by Brady Bast
When it comes to skydiving, racing drones, and entrepreneurship, a little risk can often lead to a big reward.
Tyler Henderson began his professional career in 2014 as a videographer and editor for WPSU where he helped the production team earn 4 NATAS Mid-Atlantic Emmy's over 5 years. Simultaneously, Henderson has been a skydiving instructor and freefall videographer since 2012, and a drone videographer since 2017.
After learning to fly drones as a teenager, he eventually earned his FAA commercial drone license to add production value to a growing freelance video business. However, simply flying the drones didn’t give Henderson the full video production control he was looking for. So, he started modifying and building them to go faster and carry larger cameras—which proved to be equal in fun to skydiving during winters off from the jump season.
As his drone skills developed, Henderson moved into a new role with the Penn State College of Engineering’s communications and marketing department. There, working with the team’s creative director, Kate Myers, he combined his indoor drone flight expertise and video production skills to develop multiple video projects highlighting campus facilities. This successful formula translated into a unique business opportunity: producing indoor drone videos using custom-built microdrones.
XHab 3D Drone Video | Watch here.
Earlier this year, Henderson and Myers partnered to found AmpliFLY Video. Myers, the brand’s creative director, has a rich background in advertising, marketing, and graphic design—making the duo a perfect team.
“Overwhelming support from the community” in just one hundred days
In addition to Henderson’s decade of experience building and flying drones, AmpliFLY Video adds their special sauce: immersive visual storytelling. The team collaborates with clients to create a strategy that drops viewers right into a desired setting, whether that is an office space, hotel, restaurant, or large, diverse facility. Henderson and Myers use a cost-effective, efficient process to capture video with small drones to highlight what it’s really like to be in a space, and in the middle of the action.
Clients include the Happy Valley LaunchBox Powered by PNC Bank, Gamble Mill Inn & Suites, X-Hab 3D, Origin Labs, the Nittany Valley Sports Centre, and Downtown State College, to name few.
PA Military Museum Video | Watch here.
Kate tells us, “Our goal is to create videos for our clients that are high-energy, navigate unexpected angles indoors, and include people to really highlight the vibe of a space. We can cover a lot of ground quickly, producing the kind of videos viewers are excited to watch, and rewatch. This approach contrasts with traditional drone videos that tend to fly over or through mostly empty areas. Having people involved brings the environment to life, and we’re able to do this thanks to the experience and expertise that Tyler brings to piloting drones.”
Gamble Mill Drone Video | Watch here.
The two said they have received “overwhelming support from the community,” even though they have only been in business for just over one hundred days. As a two-person team, Myers and Henderson are being strategic about their growth. They plan to be selective about their projects and manage their pipeline effectively.
While they are just getting started, Henderson noted that the drone video productions are something they truly enjoy creating for clients, and they don’t plan on offloading it to a broader team just yet, saying, “I can’t believe I get to combine my love of film and flying drones together and call it work!”
Learn more about AmpliFLY Video at https://www.ampliflyvideo.com/.
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