I've been offered a 2hr helicopter flight by my work to cover an offshore powerboat race in a couple of days time. Now, I've never been up in a chopper before, let along taken pics from one, so I'm a) very excited, and b) looking for some tips as to how to obtain the best possible images while I'm up there.
I gather we'll be moving fairly low and fast, shadowing the lead boats. I'm in the right rear seat, immediately behind the pilot. No idea whether we will have the doors off or not. The races are just after noon, so we'll be having some pretty harsh, vertical light.
I have one body (I know, I know), a d700. My thoughts are to have the 70-200 vr2 mounted with polariser - VR set to active, or possibly switched off completely - keeping a shutter speed around 1/500 and up. Planning to take the 24-70 in a belt pouch just i case I need something wider, but hoping not to need to do any lens changes up there.
Any tips or suggestions would be very much appreciated.
Try to keep your eye away from the camera more than usual....more likely to get motion sick when you're looking through the VF all the time... I know from experience... :-)
You will want the door off. Make sure your belts are loose enough to be able to twist around. Make sure you have a
strong strap on the camera that is secured to you or your belts. Have something handy to clear possible salt spray from the lens....it tends to smear. Dress for changes in temperature and wind chill. Keep the elbows bent and let the camera float. Hopefully you will have a headset so you can talk to the pilot. Some of them have no clue what you want or what altitude to fly. This is a great opp for you to shoot this kind of action sport. If it was me, I would shoot 75% video and 25% stills unless directed otherwise. Have fun.
I always sit in the left rear seat, door off (I’m right handed so that makes holding the camera more comfortable) with left foot on runner. Be sure everything is tied down or attached to a strap that is secured (pilots get a little upset at things flying out of the cabin that might get in the tail rotor) . Be careful how far you extend out the door, rotor downwash is brutal and will suck a hood right off the lens. Get strapped in with headset in place before takeoff to check for comfortable positioning (you’ll be sitting like that for awhile); make sure the headset cable allows for movement without getting in a bind. Most of the time I have the headset mic rotated to the back of my head (too much wind noise in mic for pilot and other passengers) but still easily flips back to the front for communicating with the pilot, some headsets have off/on switch for mic.
What kind of chopper? I wouldn't do any low altitude work in anything with a piston engine.
Personally, I'd find out how many hours your pilot has in whatever you'll be flying in and if he's done that kind of flying before going up with them. Wear a life-preserver.
Switching lenses/cards in a chopper sucks, so if you can, bring a couple of bodies if you want to use more than one lens. Use big cards if you expect to shoot a lot.
A chopper ride on somebody else's nickle is always nice, so enjoy. I even had one pilot let me fly a bit on the way back from shooting one project.
I have some more information. The helicopter is a Eurocopter 350 B2 - also known as the "Squirrel". The doors will be off, and we'll be flying low - like 50-60'.
Due to the low altitude, I'm thinking the 24-70 might be more useful than the 70-200, however I will make the effort to borrow a second body for the day so as to have them both at hand.
I would second all the advice that has been shared. I would also add to even go as far as taping your lens hoods on to your lens. Lost my hood on my last heli ride. I recommend a black rapid strap or similar. DR-1 for two bodies.
Dont forget about the wonderful AutoISO settings of the D700.
While shooting on my first Heli ride... I almost got sick about 6 times. As others have mentioned looking thru a long lens will give you motion sickness really fast.
Shooting from a helicopter isn't that tough, but having two bodies will really make life a lot simpler for you. You don't want to spend half your time trying to catch a lens that's rolling around on floor under your seat. 50 -60 feet will be plenty low, but if you take the 24-70 be careful that the main rotor doesn't show up in the top of your pictures.
When I was a Wildlife Biologist I flew in a Bell Jet Ranger over the Everglades about once a month throughout the 1980’s. When I shot I was in the rear seat. Cannot remember the lens I used, either a 50mm micro nikkor (sharpest lens I owned) or a 105 micro nikkor, both 2.8’s. Don’t think I ever used a wide angle. Altitude was higher than you will be.....probably 200 feet. I don’t know what the regulations are but I am not being next to a door off inside a flying chopper without being strapped in with a wide nylon belt.
When I do it again I am going to be shooting some ultrawide shots (with my 11-16 Tokina!) of the inside (with pilot) during flight with model release.
Over the glades in the chopper my technique was simply a high shutter speed....that is it. Your high light may be just right from a chopper. I know it won’t be a problem.
I have a bunch of panoramic shots too. Those were film days and when I got the results back I discovered a mistake in some of my shots: A piece of the rotor blade stopped (only slightly blurred) in the top of the frame.
I occasionally shoot from a helicopter for work (subject area is steep, forested terrain). I typically shoot out the port side window (door on). I carry at least two bodies to prevent the need to change lenses in flight. I use a 24-70mm on one body and the 70-200mm on the other. I have used three bodies before, with the third dedicated to a fast prime, like a 50mm.
The reason for a faster lens, is that it is frequently cloudy (Pacific Northwest) and I try to maintain fairly high shutter speeds; at least 1/500th, because if your arms or body are in direct contact with the walls or door frame of the ship, the vibration of the helicopter can be a problem.
As for motion sickness, it can be a problem. I take Bonine and carry crystallized ginger that I snack on before and during the flight. It seems to help.
A big thank you to everyone for the great advice offered so far.
I have managed to borrow a second body for the day, a D300. I'm thinking to have the 24-70 mounted on the crop body, and the 70-200 on the D700, as I'd rather have some FL overlap than the hole between them if mounted the other way. We are, however, covering 2 races, and will be landing in the break period, so that will give me a chance to switch lenses if that turns out to be a more useful combo. I'm planning to shoot manual with auto-ISO.
The flight is tomorrow, so batteries are charged, cards freshly formatted, hoods taped on and straps checked for tightness.
Wish me luck, and thanks again for all the useful tips!
Vr on active avoid polarizer. get your shutter up above 1/800th. If your in a jet ranger get your shutter up to 1/1200tH, THe vibration of a jet ranger is brutal on your images. IF your in a huey or similar you can drop shuter to 1/1000 0r 1/800th. Make sure your bag is anchored down with minimal loose objects. ask for door off if possible or open. Jet ranger type will have removable doors Hueys have openable lockIng doors. 24 70 would be ok but kinda wide as you will bee 200-250 feet away from boats usually.
Been there, done that, have fun!!!
Chris Court wrote:
Hi all,
I've been offered a 2hr helicopter flight by my work to cover an offshore powerboat race in a couple of days time. Now, I've never been up in a chopper before, let along taken pics from one, so I'm a) very excited, and b) looking for some tips as to how to obtain the best possible images while I'm up there.
I gather we'll be moving fairly low and fast, shadowing the lead boats. I'm in the right rear seat, immediately behind the pilot. No idea whether we will have the doors off or not. The races are just after noon, so we'll be having some pretty harsh, vertical light.
I have one body (I know, I know), a d700. My thoughts are to have the 70-200 vr2 mounted with polariser - VR set to active, or possibly switched off completely - keeping a shutter speed around 1/500 and up. Planning to take the 24-70 in a belt pouch just i case I need something wider, but hoping not to need to do any lens changes up there.
Any tips or suggestions would be very much appreciated.
Mission accomplished. What a rush! Sadly though, I only got a seat for one flight, which was for the amateur racing class - with some nice boats nonetheless, but not the big boys that I was hoping for.
I've done a lot of sailing and have never experienced motion sickness, so I was glad to find that this applies to helicopter rides also :-)
I took around 800 shots - all but a handful with the 70-200 on the D700. Definitely the right tool for the job. I'm very glad I taped the lens hood in place, as the downdraft right outside the cockpit was brutal. All the advice I received here was invaluable. You guys are superstars.
I should have the images sorted by the end of the week, and will post a selection somewhere for those who may be interested.
. Be careful how far you extend out the door, rotor downwash is brutal and will suck a hood right off the lens. Get strapped in with headset in place before takeoff to check for comfortable positioning (you’ll be sitting like that for awhile); make sure the headset cable allows for movement without getting in a bind. Most of the time I have the headset mic rotated to the back of my head (too much wind noise in mic for pilot and other passengers) but still easily flips back to the front for communicating with the pilot, some headsets have off/on switch for mic.