Aerial photography...what I have learned
Aerial photography...what I have learned
Over a two week period in June and July in 2008 in Alaska I flew in numerous small (Bush) planes covering an area from western Alaska to Eastern Interior Alaska. Planes were both float and wheeled planes and ranged from Cessnas (172, 185 and 206) to a De Havilland Beaver. I used both a Canon 35mm camera with their 24-105 IS lens and a Hasselblad H2 camera with a Phase One P45+ digital back with a normal 80mm lens.
The need for “good light” is a given as is always the case when doing creative artistic photography. I found the next thing that was most important was the quality of the air currents....the smoother the plane ride the better the images regarding sharpness. On my flight over the Wrangell Mountains I was able to lower my film speed to 50 in both cameras which gave me excellent dynamic range. On my H2 camera I merely set the shutter speed to the max of 800 and let the f stops fall where they may....usually in the 5.6 to 10 or 11 range, depending on the brightness of the scene. The Wrangell St. Elias flight (up to 12,000 feet in elevation) was incredibly smooth which was a huge help).
After good light and smooth air currents I found the most critical thing was the ability to open the plane window in order to avoid shooting behind glass. On my Wrangell shots I did both...shooting with the window open (wind chill was -60 outside) and with the window closed. The shots taken with the window open just stood out on my computer and had a brightness, snap and color accuracy that were just not there with the “window closed” shots (even tho the window was quite clean).
I found the stabilized Canon lens to be of great help in achieving sharp images especially the plane rides that had some “bounce” with more challenging air currents. In western Alaska I only used my Canon and at times used iso speeds as high as 800 and even then many shots were not all that sharp.. So in aerial shooting a lot of luck is involved.......good light and calm air...One other thing...never touch any part of the plane with the camera...you need to avoid the vibration of the plane at all costs!
And last but not least, thanks go to all my great pilots - Lori, Dan, Cecil, Martin and Bill! They knew the area well and knew how to make good aerial photography possible through tipping the wings, and so on.
******8/10/10 - One last notation...I have just been reading about the tragic plane crash that injured an ex NASA chief and killed an ex Alaska senator among others, near Dillingham, Alaska (Bristol Bay/Bering Sea area). If one does nothing else to prepare for small plane shooting in remote Alaska, make damn sure your pilots are notorious for being obsessive about checking out their planes to a fault, having current weather reports in the cockpit, and know their “stuff” (which includes not taking unnecessary chances)...period. Cover all your bases the best that is possible.....there is no room for error here. Sometimes things happen no matter what you do to prevent it, but this is rare.
Friday, August 1, 2008