My name is Mike Walker and as you know by the website that you're in, I am a certified drone pilot: FAA-Certified Part 107. I’d like to share part of my life’s story that helped lead me to becoming a drone pilot.

It is a long story that goes all the way back to the beginning, when I was a little kid. I've always been adventurous, always liked to learn about new things. I think I got my curious streak and adventurous nature from reading Grimm’s Fairy Tales, Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn, and the like. Stories of princes that left home in search of their fortunes; I took those stories to heart and envisioned myself, from a young age, to be like those princes. I remember one time as a little child, being on the more precocious side like little boys can be, I actually ran away from home because my mom told me I could only have one banana. Well, I didn’t want just one banana, so I packed a small bag with a shirt and a pair of pants, took about five bananas, and moved out on my mission in search of my fortune! I started walking down the street and continued on through the neighborhood, with my little pack and the bananas. I thought I was Tom Sawyer or something! I walked and ate bananas until I ate all five of them. And then I realized I didn't know where I was. Needless to say, at that point I started doing what any five-year-old would do….figuring, wondering where I was, and crying. Luckily, some nice women found me and brought me back home. And that began my real-time journey into being an adventurous person….that was where the seeds of doing new things and always taking risk to seek out opportunity were sown.

I also have always had a strong creative side, a passion for learning, and a fascination with all things science. I won the blue ribbon three years in a row in junior high school at the district science fair in a major metropolitan area. I truly enjoyed learning about chemistry, biology, physics, all that science has to offer….and taking what I read about into the environment around me, whether studying insects and plants as a young boy, mastering the art and science of motion and energy as an older youth studying martial arts, to even as a teenager understanding the science of sound well enough to be the sound guy for my older brother’s band. Fast forward from there, I joined the US Marine Corps and was an active Marine for a long time. I ended up retiring, but during my years of active duty I travelled the world over and saw places and amazing sights, from the everyday to the exotic, from breathtaking perspectives that most people will never get to see. Now I'm in Southern Ohio and this is where drone technology got on my radar screen and came into focus for me.

I use my drones for a variety of things including being able to secure my property, which is how I first got interested in the drone genre altogether. I wanted something where I could surveil my property and see what was going on without having to jump on an ATV or other vehicle or walk to the far corners of my property, to ensure my property was safe. By employing drones, I became opened up to a world of technology far beyond what I expected. I saw the high-quality video the drone produced, and the ability for the drone to see and do things that were impossible for a human being. I could not believe the stunning video that resulted just from a simple flight at 200 feet above ground level. The striking colors which at times seem infinite, the many shades of greens in the foliage. How heavenly the orange, red, yellow light of sunrise looked. I was amazed at how crystal clear things appeared. How the treetops on the rolling hills looked when the wind blew them. At that point, I became fascinated with the entire industry and having a voracious appetite for learning, I dug into all the resources that I could find, immersing myself into everything drone. I've always been a quick study, so it didn’t take me long to develop the expertise to use my video drone to the fullest. And that led me to get even more sophisticated drone technology and video equipment. So you see, just through that simple act of wondering about how to fill a security aspect need on my property, and the ensuing steps of learning so that I could find a solution for my need, I discovered the opportunity as well as the high level of sophistication that drone technology can provide, not only for the individual but also for business owners in numerous sectors – from real estate to construction work to inspection of towers and billboards and even confined spaces…the sky’s the limit, literally. And I wanted to get in on that technology, so I learned as much as I could and I got the equipment, including a smaller drone (a Mini4 Pro by DJI, which is a great drone), and mastered the ability to move this drone very smoothly and freely, getting the cinematic shots that a realtor might need inside a home. But many times you need something much more dynamic and powerful, and sometimes the winds can blow 30, 40, even 50 miles an hour, so a small drone such as that might not be able to handle those conditions. Therefore, I invested in other larger drones, that have more staying power when it comes to combating high winds and keeping a stable cinematic process going even at high altitudes, such as when shooting an entire property and house from all angles. A larger drone can be used in many different applications for many purposes.

With my various drones and additional camera and video equipment, I am impressed to see all that this technology offers and am fully equipped to offer my professional services for almost any venue. In all my travels to places near and far, I never imagined that we would hold this capability in our hands. But now is the time that we do. If you’re interested in learning more, feel free to reach out via my contact information on this website and I’ll get back to you in short order, as I'm very conscientious about that. I take what I do very seriously like I have done my whole life, which is how and why I've achieved so much. And I want to share that with anybody who is truly interested to learn and might need help, depending on what the situation is. I'm always willing to answer the call, that's just my personality. And I like to make the most of my days and seize the opportunities presented to me, because as the immortal words of Bruce Lee challenge the hearer, “If you love life, don’t waste time, for time is what life is made up of.”

So, in closing, I actually did leave home seeking my fortune, just like I dreamed about as a small child and, I have been doing just that ever since. I like to think that my eclectic past has built my eclectic present and is at this very moment in time, building my exciting and diversified future.

Preferred Tasks:

Aerial Videography/Photography
Real Estate
Weddings/Event
Labor Relations Strike Security Evidence Photographer/Videographer/Coordinator
Aerial Mapping
3D Modeling
Aerial Inspection
Ground Based Videography and Photography