A view of Corolla Beach on North Carolina's Outer Banks. "Controlling a drone is almost like a dance to me," said drone photographer Thomas Wheeler.
Thomas Wheeler
Thomas Wheeler has always had a knack for eye-hand coordination, especially in the age of video games.
“Controlling a drone is almost like a dance to me," said Wheeler, 32, who focuses on capturing images – from the sky. "Imagine for a second you could put your eyes anywhere in the sky.”
Wheeler lives in Broad Run, Virginia but frequently travels back and forth to the Outer Banks.
“The idea of literally capturing a moment in time is, and still sounds like, magic to me,” he said.
Before flying a drone, Wheeler says he had “zero knowledge of airspace and what you need to know to run a business or to become a licensed drone pilot.”
His goal is to get paid to film orca whales and other wildlife, and he’s planning a trek into the Smoky Mountains this fall to capture aerials of the changing seasons.
“It has all been trial and error but worth every second of it,” Wheeler said. “I can see diversifying and growing soon, which is something beyond even my wildest dreams not only a year ago.”
Note: This is the latest installment in an occasional series profiling North Carolina photography.
A paddleboarder off the coast of North Carolina near Corolla Beach. "The idea of literally capturing a moment in time is and still sounds like magic to me,” said drone photographer Thomas Wheeler.
Credit Thomas Wheeler / AltAdjust.com
Sunset at the Frisco Pier as captured from above. "Imagine for a second you could put your eyes anywhere in the sky," said drone photographer Thomas Wheeler."It's a whole new world and I just happen to love exploring beautiful places and capturing nature as it is."
Credit Thomas Wheeler / AltAdjust.com
The 4x4 entrance at Corova Beach. Drone photographer Thomas Wheeler has spent much of his time taking photos from the sky over North Carolina's Outer Banks.
Credit Thomas Wheeler / AltAdjust.com
A group of dolphins swim together off the coast of North Carolina's Outer Banks. "My goal is to get paid to film orca in the wild and other wild life," said drone photographer Thomas Wheeler. "I am planning a trek into the Smoky Mountains this fall as the leaves turn color."
Credit Thomas Wheeler / AltAdjust.com
A view near the Frisco Pier facing southwest. Becoming a drone photographer has "all been trial and error but worth every second of it," said Thomas Wheeler. "[I] can see diversifying and growing soon which is something beyond even my wildest dreams not only a year ago."
Credit Thomas Wheeler / AltAdjust.com
A woman walks along the beach with two dogs. "I feel it's human instinct to seek out what is beautiful," said drone photographer Thomas Wheeler.
Credit Thomas Wheeler / AltAdjust.com
A group of wild horses runs along the shoreline along North Carolina's Outer Banks. Photographer Thomas Wheeler uses a drone to capture images of nature from a unique vantage point.
Credit Thomas Wheeler / AltAdjust.com
A bird's-eyed view of the Currituck Lighthouse as captured by drone photographer Thomas Wheeler.
Credit Thomas Wheeler / AltAdjust.com
A man paddleboards out to sea along North Carolina's Outer Banks. Using a drone, photographer Thomas Wheeler captures the paddleboarder up close and personal.
Credit Thomas Wheeler / AltAdjust.com
A boat as seen from above near Wanchese, in the Outer Banks. Photographer Thomas Wheeler describes the drone industry as one with "near limitless potential to revolutionize not only how we see the world but how we treat it."
Credit Thomas Wheeler / AltAdjust.com
A view of Whalehead from above, as captured by drone photographer Thomas Wheeler.
Credit Thomas Wheeler / AltAdjust.com
A lone paddleboarder along North Carolina's Outer Banks. "My philosophy on photography is simple I feel: there is beauty everywhere, all around us, under the rocks and above the trees," said drone photographer Thomas Wheeler.
Elizabeth “Liz” Baier is WUNC’s Supervising Editor for Race, Class and Communities. She has two decades of experience than span print, audio, and digital reporting and editing.