From: Mike Butler <abutler@xxxxxxxxx>>
________________________________________________________
>
> I would like to hear from others about the recommended shutter speed. I
> can understand not wanting to "stop" the propeller, but the vibration in
> your average small airplane makes me think higher shutter speeds would
> be necessary, especially with longer lenses.
Stopped propellers look unnatural, because you are accustomed to the way
your eyes sees them as a blur. It is entirely possible to shoot very sharp
images at 1/60 to 1/250 s if: the formation is steady in smooth air, you use
modest focal lengths (see below), and you carefully isolate the camera from
the airframe vibration with your body (shoot a lot of frames, too.). All of
the usual techniques for hand-holding apply - elbows in, hold your breath,
etc.
>
> Some of what I was trying to do was Air to Air with a second aircraft.
> This requires two pilots comfortable flying in close formation and lots
> of ship to ship communication. Even with my 300 f4.5 most of my shots
> were pictures with an airplane in it, instead of a picture of an
> airplane.
>
Mike, my weapon of choice for air-to-air is a 100 mm lens. Many pros use
something like a 70-210/2.8 to accomodate varying airplane sizes and pilot
comfort levels. The trick, as you discovered, is getting pilots who are
comfortable AND competent to fly in relatively close (but not tight!)
formation. Few civil-trained pilots are able. I look for ex-Army helo
pilots first, then Navy, Marine, or as a last resort, Air Force fighter
pilots <g>. Sailplane pilots are a good choice (we learned to fly tied to
another aircraft!). A 100 will frame light airplanes nicely without
overlapping aircraft in either axis. Preflight briefing is essential, both
to success and safety. Among the essential agreements are: who flys lead,
will you swap lead, and what are the escape plans (i.e. pilot in low trail
will break down and away it the closure rate gets too high, etc.) One trick
is to park both airplanes in formation on the airport ramp and have the
pilots become accustomed to the visual cues from their respective cockpits.
This also allows you to practice with the appropriate focal length.
Regards,
Gary Edwards
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