Aerial Photography

[pjchis]

Hello!
I am a private pilot who is starting to get interested in Aerial Photography. I need some advice on what kind of camera I could purchase (on a budget, around $300) will give me the quick picture taking capabalities and a high enough resolution that I could blow these pictures up around 8x10 or bigger and the quality loss is minimal. Here are a few pictures I've taken, air to air and air to ground. This was taken on an old nikon coolpix, not sure what model number but it was about 4 megapixels. I'm looking more in the range of 6-8MP







Keep in mind, I'm flying and shooting at the same time so I need something that's easy to point and shoot. Also I'm flying by my target at 150+KTS so it'd probably be best if I could get a high shutter speed to keep the image sharp.

I didn't know where to ask this question and it's difficult finding any information on aerial photography so any tips would help! Thanks!

[WCpilot]

Hello pjchis, I'm also a pilot. I'm working on my commercial license right now. I would suggest you look at something like the Canon S3 or the older S2 or the equivalent from other brands. They will give you plenty of zoom for aerial shots, the image stabilizer will be helpful, and they will be small enough to not be an issue in a tight cockpit. i have the Nikon D50 DSLR and even that is a little bulkier than I would like in an Archer cockpit at times. Also, since you need to use the viewfinder on the D50 to compose a shot, you can get disoriented surprisingly quickly without your peripheral vision. Not a big problem if you have someone else who can handle the plane for a minute, but potentially problematic if you're solo. So having a bright LCD to compose the shot will be nice. btw, what are you flying? It looks like a Katana wing in the first photo. And 150 knots shouldn't require an exceptionally fast shutter speed as long as you maintain your clearance distances :wink5:

[pjchis]

Thanks for the advice, and YES, that IS a Katana wing you see in the photo!!!! I love that little thing.

I've tried both the Cessna and the Katana (solo) for taking shots and with the windows on the 172, you're just pointing the lens pretty much straight down at the ground while trying to avoid the strut and gear. I like to get lower and bank towards the object to get my wingtips clear of the shot and then shoot from the side window. It's not easy to do it all by yourself but I appreciate the challenge.

Care to share any of your photographs?

Thanks again for the reply.

[WCpilot]

I know what you mean. For some strange reason, aircraft designers just never have photographers in mind! There is a little storm window in the exact spot that looks between the wing root and fuselage on the archer. I don't mind getting a little bit of the aircraft in the shot though. I think it adds some perspective to the shot. But that window just looks bad. I attached a couple from my last flight. It wasn't quite as hazy as it looks like in these shots, but it was a beautiful evening. Unfortunately I missed the really great colors later because I was practicing short field landings. But I still enjoy these. For the vertical one, I had to shoot trying to squeeze behind my instructors back and we were in some light bumbs. So that's the black in the top left corner.