We see planes
flying above us every day, and each time we get that sense of excitement,
besides the fact that airplanes are pretty common today. However, airplanes
will always be something intriguing and magical.
Additionally,
their speed is something else and there is not a single person in the world who
is not amazed with it. Planes are also visually appealing when you observe
their designs and the shapes engineers invented. These are all the things that
might lead to someone becoming an aviation photographer.
If you are
photographer and you like planes as well, why not combine both worlds and do
something you will truly love and enjoy? To help you learn more about aviation
photography, I put together this list of suggestions and tips that might make
things easier for you.
1. How to hold your camera
The first and
most important technique you must overcome for all types of photography and
especially aviation is how to hold your camera properly. When it comes to
aviation, using a small tripod is always a good idea because of time, safety,
and space.
Still, it’s a
good idea to get a solid platform for your camera in order to get sharp images
when there is not a lot of light. Keep your left hand slightly bent with your
palm up. Then take the lens barrel into your left palm; if your lens falls when
you open your hand, then something’s not right.
Gravity itself
should be enough to help you to hold the lens and with your right hand, you
should hold the body of the camera as your finger rests on shutter release. First,
practice holding the camera steadily and apply just a bit of pressure to take a
shot; this is how your grip will be tight and you will take stable shots.
2. Exposing aircrafts
Taking pictures
of aircraftscan create chaos with all modern cameras because of their metering
systems. When it’s a gray day, you might find it difficult to expose the
subject you are trying to capture. If you want to focus on the aircraft, keep your
attention at the sky. Just use spot metering or center-weighted metering to expose
it the right way.
To find that
sweet spot use + or - to get the desired setting. For those darker planes, you
should add a bit more exposure. If you want to keep some of the details in the
sky, you should leave the plane a bit underexposed and restore the exposure you
want when post-processing photos.
The important
thing is to find the exposure that you like and learn how to work with it.
3. Find good angles
Finding
interesting angles might be difficult when the aircraft is in the sky. If you
are at some event, you should figure out their route and find a spot where you
can wait for the aircraft and capture it from a good angle. However, when the
plane is static, you can find creative solutions.
You can lay on
the ground to get the so called “ground perspective”, or take a photo of
something that is very intriguing about a certain plane. Try all the angles you
want and make crazy photos; this is where you should experiment a lot to find
what you like.
Given the fact
that modern cameras have large memory cards, you shouldn’t have any concerns
when it comes to how many photos you should take. Just snap as much of them as
you want and, when you are at home, delete those you don’t like.
4. What to do with clouds
Empty skies are
boring, especially if you add an aircraft there. No matter if you are looking
up the sky or watching a movie with planes in them, you’ll always see a lot of
clouds around them when they fly by. When we imagine planes flying, we think
about them going through clouds. Our imagination plays a huge part and, for
airplane photos, clouds are a vital element.
When there are a
lot of clouds around, take wide shots and don’t worry about the plane size. If
there are less clouds, take smaller shots and position yourself in such way so
that the plane goes in front of the clouds so that you can capture them in the
background of the aircraft. Clouds give a sense of motion and this is why they
are also important.
These are the 4
essential tips that can help you at the beginning. Make sure to practice a lot;
this is essential. After you get some experience, you can learn advanced tricks
and start to understand how to make amazing aviation photos. Have fun!