Case Study: Industrial Photography and Drone Video for ABC Drilling
Drone flythrough of industrial photography assignment for drilling company.
The Photography Assignment
My client, ABC Drilling, offers geotechnical drilling services, and they wanted industrial photography of active field operations to market their business throughout Southern California. I proposed flying a drone through an active drilling site to demonstrate their work in a larger context.
Adding Drone Video to Industrial Photography
The drone coverage was important because it allowed their clients to see the size of the drilling crew, the type of drill rigs, the scale of the operation, and the environment they were operating in. It also gave viewers a broader view of the entire drill site while still showing details of the work.
Working Around Active Machinery
Using a small, protected drone allowed me to move through parts of the worksite without disrupting the drilling operation. After a while, the crews largely stopped paying attention to the drone, allowing me to capture the work as it was happening, rather than choreographing scenes for the camera.
I am an FAA Part 107-certified drone pilot and have photographed industrial environments for more than 30 years. On active worksites, I stay aware of machinery, crew movement, site requirements, and workflow so the photography does not interfere with the operation.
The Result
The assignment produced a combination of still photography and dynamic drone footage that showed ABC Drilling’s equipment, crews, process, and working environment in context. The resulting images gave the company a broader visual library for marketing its geotechnical drilling services throughout Southern California.
