It’s one of the fastest developing markets in the world and a local Ballarat man has wasted no time in tapping into the wondrous cosmos of the drone industry.
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Luke Parker has recognised the enormous potential of the aerial phenomenons and for the past few months he has used them to show Ballarat as it has never been seen before through a new photography business, Skyline Drone Imaging.
“I first saw drones in this sense around June last year. I was in a conference up near the snow and saw a bunch of drones flying around filming some stuff and that sort of interested me a bit more,” he said.
“In July last year I purchased my drone from Sydney and since then I’ve been using it for a bunch of things, mainly aerial photography, looking at crops as well and just a bunch of different uses.”
While their potential is unlimited, rules and regulations around drones are ever-tightening as the world comes to grips with the radical new technology.
“The main rules are that you’re not allowed to fly above 400 feet, which is about 120 metres, so you don’t interfere with air traffic,” he said.
“You can’t fly at night, that’s also a main one. You can’t fly within 30 metres of people or cars. “They are the key rules, then there’s a bunch of other minor rules, but they’re the main ones around.
“You can’t fly for commercial gain until you’ve gone through all the licencing and training, which is sort of a few weeks of training in Melbourne.”
Mr Parker has used his drone to take stunning aerial shots of several of Ballarat’s most iconic features.
“There’s a growing market for the uses for drones,” he said.
“They provide a a great perspective (for photography), but are also used in agriculture, surveying and real estate.”
Mr Parker said a decent quality drone can be purchased for around $899, with some drones worth $15,000.
To see Ballarat from a drone’s perspective, visit the http://www.thecourier.com.au/story/3893232/drones-the-developing-phenomenon/?cs=62 website.