Eye in the sky: The Rockwell couple started a drone photography business
Published 12:10 am Saturday, March 25, 2023
1 at 4
The historic First Presbyterian Church bell tower can be seen from a drone. Submitted image
Jacob Warner and his wife, Hali, started a drone photography business called Droney Island. Charlie Drape/Salisbury Post
Rockwell drone view – submitted image
ROCKWELL – As the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020, Jacob Warner found himself like many others: quarantined, out of work, nowhere to go and, frankly, tired.
Warner has always had an interest in drones and with all the time on his hands, he decided to buy a toy version from Amazon. He flew the drone around his house and his yard to practice, slowly starting to work his way up to bigger and bigger drones.
Now Warner, along with his wife Hali, has started a drone photography business called Droney Island. It was Hali’s father, Gregory Paleologos, who really pushed the couple to start the business. He recently passed away, and now Warner and Hali see the business as a way to keep his memory alive.
“He’s one of those guys who’s like, ‘Just do it, you’ve got it,'” Warner said.
But flying drones for fun is different from flying them as part of a business. You need to have a drone pilot license if you want to start selling photos and footage. To become a pilot, you must pass the Federal Aviation Administration Part 107 Exam. After a year of study, Warner traveled to Alpha One Air Service in Concord to take the test. He passed and received his license on July 29, 2022.
Since then, Warner and Hali have worked tirelessly to keep their business afloat. They thought about getting others to help, but they both decided they could handle it. Droney Island is a family business.
“He was flying and I was calling,” Hali said.
The Rockwell couple owns two drones: a small gray version called the DJI Mini 3 Pro and a larger one called the Autel Evo Light Plus. Both have small cameras that can rotate and Warner uses them to hover over events and take aerial photos and videos. They recently booked the town of Mooresville’s 150th birthday celebration, with events throughout the year. Warner flew his drone during Mooresville Day on March 4 and took photos of the large crowd, as well as the fireworks show at the end.
As summer approaches, Hali said they expect to book more events because the weather will be nicer and clearer for drone footage. The plan is to continue looking for other events online, making calls telling people about the business and offering their services. They want to target real estate agents, construction jobs and contractors because those are the areas that usually require drone footage.
The general dream for the business is to acquire enough clients to become a full-time job.
“We want to do business all the time and not have to do any other jobs and literally just focus on the drone work,” Hali said.
Warner says he also wants people to appreciate their photography.
“I want to provide excellent photography at an affordable rate, allow people to enjoy our photography and generally help people,” Warner said.
For more information, call Droney Island at 704-213-9443.
