It depends on how you like to study and learn. There are a few books out there that have been mentioned in the part 107 discussion thread that can be used for test study. I signed up with one of the online self study courses that help you prepare and I passed the test easily. You must study the relevant material or you will have a tough time. The course I took is one price for a 4 year enrolment with the idea being that you can pass your part 107 initially and then use the course for a refresher 2 more times when you renew your remote pilot certificate with the FAA every 24 months. I would say that for me an online self study course was the way to go.
I have had limited success as a drone photographer. Go to as many drone photography web sites as you can and see what they are doing, talk to as many drone pilot as you can in your area. I have found that most people still don't know a lot about drones and what they can do. You literally need to knock on doors, introduce yourself and convince people that they need your service. Be prepared to do a lot of demonstrations and maybe even an occasional freebie. I have a ton of ideas but not a tenth of the time to pursue them all. Real estate is kind of fickle. Most real estate agents don't need drone shots to sell their listings so why should they bother, plus anyone with a phantom can get decent usable shots for dirt cheap and that's what a lot of agents are already doing. Aerial shots for high end real estate makes a lot of sense but once again you need to break into that market and it can be tough. I personally would like to find a partner that is good with people skills and likes that kind of work so they could push the sales end of things and I would take care of the field work. It would be worth it to me to split the profit as I have a well paying job and only do this as side thing. As far as photography goes there are the big guys out there that will show up with $30k worth of cameras and drones and shoot some beautiful footage worthy of high end car commercial and then there's the rest of us trying to find our niche. I haven't found mine yet.
There are emerging technologies out there that are being developed in the areas of aerial mapping, agriculture, and industrial inspections, etc that have huge potential but once again I'm not that guy.
I have a you tube channel but I keep it free without ads. Looking at the people who do it for income you really need a lot of hits and subscribers and you need to update constantly and keep people coming back. That being said I am really grateful for them as that's where I have gotten the bulk of my knowledge in this hobby.
The cost of getting your part 107 remote pilot certificate, a decent drone, camera and computer is not that great. And you should do that before you can pursue the next step.
