The half of the property photos never show
Ground photography sells the house. Aerials sell the land it stands on.A house has rooms. A property has a footprint.
Interior photography answers one question: what is it like inside. It does not answer the ones that move a price on the Westside. How much land comes with it. How private the pool actually is. What you see standing on the terrace. How the house sits on the slope.
An aerial answers all four in a single move. Lift off the motor court and the lot reads instantly, the grounds connect to the house, the guest house stops being a line item and becomes part of the same picture. Climb higher and the view corridor appears in the same frame as the property that owns it. A canyon. A ridgeline. The grid running out toward the water.
Ground cameras can only imply context. Aerials state it. That is the difference between a buyer imagining the setting and a buyer seeing it, and it is the reason the aerial is often the frame that gets the showing booked.
- Lot size and shape read in one frame, not described in a line item
- Grounds, pool, motor court and outbuildings shown as one connected property
- View corridors captured from the elevation the house actually enjoys
- Hillside placement, approach and privacy, which no floor plan conveys
What lands in the gallery
Every listing shoot ships the same way: a private online gallery you can stream, share or download at full quality. Inside it are the two things a listing needs from the air. An edited film, and a set of high-resolution stills that drop straight into the photo gallery.
The tiers differ in scope, not in quality. Mini Flight at $499 is one 30 to 60 second clip with 10 or more stills, sized for a condo or a straightforward lot. Signature Story at $999 is a two-minute film with 20 or more stills and a longer window on site, the working default for a house with grounds. Epic Package at $2,499 is a half day, a three-minute film, 30 or more stills, raw footage included and priority 10-day delivery, for estates that need more than one angle and more than one light.
Revision rounds are built in: one on Mini Flight, two on Signature Story, three on Epic Package. Everything is captured in 4K. Nothing is delivered with a logo on it.
- Edited 4K film, cut to the length of the tier
- High-resolution aerial stills, gallery-ready
- Private online gallery, full-quality downloads included
- Raw footage on the Epic Package
One clean master, then the cuts
Most MLSs prohibit branding on listing media. Logos, agent names, phone numbers, watermarks. California's CRMLS treats it as an immediate citation rather than a warning. So we never burn anything into the frame. The master you receive is clean, which means the file you upload and the file you post start as the same file. Board rules vary and change, so confirm your MLS's current media policy before you upload.
The branded version becomes something you add rather than something you edit around. Audio works the same way. We do not supply licensed music, so the film arrives ready for a track you hold the rights to, which is also what keeps it usable on platforms that scan audio.
Then there is the vertical cut. A widescreen film letterboxed into a Reel gives away two thirds of the screen. The same flight can be cut into short 9:16 versions built for the scroll, opening on the reveal instead of an address card, because the first two seconds decide whether anyone sees the third.
Work backwards from go-live
Aerials do their job in week one. A listing that gets its drone film in week three has already been seen by the buyers who were waiting for it. The flight belongs on the calendar before the listing date, not after it.
Standard delivery is within 14 days of the shoot, and 10 days on the Epic Package. Count backwards from go-live, add margin for weather, and you have your shoot date. If the forecast turns, we reschedule at no charge. Gray sky reads as gray sky and no edit repairs it.
Twilight is its own decision. The window opens within about ten minutes of sunset and lasts roughly twenty, sky still holding color, interior and landscape lighting doing the work. One property, one window, one evening. Ask for it when you book so the day is built around it rather than tacked onto the end.
Airspace comes first either way. Much of the Westside sits under controlled airspace layered by LAX and the airports around it, and the ceiling can change from one grid square to the next. We check the overlay for the exact address before the date is confirmed, so nobody discovers a problem on shoot morning.
- Shoot date set from your go-live date, not the other way around
- 14-day delivery standard, 10 days on the Epic Package
- Twilight booked as its own evening, roughly twenty usable minutes
- Airspace checked against the exact address before the date is confirmed
Asked and answered
Can the video be used on the MLS?
We deliver clean, unbranded masters. No watermark, logo, agent name or contact information burned into the frame, because most MLSs prohibit branding on listing media and California's CRMLS cites it immediately. Media rules vary by board and change over time, so confirm your MLS's current policy before uploading. The same clean file is what you brand for your own channels.
How far ahead of the listing date should we book the flight?
Delivery is within 14 days of the shoot, and 10 days on the Epic Package, so set the flight at least that far ahead of go-live and add a few days of weather margin. Estates and hillside properties benefit from more room, especially if you want twilight, which needs an evening of its own. If the weather turns on the day, we reschedule at no charge.
Can you fly a Beverly Hills or hillside address?
Usually, though the answer depends on the exact address. Much of Greater LA sits under controlled airspace layered by LAX and the airports around it, and altitude ceilings change grid by grid. We check the overlay for your address before the date is confirmed, plan the flight around what it allows, and build the shoot around the limits it sets. If a location needs a different plan, you hear it before anything is booked.
More in our full FAQ, or ask us directly.