What Novi businesses film from the air
Much of Novi’s aerial work is commercial. Retailers, restaurants and landlords around Twelve Oaks Mall and Novi Road want site, parking and access views for leasing and marketing. Along Grand River Avenue, the anchor is Vibe Credit Union Showplace, formerly Suburban Collection Showplace, which lists more than 600,000 square feet of contiguous event space at the junction of I-96, I-696 and I-275. Event producers and exhibitors use exteriors and arrival shots there, and FPV fly-throughs inside when the venue allows it. On the north side, Walled Lake and Lakeshore Park give lakefront listings and lifestyle content a water backdrop.
Class G below a stepped Class B shelf
According to the FAA’s Class Airspace data, every point we checked in Novi is uncontrolled Class G at the surface, with Class E beginning 700 feet above the ground. Detroit Metro’s Class B shelf sits above that and steps up as you move away from the airport: 3,000 feet above sea level near Eight Mile, 3,500 feet over central Novi and Twelve Oaks, and 6,000 feet over the Showplace, Lakeshore Park and Wixom Road. None of those points falls inside an FAA facility map grid, so there is no LAANC request for a flight below 400 feet. Oakland Southwest Airport (Y47) in New Hudson, west of the city, is non-towered and needs no authorization, though Part 107 still requires the drone to give way to manned traffic.
Parks and permits around Novi
Michigan’s drone law, PA 436 of 2016, keeps cities from regulating how drones fly, but it does not open private or public land to commercial launches. Most Novi shoots start on private property: a mall, a venue, an office park or a homeowner’s lot, each with its own sign-off. Lakeshore Park, the city’s largest, has a swimming beach on Walled Lake from Memorial Day through Labor Day, so we avoid the beach crowd in season and check with the parks department before staging there.
The larger parks around Novi each have their own rules. Kensington Metropark allows drones under Metroparks Rule 28, requires prior notice to the airport operator for flights within 5 miles of an airport, which applies to parts of the park near Oakland Southwest Airport, and requires a permit for commercial filming. Maybury State Park and Proud Lake Recreation Area are Michigan DNR land, where written permission is required for any commercial drone use.
Light and seasons
Summer is the season for Walled Lake: calm mornings give the flattest water and the cleanest reflections of lakefront homes. Fall color at Kensington, Proud Lake and Maybury makes strong brand and lifestyle footage in October. Retail and office exteriors look best in low morning or evening light, when shadows give flat roofs and parking fields some shape. Winter works for expo arrivals and holiday retail, with shorter flights to protect batteries.
Booking a Novi shoot
Send the address, date window and what you need. We confirm the airspace, the property owner or permit office and any event schedule before we quote. See our Detroit drone photography services, FPV fly-through video for venues and showrooms, or contact us.