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Archive 2011 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

PetKal
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p.1 #1 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

Wind is an enemy of nature (outdoor) photographer.

Wind....
* shakes flowers, treebranches and leaves which we may wish to photograph.
* accelerates birds in flight beyond our own and our gear's capture capability.
* pushes against our body and shakes the camera/lens even if tripod mounted.
* blows water spray (sand, dust) onto our gear.
* in winter, wind can result in a high degree of discomfort and feeling of extreme cold.

When it comes to photography with Canon's long lenses, what is that one can do in order to minimize the wind's unsettling effect on our camera/lens ?

* Try to align the lens with the wind direction, i.e., avoid shooting when the lens is side blown.

* Avoid hand-held shooting, mount the lens on a pod.

* Remove the lens hood.

* Use physically the smallest lens in your arsenal ( e.g., use 300 f/4 instead of 300 f/2.8).

* Make sure lens IS is on.

* Increase shutter speed.

* Lower your shooting position down to the ground as much as possible.

Any other ideas/suggestions ?

Edited on Dec 21, 2011 at 02:16 PM · View previous versions

Dec 18, 2011 at 03:06 PM

TrojanHorse
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p.1 #2 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

Damn fine question and depending on the amount of wind, possibly insurmountable.

I'd say tripod set as low as you can with something heavy hanging from the center area. I usually try to stand with my back to the wind as a sort of wind break (this may not work for moving objects of course) or find the side of a building to stand in the lee ...

If its daytime or I can use high shutter speeds, I'll just do that.

We don't get a lot of star action in my area, so last winter I was camping with my kids and spent some time outside trying to get some night sky pictures. It ended up being impossible because of the high winds and I was miserable the whole time with dust blowing in my eyes. I gave up.

Dec 18, 2011 at 06:52 PM

Photon
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p.1 #3 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

* If you can secure the camera well enough to capture "rigid" objects sharply, make use of the swaying, swirling, shaking foliage to convey the feel of the wind in your photos.
* Consider using a lens that takes front mounted filters, and mount one that costs less than a front element replacement. If your wind-in-the-face scene also features strong backlight, you may be screwed (by the flare from the filter).
* If you can arrange to have the wind at your back and the birds flying toward you, enjoy their diminished rate of approach as you fire off tons of killer BIFs. I've barely begun shooting birds, so this is purely a theoretical suggestion, not so much an observation from experience, though it's a common occurence with shore birds.
* If there are loose branches around, watch your back.
* Stay out of Kansas.

Dec 19, 2011 at 02:26 AM

omarlyn
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p.1 #4 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

NO COFFEE!!

Omar

Dec 19, 2011 at 02:46 AM

PetKal
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p.1 #5 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

Good thinking, Jess.

However, birds very seldom fly headlong into the wind whereby their ground speed would be greatly diminished. The reason is that birds are not stupid.

On occasion they use headwinds in order to slow glide/kite and hover using less energy.

Dec 19, 2011 at 02:53 AM

johnip
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p.1 #6 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

PetKal wrote:
On occasion they use headwinds in order to slow glide/kite and hover using less energy.

I see hawks doing this quite regularly. It's quite funny to see them stationary in the sky!

Dec 19, 2011 at 03:48 AM

longisland.km
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p.1 #7 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

Set up the rig behind a Sport-Brella

Dec 19, 2011 at 04:02 AM

Jefferson
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p.1 #8 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

Never considered it until you brought it up…but if I were to worry…I would go for the most mass that I could handhold…maybe the (now discontinued), Canon 500 f/4L IS…I can generate enough inertia during a pan of a fast moving object, (be it BIF or C6R-GT Vette)…that a bit of wind will have negligible effect

Jefferson

Dec 19, 2011 at 04:15 AM

PetKal
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p.1 #9 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

Jefferson, indeed, an increase in lens mass alone would result in lower frequency vibrations.
However, as you get a heavier lens, two bad things happen too:
* the lens is bigger, therefore with a larger wind cross section, and therefore it is attacked with an increased wind force.
* a heavier lens will also diminish your ability to hold it and focus/track with it in a steady manner.

Dec 19, 2011 at 04:55 AM

Jefferson
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p.1 #10 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

How 'bout a "LensSkin" with imbedded ...Vortex Generators", to cut down on cross sectional drag

Jefferson

Dec 19, 2011 at 05:00 AM

PetKal
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p.1 #11 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

Dec 19, 2011 at 05:01 AM

Jefferson
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p.1 #12 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

PetKal, "a heavier lens will also diminish your ability to hold it and focus/track with it in a steady manner."

Not used exclusively, but with another body and two more lenses...3 or 4 pans, then go to WA shots...fatigue not a problem, not till I get home and grab a beer

Jefferson

Dec 19, 2011 at 05:08 AM

PetKal
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p.1 #13 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

Gotcha

Dec 19, 2011 at 05:10 AM

Jeff Donald
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p.1 #14 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

Look for large objects to use as a wind break, such as trees, car, fence, etc.

Dec 19, 2011 at 05:13 AM

15Bit
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p.1 #15 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

It is interesting to note that the circular shape of a lens is quite un-aerodynamic, and in cases of lateral wind, should give quite a lot of turbulence. I would tentatively suggest a fundamental lens redesign, with the cross section being reshaped to be more wing-like. In this way a source of vibration could be removed, and in high winds some lift might be generated reducing tiredness, another source of vibration. And for the real collector this opens up the possibility of strapping two 800s to your arms and flapping like a proper "birdman"

Dec 19, 2011 at 08:46 AM

PetKal
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p.1 #16 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

15Bit, that airfoil long lens design merits a patent.

Dec 19, 2011 at 12:42 PM

Geert Koning
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p.1 #17 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

Add weight to the tripod ?

This image is copyrighted by the owner

Dec 19, 2011 at 01:42 PM

PetKal
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p.1 #18 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

Geert, that generally works, unless the wind is so strong that it starts to pendulate the large backpack in which case you'd end up with a sinusoidal disturbance exerted on the tripod platform.

Dec 19, 2011 at 02:06 PM

Photon
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p.1 #19 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

johnip wrote:
PetKal wrote:
On occasion they use headwinds in order to slow glide/kite and hover using less energy.

I see hawks doing this quite regularly. It's quite funny to see them stationary in the sky!
Which brings up another possibility for high altitude birds: arrange to have more wind aloft than at ground level.

Unfortunately, the strongest example is the jet stream birds of the mechanical kind, and they usually contrive to travel quite fast whether with a tail wind or not. It's fun to observe them from a moving car passing an airport, when the vectors can result in a seemingly hovering jet...but I digress...

Dec 19, 2011 at 05:33 PM

Photon
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p.1 #20 · AEOLUS, EOS and us

15Bit wrote:
It is interesting to note that the circular shape of a lens is quite un-aerodynamic, and in cases of lateral wind, should give quite a lot of turbulence. I would tentatively suggest a fundamental lens redesign, with the cross section being reshaped to be more wing-like. In this way a source of vibration could be removed, and in high winds some lift might be generated reducing tiredness, another source of vibration. And for the real collector this opens up the possibility of strapping two 800s to your arms and flapping like a proper "birdman"

I want to patent an addition to your design:
"A rotating lens-camera mount, that permits freely reorienting the camera without changing the angle of the lens body with integral wing. When tripod mounted, a lens collar would be utilized, which collar would also rotate to permit fine tuning the position of the lens to suit wind direction or desired lift components."

Dec 19, 2011 at 05:38 PM

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