Love them or loathe them, drones have become part of everyday life. Fortunately, most of the fears and concerns about them have now gone away and drones now have proven uses in many industries. They have also opened up an exciting new hobby for hundreds of thousands of people. But what are they actually being used for?
The following are the top ten uses for drones.
Photography
Being able to capture images from the unique perspective drones make possible appeals to both amateur and professional photographers. Scenes like lakes, rivers and historic buildings are great subjects for aerial photography. Many wedding photographers now offer aerial coverage to complement traditional services.
Videography
As well as high-quality stills, drones can capture video footage. With practice, it’s possible to produce stunning aerial footage sweeping over and looping round subjects to create cinematic results. Affordable drones like the DJI Mavic Mini 3 make aerial video accessible for hobby fliers. Professional drone operators record video for television, news reports, marketing and movies.
Property Inspections
Surveyors and other property professionals have embraced the potential for drone property inspections. They take away the need for ladders, scaffolding and pole-mounted cameras and are a safer, more efficient and cheaper alternative.
Construction
Drones play a valuable role in construction projects of all sizes. They can be used for site surveys, planning and safety inspections. They are also useful for recording and monitoring progress of everything from bridge construction to house building.
Real-Time Resource Management
Technology has revolutionised the world of resource management over the past decade, and drones are a key part of this. Being able to deploy aerial cameras to hard-to-reach places and capture live data improves efficiency and reduces costs.
Mapping
Surveyors no longer need to walk around taking measurements manually for days to produce accurate maps. Drones for mapping is a well-established service. The data captured from a drone can be converted into sophisticated 3D models as well as flat maps.
Thermal Property Inspections
Thermal inspections with drones have become very popular over the past couple of years. Rising energy prices and the environmental agenda has increased interest in ensuring properties are energy efficient. A drone with a thermal camera can be used to identify areas where heat is escaping and produce a detailed thermal survey.
Search and Rescue
Drones are increasingly being used by emergency services around the world. Search and rescue teams deploy them to find mountaineers in danger, emergency services use them to survey burning buildings and they are even used to find lost dogs! In the aftermath of natural disasters like hurricanes and floods drones are valuable tools for locating survivors.
Event Filming
Sporting events, concerts and music festivals are another great subject for aerial filming. There are strict rules to ensure safety when flying over crowds, but in the right hands drones are perfect for this type of work.
Surveillance
Monitoring crowd safety and assisting crime prevention are other areas where drones have proven value. Police and security forces around the world are investing in related technology and training.
Every year drones are developing new and improved features. This is just the start of the revolution and we expect to see use in all walks of life growing rapidly.
