Another lake state park in New Mexico you can visit
It was a very, very windy visit to Ute Lake State Park in Logan, New Mexico (see map below for directions). It was so windy I was afraid I would not be able to fly the drone at all to get the content I needed for my client. Thankfully, the DJI Mavic 3 Cine drone is next level over previous drones for flying in strong winds and producing usable content. I was even helped out by one boat driving across the lake, and two kite boarders zooming over the rough lake surface! On the south shore of the lake you can see it has a rocky coast, fun for scrambling around on. The north shore has a gravely beach of sorts good for a sunset stroll. Have you been to this state park? It is out of the way, 35 minutes NE of Tucumcari, but a nice lake retreat area with the small town of Logan having restaurants, gas, and groceries. Check it out sometime!
Drone Video Branding for showing off a new location in ABQ
My first shoot for PianoWerkes was back in December 2020 for their interior showroom, which was jam packed with pianos. Fast forward two years and PianoWerkes is now moving to a bigger location with more space for the pianos to breathe! The PianoWerkes team wanted to make a teaser video for the new location, showing its much different, and much better setting. I sent the drone up to capture this location and the exterior design of the building, all while someone was playing piano inside and other videographers were recording that! Thank you to PianoWerkes for continuing to choose me as their drone pilot and photographer!
Can I make a drone video of a dentist jumping over his staff in New Mexico? Yes, I can!
I was contacted by a dentist in Gallup, New Mexico with a very unusual drone video and photography idea. He told me that he wanted to both jump his dirt bike over his dental staff and then drive the dirt bike through his practice! Dr. Porter had me curious for sure! After some discussion about what was feasible that I could do both in terms of drone video, regular video, and still photography, we had the details set and I was off to Gallup where I spent the night to be ready for the early 7am start in the morning. Despite many “never done that before” shots, the morning went off nearly flawlessly and I was able to make all the content Dr. Porter wanted. Thank you to Dr. Porter and his entire team for being so great in front of the camera and the drone, and below the dirt bike!!
Commercial Photography for restaurant branding and marketing in ABQ
County Line Restaurant in Albuquerque, New Mexico basically sits atop the city nestled right up against the foothills of the Sandia Mountains. It made for a great setting as I visited the restaurant a different times over two days to make interior and exterior photos as well as a 4K drone video showing the restaurant in its stunning setting. I used a variety of shooting techniques to get the interior shots, likewise for the exterior shots. As a professional commercial photographer, I am not set on one particular style of shooting, but rather choose the best for the shooting environment that will get the best results for the client. So for the interiors, sometimes I used off camera lighting, sometimes HDR shots, and sometimes a single exposure worked best. It was great working with the team at County Line Restaurant to make this wide ranging series of dynamic visual content for their branding, marketing, and social media.
Ladron Peak is 20 miles from anything in New Mexico desert
Driving further down dirt road than I nearly ever did before on a rural land shoot, I passed by Ladron Peak along the way to my actual destination. After nearly 20 miles on seldom traveled dirt road, I pulled over to send the drone up to capture views of Ladron Peak and the surrounding mesas. Even from the view of my DJI Mavic 3 Cine drone, I saw no one and nothing in this area. If you are looking for a remote mountain peak to hike, Ladron Peak is for you!
Land Real Estate in Placitas Aerial Drone Photography
Back in Placitas for another drone aerial photography real estate shoot for long time clients Fred and Sandra of Sandy Creek Realty (formerly ABQhomes). They had a land real estate property in a scenic area of Placitas that was ideal for aerial drone photography due to the slope of the land. Still photography from the ground would not be able to show the topography or the stunning setting of the land as well. They also had a new request for these drone photos, that I draw the outline of the property boundary. They provided me with the plat maps of the land and I did my best to accurately draw in the property borders to help potential buyers see (almost) exactly where the land sits on the hillside. Thank you Fred and Sandra for continuing to choose me as your drone pilot!
Placitas, New Mexico is just a short drive from Albuquerque, but as you can see, is a totally different landscape to the bigger nearby city. Working for new real estate client Miriam, I flew the drone over her rural land property which was uniquely suited for showing the topography of the property. The extreme slop of the land and the mountain setting would not be easy to depict using traditional still photos from the ground. This is the benefit of drone land real estate aerial photography. Thank you Miriam for choosing me as your drone pilot!
