Architecture photographer explains how he got that New York magazine cover shot.

"Shooting in the dark, with a handheld camera, in a vibrating helicopter, 5,000 feet above land sounds like a photographer’s nightmare. But Iwan Baan made it look easy. Baan made the image Wednesday night after the storm, using the new Canon 1D X with the new 24-70mm lens on full open aperture. The camera was set at 25,000 ISO, with a 1/40th of a second shutter speed."

Read the article

Wow! Just wow!

I was right at 39th street, power went out south of 39th which you can clearly see here.

I have lived in NY for 25 years and this is an amazing photo of the city.
(though it's still a wreck! Many friends still without power and heat)

Here is a slide show with a few more images from that ride

http://nymag.com/thecut/2012/11/more-images-from-new-yorks-sandy-cover.html#slideshow=/slideshows/2012/11/04/aerial_views_of_thesandyblackout.slideshow.json%7CcurrentSlide=00011

All the best to you guys in NY.

On a more photographic note, this just shows that the content of the photo is more important than the quality.

n0b0 wrote:
All the best to you guys in NY.

On a more photographic note, this just shows that the content of the photo is more important than the quality.



I agree, most likely all could be done with less ISO and noise. Also IS lens might be better option? I am sure I would make it better if I have helicopter

Look pretty noisy when you check the larger versions, but the pictures themselves are great.

I note the photo is 1/40 and wide open already.

Just think: he could have taken it at ISO 6400 and 1/10 if the 24-70 had IS

Phenomenal photo with a lot of impact. Quick thinking and well executed.

Dude's an architectural photographer, so I guess IS is not high on his list.
(and it looks like the amount of noise you used to get with 35mm film at ASA 800 ;-)

Can IS adequately compensate for helicopter vibration? I don't think Canon engineer had that in mind when they were fine tuning the IS.

I really don't think IS is gonna be much help in this situation. The helicopter may have been hovering, but that doesn't mean it wasn't moving. IS may help compensate for his own hands shaking, but not with the helicopter movement. Higher shutter speed is the only answer.

correct exposure makes a huge difference in amount of noise I produces also.

Correct gear helps but this was about the photographer's ingenuity, I think.

It's funny to read about how people are suggesting how they could have done it better than an award winning photographer...

As far as I'm concerned this photo will definitely be going down as one of the photo journalistic/documentary photos of the year. Some of you guys need to forget technical details sometimes and focus on 'the bigger picture'.

chris78cpr wrote:
As far as I'm concerned this photo will definitely be going down as one of the photo journalistic/documentary photos of the year. Some of you guys need to forget technical details sometimes and focus on 'the bigger picture'.

Agreed. However, nothing wrong with looking at a photo (as a photographer) and trying to determine how it was shot, or how capture one like it yourself. It's a great learning tool.

http://www.kehblog.com/2011/08/gyro-stabilizer-ken-lab-ks-6.html

they make the KS6 and larger units specifically for situations like this. A Canon 28 or 24 IS lens on top of that and he could have made the same shot at 1/4 second...it's just fun to think about

John Shultz wrote:
http://www.kehblog.com/2011/08/gyro-stabilizer-ken-lab-ks-6.html

they make the KS6 and larger units specifically for situations like this. A Canon 28 or 24 IS lens on top of that and he could have made the same shot at 1/4 second...it's just fun to think about

You are assuming that the helicopter was perfectly still in the air. If it was moving you will get motion blur, no stabilizer setup can compensate for a moving subject or a moving shooting location.

willm02118 wrote:
Can IS adequately compensate for helicopter vibration? I don't think Canon engineer had that in mind when they were fine tuning the IS.

It does, depending on how well the aircraft has been dynamically balanced, and wind conditions of course. Most manufacturers require balancing to a minimum of 0.2 ips, which the IS will have no problem with.

n0b0 wrote:
I really don't think IS is gonna be much help in this situation. The helicopter may have been hovering, but that doesn't mean it wasn't moving. IS may help compensate for his own hands shaking, but not with the helicopter movement. Higher shutter speed is the only answer.

Helicopters are usually incapable of hovering at several thousand feet above ground level.

Yohan Pamudji wrote:
Just think: he could have taken it at ISO 6400 and 1/10 if the 24-70 had IS

Phenomenal photo with a lot of impact. Quick thinking and well executed.

or with a 24mm Mark II at 1.8 Iso 12800