Rising Stars: Meet Robert Hoops of Kansas City Metro

Today we’d like to introduce you to Robert Hoops

Hi Robert, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I never aspired to learn how to fly drones or use them for photography and videography. My passion for photography was born in childhood; I’d set up little scenes with my action figures and model spaceships from Star Wars and try to capture them on cheap disposable cameras. It was as laughably bad as you think.

I was, however, a gifted illustrator and writer with a flair for the stage from as early as I can remember. My focus in school was always art and theatre, and everyone always thought I’d either be drawing comic books or acting in movies when I grew up. These talents would go on to influence my photography as an adult, but I was terrible with photography in high school and college. Back then, DSLR cameras weren’t super mainstream yet, especially for a poor lower middle-class kid like me. We shot on film and developed prints in a darkroom. I was horrible at it! I failed photography class in both high school and art school. I finally relented that photography just wasn’t my thing. So I stuck to the creative skills I excelled in: art, writing, acting.

I chose art school to study illustration initially, but switched schools and earned my bachelor’s degree in theatre. I loved theatre because it allowed me to utilize numerous artistic mediums to make one cohesive creation: writing the script, designing sets, sketching concepts for characters and costumes, planning the music and lighting… I love that sort of thing. I had trouble homing in on just one creative path- I still do- so theatre was deeply fulfilling because it allowed me to explore so many of them. My plays sold out every time, sometimes to standing room only status. It was a euphoric feeling.

Immediately after college I began dreaming up ways to bring some of my sketches and drawings to life in new ways- namely, through photography. By now, digital photography was far more accessible, and thanks to my years of using Photoshop for graphic design and illustration, I knew how to edit images. Some of my creative friends collaborated with me to bring those early concepts to life before I learned how to operate a DLSR camera on my own. Finally, photography clicked for me! I absolutely loved the collaborative aspect of those early years in photography, and I found it to be very much like directing a play: design the concept, cast the models, transform the immediate space in front of the lens into another world for a little while. I deeply loved it. I miss it. I think I thrive best when working with others- and learning from them.

Throughout the 2010’s, I earned a fair bit of notoriety for my photography. I won the People’s Choice Award for Best Indie Photographer at RAW Kansas City and was nominated for Best Photographer in The Pitch’s Best of KC twice. I also hustled to change careers and, through photography, I was able to. Once my portfolio became robust enough and I had a few awards under my belt, I broke into the marketing industry in a creative capacity. I shot photography, filmed and edited video, crafted brand identities (very much like creating a character in a play), and wrote for web and social media. This eventually led to working with drones.

I was the social media manager at Park University when my rockstar manager and mentor, Aimee Patton, asked if I’d be willing to earn my drone pilot certification from the FAA if the university paid for my training. They’d purchased a drone shortly before a federal law was passed that requires any commercial drone operation to be flown by a licensed pilot, so they couldn’t use it, as no one had earned the certification. So I did. The rest is history. It’s all thanks to her.

I fell in love with capturing photography on drones because it opened entirely new planes and perspectives to shoot from. It’s limitless as long as your imagination is.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Me. Hi. It’s me. I’m the biggest challenge I’ve had to overcome.

Throughout my life- adolescence, college, adulthood- I heard the same thing over and over again: “You’re so talented and gifted… but.”

I really struggled with this cognitive dissonance of being told I was exceptional all my life from my support system, while in the same breath being told to play it safe, to prioritize fitting into the mold, to not pursue the things I excelled in with my all. It was like “do you believe in me or not?” It’s a mindf*ck, and it’s left me with this deeply ingrained sense of trepidation that I continue to battle with.

I also tend to get in my own way as someone with lots of different creative interests. That can make it difficult to focus on one path. Looking back, it’s like I tend to live my life through creative seasons- in grade school it was illustration. In college it was writing and theatre. As an adult it’s been photography and cinematography. In the last few years I’ve learned to play the guitar, sing, and write music. It’s all cumulative though, which is pretty cool I suppose. It’s insightful to see how those seasons in the past have integrated into the ones that follow.

Again, I think I’m at my best when I have a creative community; a village working alongside me. I partner with the always amazing photographer Nicole Bissey to pilot drones and edit video reels. My best friend, Adam Roberts (of Screenland Armour/Rewind Video and Dive), utilizes me for photography or video gigs for his theater. I had a small apparel brand at one time, and at its height, you could find it in Hallmark shops, Made In KC, and numerous maker festivals like Strawberry Swing.

But every time I started to hit my stride, I’d get a lucrative offer from an ad agency recruiter or something, dangling that carrot in front of me. I always chose, or was urged, to take those “safe” office job offers instead of continuing to build my own momentum. In the end, playing safe didn’t get me anywhere. Pandemic-induced layoffs always followed, and that industry has now been decimated by artificial intelligence and CEO’s who use it to cut corners.

My friends that are business owners or who have some consistent passion project- who took the risk and bet on themselves instead of choosing a safe, traditional route- have succeeded in some way. Every single one of them. I’m immensely proud of them all. And I let them know it. I cheer them on. Because I know how crucially vital it is to have cheerleaders in your life.

Today, my drone photography does well! I’m doing the work. But it has come after a life full of battling my own deeply seeded blue-collar doubt, false starts, and my spastic array of creative passions.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I don’t shoot many commercial operations anymore- real estate listings, b-roll for businesses, urban construction- as much as I’d like to. I’ve shifted focus to more of a fine art angle, which feels great! It feels right. I’m a skilled drone pilot, but I feel that my lifelong, innate artistry is what makes my work truly different. My trained, award-winning eye as a photographer. My visceral sense of the theatrical. That’s the secret sauce.

The novelty of drones has worn off. Kids own them (which is awesome, don’t get me wrong!). Real estate agents and construction contractors aren’t hiring out certified pilots the way they used to. In the words of one realtor I’ve worked with, “a lot of us just break the law and fly them ourselves now.” So my angle is: How do I set myself apart? How do I make my drone photography different?

For me, that’s capturing details that people normally don’t get to see from the ground. Sure, it’s great to see big, picturesque bird’s eye views of the Kansas City skyline or landscapes from up high- from afar- but it’s been done. My two most popular pieces are my up close and personal shots of the Western Auto sign overlooking the crossroads and my portrait-like shot of the statues carved into the top of the Liberty Memorial tower. You might be asking: “Isn’t that irresponsible, isn’t that risky?”

When I first learned how to pilot drones, I cut my teeth by using one of the riskiest classrooms imaginable: the Missouri River Flood of 2019. It’s one thing to see the vast swath of devastation caused by a natural disaster like that from hundreds of feet in the air. But from the ground, what really struck me were the small, human elements that illustrated the awesome power of nature and the damage it was capable of inflicting on our everyday lives. A playground with just the tips of the tallest slides defiantly poking above the water. A basketball goal submerged up to the net. The last few precious feet of a rooftop. And so on.

In order to get a shot like that, I had to be extremely aware of dangers like downed powerlines, low visibility tree branches, and thin light poles. Furthermore, I was flying above water. Due to the collision detectors on the belly of the aircraft, the reflective nature of water can make piloting over it even more challenging, as it confuses the sensors. One careless mistake meant that I’d lose my drone to the river. It was truly trial by fire. But it instilled in me a laser focused respect of how to fly in dicey situations, like getting up close (within the constraints of the law, of course) to a beloved landmark without the slightest risk of damaging it. I take this extremely seriously and I don’t think I could live with myself if I were to damage something sacred like the Liberty Memorial through careless flying.

I should note that you need to gain FAA clearance to fly in airspaces like this, and as a courtesy, you should get the property’s permission to fly closely around an area like that.

My prints are available on my Etsy store, Scout City Studio. Some creators don’t love that, but I’ve been blessed by the algorithm over the years. I get traffic and sales from my shop without really having to try. It’s meager, as I feel weird about promoting myself, but it is truly passive. I never experienced traffic or sales like this with an e-commerce site or by utilizing social media ads.

What do you like and dislike about the city?
I’ll go with the typical answer for what people tend to like least about this city: a lack of solid public transportation. But we’re working on that! What I like most about Kansas City is that it feels safe enough for creatives to try something new, to go out on a limb, without the risk of losing everything- like you might if you decided to move to a coastal city to pursue that goal instead. That’s a bit of a double edged sword though. Kansas City is safe enough to try anything, but that also makes it safe enough to give up easily.

In my anecdotal experience, if you build it, they will come. They really will. But you have to burn bright. You have to sing it with your full chest. You can’t do it halfway. If you build it, you must keep nurturing it. I know that is so, so, so much easier said than done, and I am living proof of that.

I admire that Voyage KC gives a platform to some of the most inspiring movers and shakers in Kansas City, and I was honored to be asked for an interview. However, my hope in sharing my raw experience is that my story might reach anyone with a calling in their heart, or a sense of purpose in their soul, who might be in the same boat as I have been. I won’t sugarcoat my journey: I’m not a resounding success story. I’m a constant work in progress. I’m always evolving as an artist and as a person. But I’m still here, and so is my creative work. I’m looking forward to the leaves changing this fall and getting artsy fartsy with new autumnal drone photography around the city.

The last thing I will leave readers with is this: for me, my heart has to be in an endeavor. Doing something for validation or because it’s trending doesn’t come across as authentic, and people can smell that from miles away. Do it for you.

I used to beat myself up about that. “Why can’t I force myself to do this thing I don’t care about but need to do?” But after seeing a phenomenal therapist this year and doing some deep inner work, swallowing lots of hard pills, I’ve come to embrace that it’s hardwired in me as a psychological archetype- and in mind, body, and soul. That might cause me to be less financially successful than others, but I no longer beat myself up about it. I love that my heart must be in something if I’m going to do it. I think that’s neat, for better or for worse.

I know that sounds idealistic, but tangibly, it’s true. When I’ve forced myself, or when I’ve tried to fit a traditional mold, it has never worked out. When I believe in myself, when I get fired up about something and really go full power in my off-beat nature, it tends to yield grounded, quantifiable results.

In the last couple of years, I’ve become increasingly involved in my passion for music, specifically, the modern psychedelic rock genre. I’ve developed friendships with some of my heroes and the creative communities surrounding those bands, and this has led to artistic opportunities. Last summer I was tapped to join a team of illustrators from all over the world to create art for a King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard themed tarot card deck. A few months ago I was referred to in Rolling Stone by Zia McCabe of The Dandy Warhols for some brief footage I shot of their legendary performance- joined on stage by The Black Angels and The Brian Jonestown Massacre- at the 2023 Levitation Festival in Austin. I’ve begun to muse about ways I can use aerial photography for artistic expression related to the music I love- maybe even blending it with illustration and theatrical concepts. I have a sense that my ever-evolving journey may take me in this direction next, and for the first time in my life, completely on my own at age 42, the healthiest I’ve ever been, I feel grateful and at peace with the road ahead.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.roberthoops.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scoutcitystudio
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@roberthoopskc
• Other: https://www.etsy.com/shop/ScoutCityStudio