Every month of the build, from the same spot in the sky.
Fixed-position aerial photos and film of your site, flown on a regular schedule and delivered within 72 hours. A dated record your team, funders and buyers can actually see.
- Monthly visits from
- £161per visit
- Fixed positions
- 4–6same every visit
- Delivered in
- 48–72 hby download link
- Insured
- £10mpublic liability
A build only happens once. Record it properly.
The ground swallows the evidence
Foundations, drainage and services are covered within weeks. A dated overhead from the same spot proves what went in, and when.
Funders want to see it
A two-minute film says more than ten pages of a monthly report. Lenders and investors stay confident when they can watch the build.
Buyers buy the story
Progress footage turns into launch films, hoardings and social posts, and keeps off-plan buyers excited until handover.
The record builds itself.
MONTH 01 · PRE-START CONDITION RECORD
Baseline before work starts
Visit one fixes the camera positions and records the site exactly as it is. Boundaries, access, neighbours, trees and services, dated before anyone digs.
- Groundworks0%
- Frame0%
- Envelope0%
- Externals0%
- M01
- M03
- M06
- M10
- M14
Slide through the whole build.
Each visit is flown from saved routes, so position A in month 1 lines up with position A in month 14. Drag or swipe the strip to move through a typical programme.
POSITION A · VISIT 01 OF 14
Illustration. Dates show a typical monthly schedule.
We agree the positions once. Then every visit matches.
Before visit one, we fix four to six positions with you: height, angle and what each one is for. They're written down and saved as flight routes, so nothing depends on memory.
POSITION A · OBLIQUE
South-west corner
- Height
- 60 m
- Angle
- 45° down, facing north-east
The classic hero view. Shows the front elevation and the street.
What lands in your inbox.
- CP-01
Fixed-position stills
Every agreed position, every visit, framed to match the last one. High-resolution JPEGs, ready for reports.
- CP-02
Top-down overview
One straight-down image of the whole site, the easiest way to see what's changed.
- CP-03
60–90 second progress film
Edited, graded and captioned with the date. Landscape for reports, vertical cuts on request.
- CP-04
Side-by-side comparison
This month next to last month (or the baseline) from the same position, as a single image.
- CP-05
Dated, organised folder
Named by site, visit and position, so anyone can find March's north-east view in seconds.
- CP-06
Visit note
Date, time, weather, positions flown and anything that stopped a shot, so the record stands up later.
DOWNLOAD LINK · EXAMPLE
- ▸ HD-CP_Riverside-Quarter/
- ▸ V07_2027-03-14/
- ▸ 01_Positions/A, B, C, E, F · 24 stills
- ▸ 02_Overhead/D · 3 stills
- ▸ 03_Film/V07_progress_90s.mp4 · vertical cuts
- ▸ 04_Compare/V07-vs-V06 · V07-vs-V01
- · V07_visit-note.pdfweather, times, positions
- ▸ V06_2027-02-12/
- ▸ V01_2026-09-10_baseline/
One record. Used by everyone on the project.
Developers
Launch films, CGI-to-reality comparisons, sales-suite screens and social content that keeps buyers interested through the build.
Main contractors
A dated visual record for valuations, programme meetings and head office, plus evidence if a dispute or delay claim comes up.
Funders and monitoring surveyors
Monthly visuals that sit alongside your reports, so lenders and investors see progress rather than read about it.
Architects and design teams
Award entries, case studies and portfolio footage of the scheme you designed, from foundations to finish.
Marketing and comms teams
Hoarding banners, newsletters, community updates and LinkedIn posts with fresh imagery every month.
Subcontractors
Proof of your package going in, for your own case studies and to show the next client.
BEFORE THE BUILD STARTS
Site sitting empty while you wait on planning?
The same fixed positions can check an empty building every month for lead theft, roof damage, fly-tipping and break-ins, then carry straight on as your progress record when work begins.
From first call to handover film.
One point of contact from start to finish: me. I plan, fly, edit and deliver every visit myself.
- Day 1
Brief
Tell me about the site, the programme and who the footage is for. I reply within a day with a fixed price per visit.
- Week 1
Site check and paperwork
Airspace and permission checks, site-specific RAMS, insurance certificates and your induction. Everything in writing before the first flight.
- Week 1
Capture plan
We agree the fixed positions together, usually four to six, with heights and angles written down so every visit matches.
- Visit 1
Baseline
The site as it is before work starts, or as it is today if you're already on site.
- Monthly
Repeat visits
Same positions, same heights, booked on a regular date. If the weather's bad, it moves to the next suitable day.
- +48–72 h
Delivery
The dated folder lands by download link, ready to drop into your report.
- Handover
Final film
A closing visit and a full start-to-finish film made from every month on record.
Price per visit, by site size and how often.
The more often I visit, the less each visit costs. You get a fixed quote in writing before anything is booked.
| Site size | One-offsingle visit | Quarterly × 4save 5% | Monthly × 6save 10% | Fortnightly × 12save 15% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SmallOne building, a short terrace or a small plot | £179per visit | £170£680 for 4 | £161£967 for 6 | £152£1,826 for 12 |
| MediumA larger site or a few blocks | £260per visit | £247£988 for 4 | £234£1,404 for 6 | £221£2,652 for 12 |
| LargeA multi-block scheme or a whole estate | £375per visit | £356£1,425 for 4 | £338£2,025 for 6 | £319£3,825 for 12 |
Add to any visit
- Vertical social cuts+£49
- All original footage+£39
- 48-hour turnaround+£59
How it's invoiced
Repeat-visit contracts and jobs of £1,000 or more are invoiced per visit on 30-day terms. One-off visits take a 25% deposit to secure the date.
Travel is included across the core area. Sites further out are quoted with travel. Everything is set out in the booking agreement.
The kit on your site.
- DJI Mini 4 ProFIXED POSITIONS, OVERHEAD AND FILM
48 MP stills and 4K/60 HDR video. Saved waypoint routes mean every visit flies the same positions.
- DJI Neo 2TEAM AND SITE INTROS
Palm-launched follow-me clips: a site manager walking the scheme, or the team at topping out.
- DJI Osmo Pocket 3GROUND-LEVEL WALKTHROUGH
Smooth handheld video of showhomes, fit-out and finished interiors.
Safety and paperwork, sorted before visit one.
- CAA registeredFlyer ID and Operator ID, flying under the UK rules for the aircraft and the site.
- Site-specific RAMSRisk assessment and method statement written for your site and shared before visit one.
- Your induction, your rulesI complete your induction, wear the right PPE, sign in and out, and follow your permit-to-work process.
- Airspace and permissionsAirport zones, restricted areas and landowner permission checked before every visit, not just the first.
- £10m public liabilityPlus £50k professional indemnity. Cover can be adjusted per contract if your framework needs more.
- Flight log for every visitTimes, positions, weather and any shots skipped, kept on file and available to you.
Straight answers: what this service is, and isn't.
- Visual records, not measurements. Photos and film show progress, but they aren't a survey and can't be scaled for quantities or volumes.
- Positions are matched carefully from saved routes, typically within a few metres. That's plenty for side-by-side comparison, but not for engineering use.
- Some sites need extra permission, for example near airports or over busy public areas. I'll tell you before booking if that affects the plan.
From pictures of progress to measurements of it.
The next step for Happy Drones is RTK mapping: centimetre-level positioning that turns each visit into maps, models and volumes you can measure. It isn't offered yet, but it can arrive sooner for the right contract.
AVAILABLE NOW · VISUAL
- Fixed-position stills and film
- Top-down overview images
- Side-by-side comparisons
- Dated visit records
- Marketing and social content
COMING NEXT · MEASURED (RTK)
- Orthomosaic maps you can measure on
- 3D models of the site and structure
- Stockpile and earthworks volumes
- Cut and fill comparisons between visits
- As-built overlays against the design
- Centimetre-level positioning with RTK and ground control
DJI Mavic 3 Enterprise + RTK module
Mechanical-shutter mapping camera and RTK positioning. The first step into measured outputs.
DJI Matrice 4E
Enterprise mapping platform with laser rangefinder and weather resistance, for larger sites and tougher conditions.
Need measured outputs now?
For a contract of the right length, I'll hire or buy the RTK aircraft and set up the mapping workflow to suit your programme. Tell me about the site, the outputs you need and the timescale, and I'll come back with a plan, a start date and a price.
Before you book.
How often should you visit?
Monthly suits most schemes and matches most reporting cycles. Fortnightly works for fast frames and fit-outs, quarterly for long, slow programmes.
Do you need to be on site for long?
Usually one to two hours per visit, depending on the number of positions and the size of the site.
What if we're already halfway through the build?
That's fine. Visit one becomes the baseline from today, and every visit after it matches.
Can you fly over a live site?
Yes, with planning. Flights are set up around your operations and briefed with the site manager, and I follow your site rules and permit process.
What happens if the weather is bad?
The visit moves to the next suitable day at no cost, and your record keeps its monthly rhythm.
Who owns the footage?
I keep the copyright, and you get a licence to use it for your business, your reports and your marketing. Details are in the booking agreement.
Can we use it on hoardings and in sales suites?
Yes. Tell me at the start and I'll shoot positions and crops that work at large sizes and on screens.
Can you provide measured surveys or volumes?
Not yet. Measured mapping arrives with RTK aircraft. For a contract of the right length, I can bring that forward. Ask about it.
How is it invoiced?
Repeat-visit contracts are invoiced per visit on 30-day terms. One-off visits under £1,000 take a 25% deposit.
Tell me about your site.
Get a guide price in under a minute, then a fixed quote, capture plan and paperwork within a day.
Or call 07888 625623