Today we’d like to introduce you to Ryan Taylor.
Hi Ryan, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I’ve always enjoyed landscape photography and I bought my first drone, a $65 toy drone, on a lark. I played with it some but lost interest. A couple of years later, I went ahead and talked myself into buying a drone that captures high-quality images and I really got into the unique perspective they provide. In the last two or three years, I got the license required to fly drones commercially, and I’ve also added two more drones. I’ve spent countless hours learning ways to improve my photography and along the way have learned the more technical applications of drones, such as 3D mapping or crop health surveys.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has not. The end of a decade-long relationship came just as I was starting the business (and that was someone who assured me they were going to provide a base level of work and contacts through their line of work) as well as the arrival of COVID. Bars/restaurants, wedding venues and similar places are best suited for my style of photography, and suddenly their world was turned upside down as well. With the help of hard work, repeat business and referrals by others in the industry, I can see the way the momentum is now building.
One of the more day-to-day issues I run into is a lot of people just aren’t that familiar with drone photography so they aren’t picturing the kind of pieces I create. I often have to grab a photo or two or short video of their venue to show them, and then the lightbulb appears over their head. Same is true of the mapping capabilities, most people don’t even know it’s an option. It’s a great way to provide imagery of a construction site or an expansive property that’s like satellite imagery you’d find online, except it’s from today, and it’s higher resolution.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I specialize in landscape, architecture or other exterior types of photography. I like to think I give a place room to tell its story to the viewer. I’ve got several videos documenting bridge construction that’s part of the Panther Island project in Fort Worth, and they’re some of my most watched videos on my YouTube channel. I think if I can make the average person watch a video showing a bridge being built, then I should do just fine with a music venue in a quirky part of town or a wedding venue in a scenic location.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
There’s not really any specific sources I can point to that I learned from as far drone photography. One thing that is easy to do and free is to start digging around on YouTube and you’ll start finding videos from the same ten or so people, and some of them will have a style that clicks with you.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@panthercityair.com
- Website: https://www.panthercityair.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/panther_city_air/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/air_panther
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCx_S8uYOFbCCZSOTSX_fPzw
