Hell everyone,
I am a private pilot and my friend wants to take some good pictures of some places where we are going to fly to. Does anyone know some good techniques, as to get the airplane in the best position to take the best picture?
Thanks
Aerial Photography
Moderators: lilfssister, North Shore, sky's the limit, sepia, Sulako, I WAS Birddog
Ummm....fly over the thing that you want to take pictures of?
Sorry. Couldn't resist.
Does anyone that knows anything about the topic (obviously I don't) have any suggestions? Fotoflyer?
Sorry. Couldn't resist.
Does anyone that knows anything about the topic (obviously I don't) have any suggestions? Fotoflyer?
Please don't tell my mother that I work in the Oilpatch...she still thinks that I'm the piano player at a whorehouse.
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themilkguy
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I've always found that slips are effective... Hopefully you're using a 172 or variant...
Kicking the rudder around to move the strut fore or aft will help also.
MAKE SURE YOU KEEP THE SPEED UP if you're screwing around with slips - it's easy to spend your time watching the pretty scenery when your head should be in the game.
Slow flight comes in handy with about 20 degrees of flap deployed, once again - watch your airspeed.
Don't forget about working with the wind aloft; your turn radius will be affected, so don't expect to turn on a dime. Check your FDs or get a brief prior to flight.
Mornings and late afternoons will produce the longest shadows, so depending on your latitude and season you'll want to keep that in mind.
A high-overcast layer will give you a nice, diffused white light that will turn out nicely regardless of the sun's position in the sky (within reason).
A bright, sunny day will get crisp pictures of sea, lakes, mountaintops or snow, while bright overcast works best for property (and surveying), valleys and buildings without much worry of reflections from windows blinding you or screwing with your lens settings.
That's about all I can think of right now... PM me if you want to fish for something specific and I'll try to help.
Cheese,
TheMilkGuy
Kicking the rudder around to move the strut fore or aft will help also.
MAKE SURE YOU KEEP THE SPEED UP if you're screwing around with slips - it's easy to spend your time watching the pretty scenery when your head should be in the game.
Slow flight comes in handy with about 20 degrees of flap deployed, once again - watch your airspeed.
Don't forget about working with the wind aloft; your turn radius will be affected, so don't expect to turn on a dime. Check your FDs or get a brief prior to flight.
Mornings and late afternoons will produce the longest shadows, so depending on your latitude and season you'll want to keep that in mind.
A high-overcast layer will give you a nice, diffused white light that will turn out nicely regardless of the sun's position in the sky (within reason).
A bright, sunny day will get crisp pictures of sea, lakes, mountaintops or snow, while bright overcast works best for property (and surveying), valleys and buildings without much worry of reflections from windows blinding you or screwing with your lens settings.
That's about all I can think of right now... PM me if you want to fish for something specific and I'll try to help.
Cheese,
TheMilkGuy
The ONLY time you have too much fuel is when you're on fire.
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mellow_pilot
- Rank 10
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- Joined: Wed Aug 17, 2005 1:04 am
- Location: Pilot Purgatory
If it's a 172, pull the right door off and get a pax to shoot from the back seat. No window in the way and a wide feild of view free of the strut. You also get less wing in the shot.
I had a buddy who was a pro-photographer do this once. We just tied him into a climbing harness, with enough rope to get to the door frame. Worked well, he was safe (ie there wasn't enought rope for him to actually exit the A/C.)
The plane flies fine, little noisy, but not much wind. (I'd only do this in the summer though.)
I had a buddy who was a pro-photographer do this once. We just tied him into a climbing harness, with enough rope to get to the door frame. Worked well, he was safe (ie there wasn't enought rope for him to actually exit the A/C.)
The plane flies fine, little noisy, but not much wind. (I'd only do this in the summer though.)
Dyslexics of the world... UNTIE!
Not sure what type of a/c you'll be flying, but in a 172...
- as the pilot FLY THE AIRPLANE (don't get so caught up in the picture subject you forget about safety)
- think about sun angle and the resultant shadows
- set up at stable, lower but safe airspeed (20 degrees flaps and 2000 rpm will give you approx 70 kias)
- depending on skill level be ready to cross control a bit to get the strut out of the way
- as the pilot FLY THE AIRPLANE (don't get so caught up in the picture subject you forget about safety)
- communicate effectively your actions and intentions to whatever frequencies/people need to know
- use a good camera and let the zoom get you closer to the picture, resist the urge to fly lower
- as the pilot FLY THE AIRPLANE (don't get so caught up in the picture subject you forget about safety)
Hope this helps a bit - and fly safe.
- as the pilot FLY THE AIRPLANE (don't get so caught up in the picture subject you forget about safety)
- think about sun angle and the resultant shadows
- set up at stable, lower but safe airspeed (20 degrees flaps and 2000 rpm will give you approx 70 kias)
- depending on skill level be ready to cross control a bit to get the strut out of the way
- as the pilot FLY THE AIRPLANE (don't get so caught up in the picture subject you forget about safety)
- communicate effectively your actions and intentions to whatever frequencies/people need to know
- use a good camera and let the zoom get you closer to the picture, resist the urge to fly lower
- as the pilot FLY THE AIRPLANE (don't get so caught up in the picture subject you forget about safety)
Hope this helps a bit - and fly safe.
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TorontoGuy
- Rank 6
- Posts: 461
- Joined: Mon Nov 28, 2005 10:39 am
- Location: Toronto
How true! Pilot told me on the weekend of once ending up in a spiral dive 'cause he was paying too much attention to the spot of land below that his passenger was photographing.5x5 wrote:Not sure what type of a/c you'll be flying, but in a 172...
- as the pilot FLY THE AIRPLANE (don't get so caught up in the picture subject you forget about safety)
My comments would be:
High wing aircraft (obviously)
If you can't take the door off (unlikely if you're renting), make sure the window can be opened all the way (172)
Make sure the photographer keeps the camera strap (assuming there is one) around their neck. Nothing like dropping a camera out of an airplane to raise your blood pressure.
Don't bother lowering flaps - if you have someone taking pics for you, just slow down to a safe speed with no flaps. They get in the way for shots where you want the wing in frame. Clean wing looks better. Also, if you want a horizon shot with no aircraft in frame, you would have to raise the wing higher (cross controlled or not) with flaps exended than without to get the flaps out of frame. Keep the flaps up.
As others said, fly the plane first!
cyxe
High wing aircraft (obviously)
If you can't take the door off (unlikely if you're renting), make sure the window can be opened all the way (172)
Make sure the photographer keeps the camera strap (assuming there is one) around their neck. Nothing like dropping a camera out of an airplane to raise your blood pressure.
Don't bother lowering flaps - if you have someone taking pics for you, just slow down to a safe speed with no flaps. They get in the way for shots where you want the wing in frame. Clean wing looks better. Also, if you want a horizon shot with no aircraft in frame, you would have to raise the wing higher (cross controlled or not) with flaps exended than without to get the flaps out of frame. Keep the flaps up.
As others said, fly the plane first!
cyxe
Why do something now when you can do it later??
I shot aerial photography for a living flying (solo) here are a couple things to help you.
- If its only a couple locations you should bring another person along to do the photography.
- In a 172 it is possible to do it solo but you will NEED a remote shutter switch (tape it to the wheel) so you can hold the wheel and ‘fire’ the camera at the same time.
- Keep your arm off the door frame to prevent fuzzy pictures due to vibration.
- Depending on where the home is you will have to maintain a minimum 500 or 1000 agl.
- Set your cameras shutter speed as fast as you can I use 1/2000 of a second. The sport setting will work fine on less complex cameras.
- Check and make sure your stall horn is working, on your way out to take the photos do a few stalls including turning stalls so you will know how to react.
- have an accurate map of where the locations are along with a description.
If you have any question drop me a pm.
P
- If its only a couple locations you should bring another person along to do the photography.
- In a 172 it is possible to do it solo but you will NEED a remote shutter switch (tape it to the wheel) so you can hold the wheel and ‘fire’ the camera at the same time.
- Keep your arm off the door frame to prevent fuzzy pictures due to vibration.
- Depending on where the home is you will have to maintain a minimum 500 or 1000 agl.
- Set your cameras shutter speed as fast as you can I use 1/2000 of a second. The sport setting will work fine on less complex cameras.
- Check and make sure your stall horn is working, on your way out to take the photos do a few stalls including turning stalls so you will know how to react.
- have an accurate map of where the locations are along with a description.
If you have any question drop me a pm.
P
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frontside_air
- Rank 2
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- Joined: Wed Mar 08, 2006 9:34 am
- Location: on someone else's vacation
more suggestions for the photographer:
- clean your windows!
- lighting will make/break your shots. plan to arrive over your target at the time of day when your subject will be best lit (ie: golden hour during sunrise/sunset)
- getting a good exposure is key but it's always good idea to err on the side of eliminating blur. you can push-process the image in photoshop afterwards but there's nothing you can do if you end up with a shakey pic.
- if you're forced to shoot through glass use a circular polarizer to eliminate glare/reflections from inside the airplane. a c-pol filter usually takes an f/stop-worth of exposure away from you but i'd suggest shooting underexposed and bringing back the levels in post processing.
- if your monster 70-300mm isn't fast enough crank up the ISO setting. if you're down low the autofocus will provide good results but if the lighting is tricky or there's a lot of glare in the windows watch out for backfocus.
- clean your windows!
- lighting will make/break your shots. plan to arrive over your target at the time of day when your subject will be best lit (ie: golden hour during sunrise/sunset)
- getting a good exposure is key but it's always good idea to err on the side of eliminating blur. you can push-process the image in photoshop afterwards but there's nothing you can do if you end up with a shakey pic.
- if you're forced to shoot through glass use a circular polarizer to eliminate glare/reflections from inside the airplane. a c-pol filter usually takes an f/stop-worth of exposure away from you but i'd suggest shooting underexposed and bringing back the levels in post processing.
- if your monster 70-300mm isn't fast enough crank up the ISO setting. if you're down low the autofocus will provide good results but if the lighting is tricky or there's a lot of glare in the windows watch out for backfocus.
If you can afford it buy one if these:
http://www.ken-lab.com/stabilizers.html
It will allow you to bring your shutter speed WAY down which is nice if you need a large depth of field.
Regards,
Seb D
http://www.sebdphoto.com
http://www.ken-lab.com/stabilizers.html
It will allow you to bring your shutter speed WAY down which is nice if you need a large depth of field.
Regards,
Seb D
http://www.sebdphoto.com
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frontside_air
- Rank 2
- Posts: 88
- Joined: Wed Mar 08, 2006 9:34 am
- Location: on someone else's vacation
