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Drone Masterclass Academy – Is It Worth It? (Read This)
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In our reviews of online drone schools, we’d be remiss not to talk about Drone Masterclass Academy, which calls itself “the ultimate drone academy for aspiring professionals.” If that makes you curious, we don’t blame you! Should you enroll in the Drone Masterclass Academy? Is this online drone school worth it?
**The Drone Masterclass Academy is a phenomenal resource where you can learn about drone careers, cinematography, videography, and starting your own drone business from three drone experts. **
In this guide, we’ll look closely at everything the Drone Masterclass Academy has to offer, including its courses, pricing, and additional features. By the time you’re done reading, you can decide whether the Drone Masterclass Academy is right for you.
What is Drone Masterclass Academy? Who’s the founder? #
As we alluded to in the intro, the Drone Masterclass Academy is a resource for learning about drones. According to the Drone Masterclass Academy website, the courses offered are for “aspiring professionals” and “seasoned professionals”.
The company is associated with UAVISUALS, a drone inspections, video, and photography service based out of Australia. UAVISUALS offers drone training, workshops, and business masterclasses as well.
The Australian-based Drone Masterclass Academy features three instructors from the UAVISUALS team: Dean Chisolm, Paul Gavranich, and Aaron Rajamoney.
Chisolm is behind the Perth company Birds Eye Media. His talents lie in photography and technology. He also happens to be very talented when it comes to drones, and his knowledge of the technical side of drones is something you can tap into when you take a Drone Masterclass Academy course.
Gavranich is UAVISUALS’ creative director. Nicknamed the Wizard, Gavranich has a film and video degree, so he knows his way around a camera and a drone as well. As a content producer, he has an eye for what makes an incredible shot or piece of footage.
Finally, Rajamoney is the founder and CEO of UAVISUALS. Rajamoney decided to quit his previous job to work in drones and has loved every second of it. He leads many Drone Masterclass Academy courses.
The impetus behind Drone Masterclass Academy was to share the combined knowledge of Chisolm, Gavranich, and Rajamoney with commercial pilots who are thinking of starting their own business or finding another way to make money from their drones.
What can you learn at Drone Masterclass Academy? #
With more than 200 video tutorials currently available from the Drone Masterclass Academy team and more being added all the time, this online drone school offers an extensive wealth of information, that’s for certain.
Here is a full list of the courses currently available.
Real Estate Masterclass #
The Real Estate Masterclass includes over 40 videos divided into nine sections. The course is taught by Aaron Rajamoney himself. Check out this overview of what’s included in each of the sections of the Real Estate Masterclass.
- Section 1 – Intro
- Section 2 – Gear & Drones
- Section 3 – Getting Started
- Section 4 – Mastering Drone Photography
- Section 5 – Photo Editing for Real Estate
- Section 6 – Mastering Drone Videography
- Section 7 – Video Editing for Real Estate
- Section 8 – Free Downloads
- Section 9 – Job Shadows
Drone Inspections Masterclass #
Do you know what goes into a professional drone inspection? With the Drone Inspections Masterclass, also taught by Aaron Rajamoney, you can master this area of drone business so you can begin earning a living using your UAV.
The course topics include the following:
- Section 1 – Intro & Welcome
- Section 2 – Opportunities by Industry
- Section 3 – Getting Started
- Section 4 – Drone Breakdown
- Section 5 – Software & Reporting
- Section 6 – How To’s/Job Shadows
- Section 7 – Free Downloads/Samples
Drone Cinematography Masterclass #
How about becoming a confident drone photographer in only a week? If you enroll in the Drone Cinematography Masterclass from Drone Masterclass Academy, it’s possible! Learn with Paul Gavranich across seven exciting parts of this course.
Here is what’s included:
- Day One – Intro & Tech Talk
- Day Two – The Creative Process
- Day Three – How to Shoot For…
- Day Four – DJI FPV
- Day Five – Editing Tips
- Day Six – Free Downloads & Samples
- Day Seven – Job Shadows
Drone FPV Masterclass #
The remaining three classes listed by Drone Masterclass Academy are coming soon, and that includes the Drone FPV Masterclass.
Here is the basic curriculum the Drone Masterclass Academy has put together, but keep in mind it’s subject to change, so stay tuned.
- Intro to FPV
- Getting Started
- Building Your FPV Drone (5-Inch Analogue)
- Your First Flight
- DJI FPV
- Mastering FPV Cinematography
- Mastering FPV Racing
Drone Photography Masterclass #
The Drone Photography Masterclass is the second of the three courses that are still a work in progress. Further information is not known about the course yet.
Drone Survey Masterclass #
If you want to learn drone surveying from the best, you can sign up for an early bird deal for the Drone Survey Masterclass, as this is another course still under development.
What are the other features of Drone Masterclass Academy? #
Have those classes from Drone Masterclass Academy whetted your appetite? The courses are just the beginning of the offerings the company has. You can also download templates, documents, Look-Up Tables or LUTs, and lots more.
Let’s take a closer look at what enrollees can utilize to augment their education.
Drone business starter documents #
After graduating from a drone business course through the Drone Masterclass Academy, check out their drone business starter documents.
You get eight documents in all in your download, including:
- Price list for real estate
- Website privacy policy
- Website terms
- Subcontractor agreement
- Engagement letter
- Creative brief
- Non-disclosure agreement
- Shoot schedule/call sheet
Drone safety signs template #
When your drone career does get underway, you may sometimes need to put up safety signs around the area so unsuspecting civilians don’t cross a drone’s path. Even though this is an oddly specific resource, it’s one that Drone Masterclass Academy offers its enrollees, nevertheless.
Image Credit: Drone Masterclass Academy
25 drone cinematic LUTs + Free LUTs #
Look-Up Tables or LUTs are digital files that can change your image’s tone and color. Where do you even begin to find them?
The Drone Masterclass Academy offers LUTs. You can buy 25 cinematic LUTs with professional color grading.
Or use their five free LUTs. The latter pack includes the LUTs Blade, Heat, Lush, Outback, and Streets.
Folder structure template #
The right folder structure, says the Drone Masterclass Academy team, is the “foundation to any drone business.” You can create a more effective workflow and stay organized with their included folder structure template.
Operational checklists #
You don’t want to forget anything at home (or the office) when flying your drone, especially if you’re working professionally. Drone Masterclass Academy will spare you the embarrassment and inconvenience with their slew of useful operational checklists.
You can download a packing gear list, an inventory checklist, a real estate shot checklist, and a pre-flight checklist. You’ll be ready to go each time you use your drone, and that’s an excellent feeling!
Job profit calculator #
Are you charging too much for your drone work?
If you are, then you can scare clients away. They’ll pay for another drone expert who markets their services for less money, causing you to miss out.
With Drone Masterclass Academy’s job profit calculator, you can crunch some numbers and determine your margins. You’ll then get a better feel for whether you’re overcharging, or – even worse – undercharging for your services.
Legal handbook (Australia) #
If you also live and work in Australia as the Drone Masterclass Academy team does, you won’t want to miss their official legal handbook for Aussies.
Across 45 informative pages, you’ll learn about all the legal issues you could become ensnarled in as well as how to avoid them.
The Drone Masterclass Academy team partnered with the Drone Lawyer himself, Tom Pils, to create this course.
Here are the included contents:
- Business Structures
- Contracts
- Employment Issues
- Intellectual Property
- Data, Privacy, and Noise
- Trouble in the Sky
- Complex Drone Operations
- Drone Registration and Pilot Accreditation
One-on-One business coaching #
Are you having a hard time getting your drone business off the ground (no pun intended)? Do you need more personalized help than even what the highly informative courses from Drone Masterclass Academy can offer?
In that case, then Aaron Rajamoney can sit down with you for a one-on-one hour-long business coaching session.
You can chat about work-life balance, your current business weaknesses, how to overcome them, how to strengthen your brand, market your drone business, and come up with a business plan. It’s up to you how you spend the 60 minutes!
How much does Drone Masterclass Academy cost? #
One or more of the Drone Masterclass Academy course materials stood out to you. You’d like to enroll, but you’re curious how much the classes cost.
Let’s run through everything that Drone Masterclass Academy has available at current (soon-to-be-available courses notwithstanding) and disclosed pricing:
- Real Estate Masterclass: $129
- Drone Inspections Masterclass: $197
- Drone Cinematography Masterclass: $59
- One-on-one drone business coaching: $299 an hour
- 5 drone cinematic LUTs: Free
- Drone FPV Masterclass: $49
- Drone safety signs template: Free
- Drone business starter documents: $79
- 25 drone cinematic LUTs: $10
- Legal handbook: $69.95
- Folder structure template: Free
- Operations checklists: $15
- Job profit calculator: Free
How is Drone Masterclass Academy rated? #
The Drone Masterclass Academy website is like one giant landing page for the courses. As you scroll through, you’ll inevitably notice the bevy of reviews posted.
As has been the case with the other online drone schools we’ve discussed, these reviews are overwhelmingly positive and mostly one-sided.
Thus, let’s look at a third-party resource to get a fuller picture of how people perceive the Drone Masterclass Academy.
On Facebook, the online drone school has a perfect score of 5.0, but only eight users left reviews.
The ones who took the time to comment on Facebook lauded the Drone Masterclass Academy for its detailed information, how easy it is to understand the materials, and how much the enrollees were able to further their business based on what they learned.
Unfortunately, we couldn’t find any further reviews than that.
Is Drone Masterclass Academy worth it? #
Maybe you’re still on the fence about whether you should enroll in Drone Masterclass Academy. If so, then this section ought to be a big help to you.
We think that Drone Masterclass Academy is absolutely worth it. The courses dig into the nitty-gritty details of topics that a lot of drone pilots can benefit from, such as how to improve your drone photography and videography or make money using your drone.
If you already work in a drone career such as real estate or surveying, you can take one of Drone Masterclass Academy’s courses and step up your knowledge so you’re even more effective in your job.
For those who want to start a business, few online drone schools are as exceptional as Drone Masterclass Academy. Between the courses themselves and the extensive resources such as checklists, folder structures, and the Australian legal handbook, you’d be covered from all sides.
Plus, as you’ll recall, you can always pick the brain of Aaron Rajamoney in a one-on-one session!
The courses are all video lessons, and they’re structured so each module in the lesson lasts for several minutes at a time. You can pause the video, rewind, and re-watch until you digest the material. Plus, you can learn on your time and at your pace.
When you buy any course materials from Drone Masterclass Academy, they’re yours for life. That’s a great bargain, especially for the reasonable prices of the courses.
The only downside we have to mention is this. Unlike many other online drone schools, the Drone Masterclass Academy does not have a course on obtaining your Part 107 license (for the obvious reason of being based in Australia). This school is more for everything that happens after you have your commercial drone license.
Conclusion #
Drone Academy Masterclass is led by professional drone pilots who each specialize in different areas of UAVs. If you’re looking for video lessons taught by masterful instructors, this is the online drone school for you.
The materials are all about building a drone business from the ground up or successfully entering drone industries such as surveying and real estate. You can also sharpen your drone videography and/or photography skills.
With reasonable prices and lifetime access to materials, plus lots of freebies along the way, the Drone Masterclass Academy is an excellent resource for becoming a better drone pilot!
References:FacebookCover photo by UAVisuals