Aviation photography
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Aviation photography
Anyone into amateur / attempted professional aviation photography? If so what sort of gear do you use (without getting a bank loan) and where are some good spots for the top shots? (I am in Sydney - so spots around sydney preferably....but any other good spots across Aust and OS are appreciated..)And any good tips and tricks.....?
thanks
thanks
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Rooftop carpark of Westfield Eastgardens looks like a good place to take shots. I haven't taken any myself but the aircraft arriving on 25 are close and low and you may even get the CBD (centrepoint) in the background.
Have a look at airliners.net for great photography and technical questions.
Have a look at airliners.net for great photography and technical questions.
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RamAir,
I used to use a minota 35mm with a standard lense and then got a 150 lense, great sharp shots easy to use and fairly cheap.
But now nothing as some prick stole it.
Get a small tripod for the extra close zooms.
Cheers,
HA
I used to use a minota 35mm with a standard lense and then got a 150 lense, great sharp shots easy to use and fairly cheap.
But now nothing as some prick stole it.
Get a small tripod for the extra close zooms.
Cheers,
HA
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RamAirTurbine,
Suggestions:
1. Get a good 35mm SLR camera, and at least one telephoto lens such as 135mm or even 200mm. Look at second-hand gear because there are bargains to be had (I have 2 2nd-hand Minolta XGM bodies, several MC and MD series Rokkor lenses (all 2nd-hand) and 2 2nd-hand motor drives.) Add a few wide-angle lenses as finances permit...they can give a totally different perspective to an otherwise quite ordinary subject/shot.
2. Get a good tripod...will probably cost you more than the camera.
3. Practice handling the camera until you know every control button etc by feel alone...you need this as you track your target in the viewfinder.
4. Shoot, shoot, shoot and keep shooting. Practise until using your camera is totally instinctive.
5. Consider starting with B+W film. You can bulk-buy good B+W stock in 100m lengths,load your own cassettes, develop your own negatives and make your own prints if you have access to a darkroom/enlarger. This will help get you up to speed without the expense of buying and processing colour film.
6. Always keep every negative and have a good filing system so you know what, where, when and how.
7. Keep shooting.
Good luck!
Suggestions:
1. Get a good 35mm SLR camera, and at least one telephoto lens such as 135mm or even 200mm. Look at second-hand gear because there are bargains to be had (I have 2 2nd-hand Minolta XGM bodies, several MC and MD series Rokkor lenses (all 2nd-hand) and 2 2nd-hand motor drives.) Add a few wide-angle lenses as finances permit...they can give a totally different perspective to an otherwise quite ordinary subject/shot.
2. Get a good tripod...will probably cost you more than the camera.
3. Practice handling the camera until you know every control button etc by feel alone...you need this as you track your target in the viewfinder.
4. Shoot, shoot, shoot and keep shooting. Practise until using your camera is totally instinctive.
5. Consider starting with B+W film. You can bulk-buy good B+W stock in 100m lengths,load your own cassettes, develop your own negatives and make your own prints if you have access to a darkroom/enlarger. This will help get you up to speed without the expense of buying and processing colour film.
6. Always keep every negative and have a good filing system so you know what, where, when and how.
7. Keep shooting.
Good luck!
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I still use the same camera I started with 10 years ago and have had no problems. It's a Minolta X-300s SLR 35mm body which you can get very cheap if you look at second hand camera shops. As for lenses, I use a 35-135mm zoom and a 100-300mm zoom. This is quite OK for all sorts of ramp shots, taxing shots etc but it does get tricky when it comes to approach shots because it is a manual focus. For film, I prefer slides (Fuji Sensia 100).
I'm sure you can pick all these up for less than 400-500 bucks. A tripod, motor drive, flash and all those other bits and pieces can come later on. Just get the basics to start shooting.
I'm sure you can pick all these up for less than 400-500 bucks. A tripod, motor drive, flash and all those other bits and pieces can come later on. Just get the basics to start shooting.
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thanks for the info everyone. -
i have just a couple of questions from your responses ......
With slide film, can you at a later date get large (poster sized) prints? and secondly with black and white film, if you dont develop it yourself isnt it more expensive these days?
Also, does anyone know of fairly decent photo developers? (For both normal size prints and "big" enlargements)(Not quite at the develop it myself stage
i have just a couple of questions from your responses ......
With slide film, can you at a later date get large (poster sized) prints? and secondly with black and white film, if you dont develop it yourself isnt it more expensive these days?
Also, does anyone know of fairly decent photo developers? (For both normal size prints and "big" enlargements)(Not quite at the develop it myself stage
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RAT,
Unless you are doing the developing yourself, black and white will be more expensive. DIY can be a bit tricky, but it is fun none the less (provided you have the equipment that is).
Another downer is the time taken for the prints to come back if you are paying someone to do it. Unless you take your film to a photo shop who will develop it themselves, then you are likely to be up for a wait of around 2 weeks or so (I believe they are all sent off to Melbourne or something silly).
Unless you are doing the developing yourself, black and white will be more expensive. DIY can be a bit tricky, but it is fun none the less (provided you have the equipment that is).
Another downer is the time taken for the prints to come back if you are paying someone to do it. Unless you take your film to a photo shop who will develop it themselves, then you are likely to be up for a wait of around 2 weeks or so (I believe they are all sent off to Melbourne or something silly).
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RamAir,
No problem getting larger prints from the slides. All the big airline type posters you see in travel agents and just about all good quality posters were taken with Transparencies (Slides). They are usually done in a larger format though (not 35mm). I have some really nice original Australian Airlines A300 slides, air to air shots on larger format that were rescued and the quality is amazing.
The chemical process for Black and White is actually cheaper BUT because there isn't a large demand from the general public, your local 1 hour developer will charge you more just for the trouble to send it to a lab. Supply and demand is what they call it
.
Not sure where you are but if you are in Melbourne, try VANBARS in Carlton, they ARE very professional and good, i.e. you don't get prints developed with dust specks, half the nose or tail chopped off from the frame and the colours are just right. They have ALL the nick nacks you need for your habit and sell the cheapest Slide Film that I can find. They are sort of like a small warehouse.
No problem getting larger prints from the slides. All the big airline type posters you see in travel agents and just about all good quality posters were taken with Transparencies (Slides). They are usually done in a larger format though (not 35mm). I have some really nice original Australian Airlines A300 slides, air to air shots on larger format that were rescued and the quality is amazing.
The chemical process for Black and White is actually cheaper BUT because there isn't a large demand from the general public, your local 1 hour developer will charge you more just for the trouble to send it to a lab. Supply and demand is what they call it
.Not sure where you are but if you are in Melbourne, try VANBARS in Carlton, they ARE very professional and good, i.e. you don't get prints developed with dust specks, half the nose or tail chopped off from the frame and the colours are just right. They have ALL the nick nacks you need for your habit and sell the cheapest Slide Film that I can find. They are sort of like a small warehouse.
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Also, prints are a little more forgiving with respect to choice of aperture and shutter speed. With transparencies, you need to be a little more exact for best results.
P.S. I think B&W are lots more expensive because they are done manually whereas the colour prints are automatically churned out of a machine at 100 mph...
P.S. I think B&W are lots more expensive because they are done manually whereas the colour prints are automatically churned out of a machine at 100 mph...
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RAT
If you plan to do enlargements then slides are the way to go as you will find the quality will still be there.
I wold suggest that you use a fairly high speed film (around the 400ASA region) as this will allow for the speed of the aircraft and for a good range of shutter speeds for the various conditions you might face (i.e low light/dark skies, etc). I have also found through personal experience that using a 400 ASA B&W film allows for alot more flexibility in the dark room as well.
Also, in the initial stages, be prepared to only get 1 or 2 good (and I mean good) photos out of every 20. This will get better with practice.
Good luck
If you plan to do enlargements then slides are the way to go as you will find the quality will still be there.
I wold suggest that you use a fairly high speed film (around the 400ASA region) as this will allow for the speed of the aircraft and for a good range of shutter speeds for the various conditions you might face (i.e low light/dark skies, etc). I have also found through personal experience that using a 400 ASA B&W film allows for alot more flexibility in the dark room as well.
Also, in the initial stages, be prepared to only get 1 or 2 good (and I mean good) photos out of every 20. This will get better with practice.
Good luck
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There's an aerial photographer who operates under the company name of 'Skycam'in Sydney somewhere. Try contacting him - can't remember his name unfortunately. He may help with tips.
[ 05 September 2001: Message edited by: Achilles ]
[ 05 September 2001: Message edited by: Achilles ]
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A couple of thoughts...
1: Wouldn't a monopod provide a bit more flexibility ? - I notice a lot of sports photogs are using them these days, as they're quicker and easier to position and pan.
2: I think b&w film can be developed using the standard colour routine by most film shops, for the same price as colour. The prints do tend to have a sepia tinge to them though.
Good Luck
1: Wouldn't a monopod provide a bit more flexibility ? - I notice a lot of sports photogs are using them these days, as they're quicker and easier to position and pan.
2: I think b&w film can be developed using the standard colour routine by most film shops, for the same price as colour. The prints do tend to have a sepia tinge to them though.
Good Luck
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There's been some really good advice here and some not so good. I'll tell you what works for me.
I use Olympus cameras, an OM1 which is totally manual, works without batteries, and an OM4, which has spot metering. I use a 50mm, a 300mm and an 80 to 210mm zoom which happens to be my least favourite lense. They are far from ideal, but I get great results nonetheless.
All my gear is second hand, the new auto everything cameras are okay, but you don't need to pay a fortune for a decent camera and you'll get more satisfaction from doing it yourself. The point is, I've seen some really crap pictures taken with 5 grand's worth of gear and some pretty good pics taken by my 3 year old niece using a disposable. I kid you not.
Don't restrict yourself to sitting outside the fence at whichever international airport you live near. All your pics will look like everyone else's. I don't know what your background in aviation is, but if you can get airside you will get much better pics. A frame filling pic close up with a 50mm lense will always look better than one taken from the fence with a 300mm in my opinion.
If you want to use black and white, a cheaper way of doing it is to just pay for developing and a contact sheet. Then you just pick the frames you want. Personally I use 100 asa colour film most of the time it does the job and is sharper than 400 asa.
As far as a tripod goes, get one if you want to take boring pics. Learn to hand hold. As a rule of thumb, your shutter speed should always exceed your focal lengthfor hand held shots, ie. for a 300mm, use 1/500th second.
The best advice I can give you is to show your better pics to as many people as possible, don't be shy. You'll be surprised at how many people will ask for copies of your pics.
My own experience is that I'm currently training for my CPL (only just got my PPL). I spend most of my weekends at the flying school helping out where I can and I always have a camera in my car. If ever there's a big event on, the fact that I'm always there and everyone knows I can take a decent pic helps me to get close to it. The recent Tiger Moth flypast is a good example.
If you want to make money from photography you have to make yourself known, but don't make a nuisance of yourself at the same time.
One other thing, always make sure that your lenses are clean and that you have more flim than you need and a spare set of batteries. Having said that, if you miss out on a golden opportunity because you neglected one of the above, there is no such thing as a once in a life time chance.
I use Olympus cameras, an OM1 which is totally manual, works without batteries, and an OM4, which has spot metering. I use a 50mm, a 300mm and an 80 to 210mm zoom which happens to be my least favourite lense. They are far from ideal, but I get great results nonetheless.
All my gear is second hand, the new auto everything cameras are okay, but you don't need to pay a fortune for a decent camera and you'll get more satisfaction from doing it yourself. The point is, I've seen some really crap pictures taken with 5 grand's worth of gear and some pretty good pics taken by my 3 year old niece using a disposable. I kid you not.
Don't restrict yourself to sitting outside the fence at whichever international airport you live near. All your pics will look like everyone else's. I don't know what your background in aviation is, but if you can get airside you will get much better pics. A frame filling pic close up with a 50mm lense will always look better than one taken from the fence with a 300mm in my opinion.
If you want to use black and white, a cheaper way of doing it is to just pay for developing and a contact sheet. Then you just pick the frames you want. Personally I use 100 asa colour film most of the time it does the job and is sharper than 400 asa.
As far as a tripod goes, get one if you want to take boring pics. Learn to hand hold. As a rule of thumb, your shutter speed should always exceed your focal lengthfor hand held shots, ie. for a 300mm, use 1/500th second.
The best advice I can give you is to show your better pics to as many people as possible, don't be shy. You'll be surprised at how many people will ask for copies of your pics.
My own experience is that I'm currently training for my CPL (only just got my PPL). I spend most of my weekends at the flying school helping out where I can and I always have a camera in my car. If ever there's a big event on, the fact that I'm always there and everyone knows I can take a decent pic helps me to get close to it. The recent Tiger Moth flypast is a good example.
If you want to make money from photography you have to make yourself known, but don't make a nuisance of yourself at the same time.
One other thing, always make sure that your lenses are clean and that you have more flim than you need and a spare set of batteries. Having said that, if you miss out on a golden opportunity because you neglected one of the above, there is no such thing as a once in a life time chance.
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Another thing, if you use Kodachrome 64 film, ynd the shots are decent, you can then sell/swap them with ATP Airliners in the US. This way, not only can you get paid (a small amount) for the slides but you can also recieve 5 slides in exchange for your 1 slide. This is great if you are after a particular shot for your collection.
As Max, correctly says, don't worry about a tripod or monopod. You dont need it. Why carry all that weight with you. All I carry is my camera and two lenses, film and a scanner. Keep it simple and keep it light. Besides, the Anorak weighs a ton already!
Start with using a manual camera I reckon. This makes you understand the relationship between aperture and shutter speed. It's also much cheaper. When you can afford it later on, go for all the fancy auto focus stuff.
Oh I nearly forgot, I also carry a pocket camera in my bag. It's a simple point and shoot Olympus camera, no messing with shutters, apertures etc. Good for when you just want to take a quick snap without all the fuss.
As Max, correctly says, don't worry about a tripod or monopod. You dont need it. Why carry all that weight with you. All I carry is my camera and two lenses, film and a scanner. Keep it simple and keep it light. Besides, the Anorak weighs a ton already!
Start with using a manual camera I reckon. This makes you understand the relationship between aperture and shutter speed. It's also much cheaper. When you can afford it later on, go for all the fancy auto focus stuff.
Oh I nearly forgot, I also carry a pocket camera in my bag. It's a simple point and shoot Olympus camera, no messing with shutters, apertures etc. Good for when you just want to take a quick snap without all the fuss.
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RamAirTurbine,
I personnaly prefer Canon gear - particularly their lenses. I use an EOS 300 with a 75-300 lens (good if you're shooting from any sort of distance - like at an air show).
Using a zoom lense also allows for rapid composure of the shot and if you can, get a camera that has semi-automatic functions, such as aperature priority and shutter speed. For example, you set the shutter speed and the camera adjusts the aperature for the correct exposure.
You may also want to mess around with shutter speeds to show movement in propellers (about 1/250th of a second).
Film is generally the cheapest part of the whole exercise so don's skimp! I personally go for Fuji stuff for aviation photography as it tends to have a nice colour balance and really shows up blue.
Film sensitivity (ASA/ISO) also comes in to play, with a faster film (400) being ideal for poor lighting (cloudy) and I personally like it for air-to-air as it's more forgiving to camera shake caused by the vibrations and rattles in the average GA aircraft.
Finally, just practice and experiment as often as you can!
I personnaly prefer Canon gear - particularly their lenses. I use an EOS 300 with a 75-300 lens (good if you're shooting from any sort of distance - like at an air show).
Using a zoom lense also allows for rapid composure of the shot and if you can, get a camera that has semi-automatic functions, such as aperature priority and shutter speed. For example, you set the shutter speed and the camera adjusts the aperature for the correct exposure.
You may also want to mess around with shutter speeds to show movement in propellers (about 1/250th of a second).
Film is generally the cheapest part of the whole exercise so don's skimp! I personally go for Fuji stuff for aviation photography as it tends to have a nice colour balance and really shows up blue.
Film sensitivity (ASA/ISO) also comes in to play, with a faster film (400) being ideal for poor lighting (cloudy) and I personally like it for air-to-air as it's more forgiving to camera shake caused by the vibrations and rattles in the average GA aircraft.
Finally, just practice and experiment as often as you can!
