04/07/2025
A Morning on the Roof: Behind the Scenes of a Real Drone Inspection in Harrogate
By Wingman Drones
Last Sunday at 0630 while most people were still tucked up in bed, I was setting up outside the Everyman Cinema in Harrogate for a roof inspection. It’s not often you get the whole street to yourself,and that early morning calm makes a perfect window for safe, uninterrupted drone work.
This wasn’t just any flight, it was a chance to support a local business by providing a clear aerial view of their roof while scaffolding was already in place. Combining ground-level access with drone captured overhead visuals gives a much fuller picture. This is ideal for checking chimney stacks, roof coverings and hoppers in high detail.
Using my DJI Air 3S, I captured a full set of high resolution stills at 45° angles and directly overhead (nadir shots) to give a clear, detailed view across the entire roof. Every shot was taken in a logical sweep to make sure nothing was missed. It’s the kind of work that saves time, money and guesswork for clients and it’s time in the sky so it’s a job I genuinely enjoy doing.
But of course, not every drone flight goes exactly to plan…
About halfway through the job, a pair of very territorial seagulls (yes seagulls in Harrogate 😆) decided I’d overstayed my welcome. They came in low and fast, dive bombing the drone with zero hesitation. I kept cool and immediately flew vertically upwards… I do this in these scenarios as birds typically can’t follow that steep of a climb. Within minutes the threat was gone, and I brought the drone back down safely to continue the shoot.
Little challenges like that are all part of the job, and they make each flight memorable.
