Sometimes the drone is not the camera. It is the lamp you could not otherwise get into position.
On LA night exteriors the problem is usually access rather than output — a condor cannot get into a residential street, a canyon location or a backlot alley on the schedule you have. An aerial lighting unit repositions between setups in seconds and puts the source where a rigging plan could not have reached.
Airborne lighting units standing in for a helicopter searchlight, moonlight over a wide exterior, a police spot, or a source that has to move with the shot. On night exteriors where a condor cannot reach or cannot get there in time, an aerial unit puts the light exactly where the DP wants it and moves it between setups in seconds.
LA works year round, which is why it became LA. June gloom flattens coastal mornings into July, and the Santa Anas bring the clearest air and the worst flying conditions of the year at the same time. Fire season now closes airspace with little notice.
This is the deepest crew market in the world and the one with the least patience for a unit that slows the day down. Paramount, Warner Bros. Burbank, Universal, Sony Culver City and every major streamer run production here, and they all have a drone vendor already. The way in is being the crew that lands the shot without becoming the reason lunch moved.
We shoot the Hollywood sign, downtown, the coastline from Malibu to Palos Verdes, and the studio lots — and we travel. CineDrones works nationwide, so if your production is basing in Los Angeles and shooting somewhere else entirely, that is a normal week for us.
Lighting units sized from a moving practical to a wide-exterior source, flown on airframes built for the weight.
Our aerial units have worked on Ozark, Jack Ryan, Bosch, Mayans M.C., SEAL Team, NCIS: New Orleans, Fear the Walking Dead, American Horror Story, Modern Family, 9-1-1, Goliath, The Resident, Raising Dion, Castle Rock, Doctor Sleep and Chef's Table, for Netflix, Amazon, Apple, HBO, Hulu, Showtime, Sony, CBS, AMC, MTV and Bravo. See the work →
Enough to serve as a motivated source over a wide exterior, though a condor still wins on raw sustained output. The advantage is position and speed: light exactly where the DP wants it, moved between setups in seconds.
Night operations are part of what we are approved for. Night is also when the airspace is quieter, which sometimes makes authorization easier rather than harder.
When access beats output — a location a lift cannot reach, a source that has to move with the shot, or a schedule where rigging time you do not have is the real constraint.
AERIAL LIGHTING — OTHER MARKETS: Albuquerque Atlanta Austin Chicago Las Vegas Miami New Orleans New York Salt Lake City
Get ready to elevate your production to new heights with CineDrones! Operating in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, New York, Albuquerque, Austin, Atlanta, Chicago, Miami, Salt Lake City, and New Orleans, we bring the power of cutting-edge drone technology to every project. Whether you're capturing breathtaking aerial footage, thrilling FPV shots, or immersive drone-based virtual reality, our expert teams of FAA-certified pilots, aerial camera pros, and drone techs have you covered. Fully compliant with Part 107 regulations and protected by a $5M aviation liability policy, we guarantee precision, safety, and creativity. Plus, with Local 600 union and non-union crews available, we’re ready to deliver jaw-dropping results wherever you need them!