In September, the College welcomed Terry Kilby, aerial photographer and 3D specialist. With more than a decade of experience as an aerial photographer, Kilby was a pioneer in the rapidly emerging drone industry beginning in the late 2000’s. Prior to becoming a full-time drone pilot, Kilby worked in the software and engineering field.  

The presentation started with Kilby’s early experience in aerial photography which included attaching cameras onto RC helicopters and utilizing the gimbals in Wii remotes for the cameras. Kilby created the first art book consisting of only drone shots along with writing a book on how to build a quadcopter. Beginning in 2017, Kilby started producing 3D drone models and time-lapses on historical sites. This technique is both cost and time effective and allows the possibility to create accurate representations of objects, surfaces and structures. Utilizing 3D drone modeling replicates a historical site’s morphology and its texture and color. Most recently some of Kilby’s 3D drone shots have been animated and used in the Metaverse.  

At the end of his presentation, students and faculty had the opportunity to ask Kilby multiple questions including how to get approval for historical sites, the challenges of using 3D modeling and potential future careers in the drone industry. 

Click here to view Kilby’s website.