What this work involves
Trades work is precise hand work: marking a line, cutting to length, mixing the right amount of mortar, setting a level. Try explaining how you feel a board sit flush and you'll see why it's easier to learn by watching. To record it, you go through your usual routines while a camera on a head strap or cap films your hands and tools from your point of view.
The category is everyday work in the building trades: carpentry, masonry, tiling, painting or installation. Task details and safe recording conditions depend on the project, and this page makes no claim about any site, tool or method. Your site's rules still apply, hard hat and harness included, and the camera shouldn't change how you work. Each project states its tasks and requirements before you accept.
What a recording can show
Some examples of what site footage can cover (none of them describes a current project):
- Measuring and marking out with a tape, square, level and pencil.
- Choosing, setting up and cleaning hand and power tools.
- Sorting, carrying and stacking boards, blocks or tiles.
- Mixing and spreading mortar, filler, tile adhesive or paint.
- Sanding, cutting trim, sealing joints and sweeping up afterwards.
Clear footage keeps the tool, the material and both hands in view. To see what review looks at and how revisions work, read the guide on what gets footage accepted.
- Pay is USD 5–15 per hour of accepted footage; it varies by project and is not guaranteed.F1b
- Review usually takes about a week, with a contractual limit of 30 days. Payment usually arrives within 7 days of acceptance, with a contractual limit of 60 days.F8, F7
- Collectors are paid in US dollars (USD) through Wise.F9, F9b
- Rejected footage is not paid.F11
- There is no fee to apply, and no coding or AI background is needed.F2
- No English is needed: instructions and support are in Spanish and Portuguese.F12
- You never pay for equipment: the project provides it, or the task needs no special equipment.F3b
Permission and privacy on a site
A building site or workshop is a commercial setting, so you need written permission from the owner or manager before you record there. Any coworker or client who can be identified in the footage needs to sign a release.
Plans, client addresses, house numbers and the inside of people's homes are private. Keep them out of frame, and keep the camera on the wall, floor or bench you're working on. The guide to privacy and consent at work goes into releases and permissions in more detail.
How to join the pool
- 01
Apply once
Fill in the short form on the collector page, and mention your trade and the tasks you do on site.
- 02
Wait for a suitable project
If a project fits what you do, we arrange it with you by email. You see its requirements, equipment and exact rate before you accept.
- 03
Record and send
You record the agreed tasks; people and automated checks then review the footage.
- 04
Get paid
We pay for accepted footage in USD, as described above.
Every kind of footage goes through these steps, and the overview of how recording works covers them.
Other types of recording work
The types of recording work directory has the full list. Here are five more that involve tools or hand work:
- Mechanic workshop: inspection, tools and parts in a workshop.
- Shop floor: shelves, folding and placing goods in a shop.
- Hair and beauty salon: tool preparation and salon routines.
- Farm work: plant care, sorting produce and hand tools.
- Professional kitchen: prep, plating and station cleanup in a restaurant.
Questions
Is this a construction job?
No. You get paid to record trade tasks you already do. You keep working for the same people, and the footage is paid as a separate piece of work.
Who needs to agree before I record on site?
The owner or manager has to agree in writing, and every person who can be identified in the footage signs a release.
What equipment do I need?
You never pay for equipment. Each project lists its requirements and equipment before you accept.