Santa Barbara, CA Drone Videographer and Operator

Santa Barbara drone videography

We fly luxury resorts and hotels, estate and ranch real estate, weddings, wine country, concerts at the Santa Barbara Bowl and festivals across Santa Barbara, Montecito and Goleta. For hotels we also fly one-take indoor fly-through tours. For concerts and festivals we film recaps, and for larger shows we send live drone feeds to the stream or screens; see live broadcast drones and concert and festival drones.

SBA Class C and Vandenberg

Santa Barbara Airport in Goleta has Class C airspace from the surface to 4,000 feet around the airport, taking in Goleta and UCSB. Vandenberg Space Force Base up the coast has restricted military airspace, so coastal shoots stay well clear of it. We check every Santa Barbara location on the FAA sectional, B4UFLY and NOTAMs before quoting, and file LAANC or FAA authorization for any address that needs it.

Channel Islands and the backcountry

Channel Islands National Park is National Park Service land, where launching or landing a drone is prohibited without the superintendent's written approval. NOAA's overflight rule for the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary also keeps motorized aircraft above 1,000 feet within one nautical mile of the islands. The San Rafael and Dick Smith areas in Los Padres National Forest are designated wilderness, where the Forest Service does not allow drones to take off or land.

California drone law and parks

California privacy law makes it an invasion of privacy to enter the airspace above someone's land without permission to capture private or family activity, so we keep homes, yards and people who have not agreed to be filmed out of frame. California State Parks allow drones unless a park has posted an order banning them, and commercial filming in a state park needs a State Parks permit through the California Film Commission, with drone paperwork filed ahead of the shoot. Wildfire temporary flight restrictions can close large areas in summer and fall, and flying into one is illegal.

Credits

Charleston hotel fly-throughs for Vive Media, an indoor micro-drone fly-through of the Tempo by Hilton hotel in Times Square and the Outside Lands aerial livestream in Golden Gate Park.

Related

Los Angeles drone videography | San Diego, CA drone videographer | Palm Springs, CA drone videographer | California drone videography | San Francisco drone videography | Augusta drone videography (headquarters) | Lynchburg, VA drone videography (second location) | Live broadcast drones | Concert and festival drones | All locations

Nearby cities we fly

Fresno, CA drone videographer | Monterey, CA drone videographer | San Jose, CA drone videographer | Sacramento, CA drone videographer | Lake Tahoe, CA drone videographer

FAQs

Do you need FAA approval to fly in Santa Barbara?

It depends on the address. Santa Barbara Airport has Class C airspace from the surface to 4,000 feet around Goleta. We check every location on the FAA sectional and B4UFLY before quoting and file LAANC where it is needed.

Can you film the Channel Islands with a drone?

Not from the national park. Drones may not launch or land there without the superintendent's written approval, and sanctuary rules keep aircraft high near the islands.

Do you film weddings and estates in Montecito?

Yes, with the owner's approval. We keep neighboring homes and guests who have not agreed to be filmed out of frame.

Can you fly at the Santa Barbara Bowl?

Only with the venue's approval. We plan each concert flight with the venue and check for flight restrictions first.

What insurance do you carry?

Our standard policy is $10M liability, with optional coverage up to $25M when a venue, league or network requires it. Certificates naming your venue or production are issued before the shoot.

Request a Quote

Tell us the date, location and what you need filmed. Request a Quote or call 706-284-8364.