can trust. If you run all of your listings through this photographer, chances are they will be more willing to work with you when it comes to pricing. Small businesses need to help support each other whenever possible.

What Time Of Day Should Real Estate Drone Photography Take Place?

As you learn more about photography, you will see that timing is critical. If you don’t time a photo shoot right, you will be left with lots of editing and images that are less than ideal for a finished product. Great photographers know how to work with natural light and the angle of the sun.

The best time of day to do real estate drone photography is when the sun is shining on the front of the house. You will want to remove cars from the driveway when possible and make sure that the yard is in proper condition. (Put away the kid’s toys and bikes lying on the front lawn). 

If you don’t do the drone photography at a good time of day, there could be shadows across the images. These shadows will impact the way the home appears, and it will certainly not look as bright and welcoming. Drone photography will be subject to the weather conditions of the day. However, great real estate photographers will find a way to get you the images you need as quickly as possible.

Alternatively, you can also benefit from twilight drone photography. Areas with skylines or stunning views can add a unique selling point to the property, showcasing the nightlife.

Conclusion – Real Estate Drone Photography

As you can probably tell by now, at Gate Images, we are big fans of drone photography. Homes with aerial photos are selling 68% faster than those with standard images. If you are looking for real estate drone photography in the middle Georgia area, give us a call today. We are licensed and insured and ready to handle your real estate photography needs today. If you are not sure if drone photography will be a good fit for your home or listing, we will give you our honest feedback and put together a great package.

Subscribe to

The Trend

Get updates and news on the latest information about real estate media!