RAW Digital Group flies drone photography and video in Macomb Township, MI, with FAA Part 107 certified pilots from its Detroit studio. Published starting prices are $450 for aerial photos, $1,500 for aerial video and $2,500 for FPV fly-throughs, with no travel charge in Wayne, Oakland, Macomb and Washtenaw counties.
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What gets filmed from the air in Macomb Township
Macomb Township is one of the places in Southeast Michigan where new homes are still going up in volume. SEMCOG’s report on residential construction in 2023 ranked it second in the seven county region for single family homes permitted, with 210, behind Lyon Township. That shapes the aerial work here. Builders need drone video that shows a subdivision’s layout, its pond and trail system and how close it sits to Hall Road. Real estate agents need aerial photography that shows a larger suburban lot in one frame. Phased developments call for construction progress flights from the same points on every visit, so owners and lenders can compare month to month.
Hall Road (M-59), the township’s southern edge, carries the retail and restaurant frontage. Leasing and brokerage packages there depend on overhead views of access, parking and traffic. Across the township, parks, from Macomb Corners on 25 Mile Road to Lucido River Park on North Avenue, give community and youth sports groups a clean backdrop for event content.
How Selfridge’s airspace splits the township
We measured the FAA’s Class Airspace and UAS facility map layers against the township boundary. Selfridge Air National Guard Base (MTC) has Class D airspace from the surface to 3,100 feet MSL, and roughly a quarter of Macomb Township falls inside it. The edge crosses Hall Road between Romeo Plank and Heydenreich roads and runs northeast to the east line near 25 Mile Road. The township offices on Broughton Road, most subdivisions to the west and all of the north end are outside it, in Class G.
Inside the wedge, a drone pilot needs LAANC authorization, and the ceiling depends on the grid. The FAA facility map allows 400 feet along the Class D edge, 200 to 300 feet through the middle and 100 feet along the eastern edge around North Avenue. A small area at the far southeast corner near Hall Road is set at 0 feet, which means no automatic approval at any height. The FAA lists the Class D hours as set by NOTAM, and we file for every flight inside it regardless.
South of that corner, the base itself is off limits. The FAA’s national security UAS flight restriction over Selfridge bans drones from the surface to 400 feet, around the clock, and our measurement puts it about 0.3 miles from the township line. For how these layers fit together across the region, see our Detroit drone rules guide. We confirm every flight in B4UFLY or a LAANC app on the day.
Launch sites and permission
Most Macomb Township shoots launch from the client’s own lot or job site. Michigan’s PA 436 of 2016 bars townships from regulating drone flight, but it gives no one the right to use someone else’s land as a launch pad. On active builds we work with the site lead, keep the aircraft off occupied homes and plan around crews and equipment. The township parks and the Metroparks just to the north set their own terms for commercial use, and we clear those before a date is booked.
Light and seasons
New subdivisions look their best from late spring into early fall, once sod is down and trees have leafed out. Low morning or evening sun adds shape to rooftops and streets that look flat at noon. For progress work, a winter flight after fresh snow can outline lots, roads and foundations clearly, though cold shortens battery life.
Planning a Macomb Township shoot
Send the address, date window and what you need to deliver. We check which side of the Selfridge line it falls on, the grid ceiling if it is inside, and who controls the launch site before we quote. See our Detroit drone photography services, including real estate drone photography and construction progress flights, or contact us to start.