Tips For Shooting From A Helicopter?

I've not shot from a chopper, but have shot from a blimp. I was using an Olympus so it had a 2x crop factor. When I checked my properties for the shots I took it was with a 40-150mm lens. So for a full frame camera thats 80-300. However, we were over Boston, so the ground was an even distance below us, while the canyons will natually have a lot of varied depths.

Strap in.....

Thanks Joshua. I have no idea how high a blimp flies in comparison to a helicopter, but I've found a few blogs suggesting the 24-70 as a good range for this. :-)

Thanks JC! I plan to. And will have my camera sling on as well!

24 to 70 should be perfect for a copter. I used a fast shutter since we were usually moving. In my case, o was on a TV chopper and brought my still camera just in case. A few of those shots are here.

Remember to shoot the scene. Better to have to crop in a bit than to shoot too tight

i've never done it, never plan too... but i think you'll have issues with a polarizer due to the bends in the glass/plastic whatever they use, so you'll get funkytown colors.


---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

You should be able open the window to shoot from. Ask the pilot and make sure the camera is secure

I never used a polarizer up there and it's not a bad idea to bring the longer lens too. I usually did and sometimes used it

We weren't super high. Perhaps 1000 feet. I might be able to work it out later this evening.

It's a "doors off" flight, so no worries about shooting through glass or plastic. I am a bit worried about my own anxiety, though, lol. Anything for the shot, right? I plan to bring only one lens attached to my camera. I don't want to be changing lenses in an open helicopter--gulp!

Just have fun. If it were me, I might want one different lens, on a hip bag, and an empty hip bag also, to make a change easy.

I would love to shoot from a no doors copter! I'm jealous.

The things is Helos are naturally vibration factories. You WILL be shaking when you shoot. I would say a shutter speed of at least 1/400th if not a lot faster will be needed.

First, you swing by and pick me up . . . ;-)

I have no practical advice, Loree, but am green with envy! I hope you have an incredible experience!

You should be able to get some amazing abstract type images shooting straight down. Don't forget to shoot video too.

Well, the reason I have this amazing opportunity is because a friend of mine is shooting some footage for a documentary film. In order to get the doors off and go where he wants to go, he had to pay for a private charter for an hour. So as long as he has the whole flight, he asked if I wanted to come along. I may shoot some video, although I'm sure his footage will blow mine away.

doors open helps. i wouldn't wear a hat, strap yourself in. and make sure everything you have on you is strapped in. i wonder how windy it would be with the door open. that wind shoving you back. i'm thinking i would take the lens hood off, and replace it with a UV. just because it's a big wind scoop. use the bathroom before you go up.


---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

i'm betting youtube has some first hand ideas. i don't feel like looking due to movement issues.


---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

Loree,

I've spent days shooting from helicopters and the first thing to remember,especially with doors off, is that anything loose, will fly OUT of the helicopter and there's a danger, a hat, bag,shirt will blow out and get into the props. Or sucked into one of the intakes. If you're in something like a jet bell ranger, usually only one door will be off, so the person on the other side, should be an assistant and hand you stuff, like a different lens. When I shot, it was film being passed back and forth. And it was 120 film on top of that!

If the helicopter is a Robinson, I'd probably not go, not the safest and a bad track record. NO photography is worth taking a chance.

The other thing that you need to ask about, is if they have their own belt thingie that you can use, it's a harness and has a huge clip on the other end and usually clips into the floor someplace, so you can actually lean out and if you like this, step out on the strut and be able to shoot straight down. While I'm talking about belts, I always had some duct tape on these flights and if I wasn't using the harness, just the seat belt, I would tape over the release of the seat belt, so when I was leaning out, there was no way for the buckle to release! If you have a camera strap, have it on, just so, if something happens and you lose your grip, you don't drop the camera and lose that, or kill some tourist hiking around!

As far as camera stuff, if you're not too high, 1,000 feet or less, you don't need a filter, photoshop will clear the haze up. If you're higher, you might want to use one,since stuff will start to get blue-ish from the haze, again, something that can be fixed later.

1/250 of a second should be fine for the Bell Jet Ranger, which is a smoother ride, but the Robinson is bouncyer! So 1/500 is the minimum for that type of copter. Almost any F-stop will be good, since you're really shooting "flat stuff", from that height, f-8, f-11 and with good light, shouldn't be a problem.

You should have headsets and you can gab with the pilot, once he's done talking to anybody on the ground, tower,etc. There are things they are usually happy to do and some that they won't do, just depends on the pilot.

Have fun, wish I was there!

Rich

Thanks Rich, but no way am I stepping out on the strut! I'll just do the best I can from *inside* the helicopter, thank you. And my friend obviously gets first choice of which side to be on, since he's the one paying for the charter. I'm just tagging along so I'll take what I can get. It is pretty exciting, though.

It looks like I should be aiming for 1/500-1/1000 as far as shutter speed goes. Good to know. It also sounds like a lens hood isn't a good idea and a polarizer is probably a better bet than a UV filter, so I'll probably start with one on. If it doesn't work out, I'll take it off and stuff it in my pocket. I usually wear a hat when I'm shooting, but it sounds like that's not a good idea, so I'll probably just put my hair in a scrunchy and go sans hat. I'm also guessing that it will be chilly up there, even though it's in the 70's on the ground, so probably pants and a long sleeve shirt? (as opposed to shorts and a t-shirt?)

Loree,

Find out how high you'll be flying and that will determine if you need any filters. And If you're flying in a Bell Jet Ranger, won't need that shutter speed. Just shoot a few images as you're on your way and then look at the screen and your magnifier and see if you can shoot slower.

On the other hand, you may be disappointed in what you end up with. Everything will be pretty flat and not that interesting, but it's an adventure. If you have that harness, it actually feels really secure and if YOU have that harness, you can adjust it while the helicopter is still on the ground and see how it feels,

Rich

I loved my one and only helicopter flight - went over the grand Canyon but we had doors so had to shoot through the glass and that was not too bad but not great
I really, really wanted the doors off so I could hang out, but it was not happening
Before I got on the flight I was very nervous and thought I might get sick but it was the total opposite to what I thought I was going to feel like
I would so do that again, only next time, doors off!
Enjoy it, just for the experience!

Loree:
Strut your stuff! Get out there! On the other hand, if it were me, I might want two safety lines and harnesses, just to be safe.

Gregory,

I just used that strut to balance myself. I never just stood on it and then leaned out! What you do, is tell the pilot to slightly lean the copter and then you can shoot straight down and not have to worry about seeing the strut in the image. Those harnesses are like what people use to rappel down mountains. After a few tries, not an issue. I have trouble with small ladders!

Rich

OMG! I just got back. What an amazing experience. I haven't even looked at my photos yet, and my hair is tied in a thousand knots from the wind, but WOW!

ok, so it sounds like you didn't slide out...


---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

COOL

WB

Loree,
Let us know when you post your photos... interested to see what you captured !

Didn't slide out, but the wind was intense! My eyes were watering so bad I couldn't see what I was shooting half the time. I hope autofocus worked! I filled up a 32 gig card and spilled over into the second one, so there should at least be a few keepers. ;-)

Can't wait to see them Loree. I shot through a bubble door over Kauai (sp) and got seriously airsick, but it was a really cool experience. Unfortunately, since I was shooting through a door, I ended up with a lot of reflections. I hope you got some good stuff!!

Glad you made it back to terra firma, Loree -- hope you had fun!

Loree,

I have a friend, Nicolas Claris, that shoots high-end yachts for a living and most of his shoots are from a helicopter. He shoots Pentax MF camera with 80-160mm F4.5 Lens (I think his camera is the 645D)
He also carries a 5D III in case of something going wrong or not working and with that he uses the 70-200mm F2.8 IS II but says it is very important to shoot 4 times faster than your focal length or you will get blurry images. So if you are shooting 100mm, you need to shoot 1/400th. Even then, you may expect to only get 20% that are actually really sharp.

Good luck.

EDIT: I just realized that Nicolas shoots boats and not landscapes so I can see where you may want a wider focal length so 24mm at the widest should be good.

I had a great time! In fact, I think I'm still high on adrenaline! I'm very grateful for this thread, and for Google, since it helped me sort out things like focal length, shutter speed, and aperture, so I didn't waste a once in a lifetime opportunity. The thing I found difficult was composing while leaning out of an open, moving chopper. I think with a few more flights, I could probably nail it! Anyone want to finance my education, lol? One thing I learned is don't even try to shoot vertical. It's hard enough to hold the dang camera steady the normal way!

I got three images uploaded, but my wifi is not cooperating today, so the rest may have to wait until a better bandwidth day. :-)

Better bandwidth just means more time to edit :)

So true Joshua. Also, if you want to see the actual colors, click on the images above. It looks like the forum is changing the colorspace on ARGB images again.

It's so nicely green! I've been working on autumn photos from about 8000 feet in Utah and Colorado up around Jensen and Dinosaur and it's all very light brown aside from a few scrubby pines and of course the aspens.

Loree,

Thanks for this thread, very interesting. You did nail it.

Dave

Funny you should say that Joshua. I said to the pilot I was surprised that it was so green!

Thanks David, but I really think I need a couple more flights practice, lol! Can you tell I enjoyed it?

@Rich

"On the other hand, you may be disappointed in what you end up with. Everything will be pretty flat and not that interesting, but it's an adventure."

LOL! Did you miss the part where I said I would be flying over Zion?

Loree,

I guess I did! Then I take that back! Nice shots so far.What was your "recipe"?Share with others. What type helicopter was it, a Bell Jet Ranger, I hope. Long Ranger.....??? What was the temp. up there and what was the average altitude from ground level, not sea level?

I told you it might be a bit windy...............LOL!

Rich

Rich,

We went up with these people: http://zionhelicopters.com/

According to their website, the helicopter is a Robinson R66 Turbine. We flew between 1000 and 8000 feet, depending on where we were. (airspace restrictions over the park proper and some of the surrounding towns) I don't know what the temp was in the air, but it was quite chilly when we were up high, warmer as we got low and nearer the cliffs. Temps on the ground were in the mid to high 70's. The pilot was constantly monitoring the wind while we were up there and took us lower when the windspeed died down.

I shot at f5, 1/400, ISO 200 at the beginning of the flight. During the hour we were in the air, I had to keep adjusting as the light kept changing and the clouds were getting thicker. By the time we landed, I had the camera set to ISO 800 just to maintain the 1/400 shutter speed. The 24-70 lens was perfect and in some places, not even wide enough. 70mm was plenty of zoom for the tour we had and the results I wanted. I wasn't looking to get close on small things, that would kind of defeat the purpose of getting up high.

You were definitely right about it being windy. Holy crap! But, I would do it again in a heartbeat. It was nothing short of amazing!

Those are beautiful!

You got some really great shots, Loree, Congrats!

Loree,

The Robinson is the "Yugo" of helicopters and we had a crash here in Central Florida a few weeks ago. They are not the most dependable, but are the cheapest! When helicopters go down in parks, like the Grand Canyon, usually they are Robinson's, so welcome back.

I don't think you were flying that high,relative to to ground, 8,000 feet is very high and usually not some place Robinsons go. You might have been at 8,000 feet total elevation,relative to sea level.

When I shot stuff, I would have 2 lenses, a wide and then the 24-70, since in most places, the restrictions are about 500 feet for a helicopter,over cities,here in Florida.

Glad to hear you enjoyed your trip and look forward to seeing a bunch of images!

Rich

You may be right Rich, I'm just telling you what they told me. Although, considering that many of the peaks around here are 8000-9000 feet above sea level and 3000-4000 feet above the valley floor, it doesn't seem too ridiculous. I'm guessing southern Utah terrain is a wee bit different from Florida terrain.

Here are a few more. I'll probably make a new gallery for these, but for now they are in my Desert Southwest gallery.

Nice work,Loree. I am impressed. I would have been terrified!

Thank you Jean. I fully expected to be terrified, but I wasn't. I get butterflies and shaky legs when hiking in high places. Maybe being seated and strapped in makes a difference. :-)

I much prefer caves and underwater,but am glad you got this opportunity. Hiking,or even driving at the edge of a cliff also sends my heart racing. But I find that starting to take photos calms me down.

Loree,

Height was based on sea level,otherwise, you'd be at 16,000 feet and on oxygen! Here, we are allowed to fly at 500 feet,unless restricted. Disney doesn't let people fly over them anymore. I've gotten lower if the pilot thinks it's safe and no towers around.

I'm like you about height, don't like ladders! Even short ladders! But for some reason, hanging out of a helicopter, strapped in,didn't bother me. Same with really tall buildings and balconies.

Nice stuff so far! Hope this new gallery is a big seller for you,

Rich

Actually, if it was calculated from the helicopter pad, it would be 3200 elevation, so 11,000 or so above sea level. But, calculating from sea level makes way more sense because the ground is pretty "uneven" around here, lol.

Loree,

Yes, the altitude needs to be adjusted for where your are,not sea level,since if you're flying around mountains and they are 8,000 and "ground" is 3,000, the pilot needs to know that to clear the mountain top, he needs to be over 11,000 feet, not 8,000. You were probably 500-1,500 feet above the ground when you were taking these photos, closer to 500 from the look of the images.

Did you need the any filters, UV or a polarizer? B&W and other good filter makers, produce a "Haze" filter, which you might consider if you're doing a lot of this,slightly pink if I remember correctly and removes the cyan/blue from the haze,especially in areas with forests, like Glacier or the Smokies,

Rich

I used a polarizer, mainly to help "pop" the colors. I don't know if I will be doing it again. I'd really like to, but the cost is hard to justify, unless the prints sell. I probably wouldn't have done it this time, except that it was no cost to me. We'll see.

Loree,

Let me know what size filter you take and I can send you a couple to try and then see if you like the effect. I have mostly a 77mm and then some 72's and a bunch of step-up rings too,

Rich

p.s. I also have 30+ Pro Cokin filters,with adapters for sale if anyone is interested,

Don't eat a big meal before flight if you're not accustom to flying in smaller aircraft. That way you spend more time using your camera instead of using your barf bag.

Bill Tomsa

http://billtomsa.blogspot.com/

Bill,

What I found, is flying in"fixed wing" aircraft would ALWAYS result in sick stomachs. But Helicopters weren't bad, if the flight was short. Before the clients that hired me could afford the helicopters, I would have to rent Cessnas 152/172's and kick the window out and shoot down, as the plane circled the site and that was not nice!.

Very cheap, but not my cup of tea!

Rich

I have shot pro jobs from a helicopter. Here is how I did it:

1. Have the pilot remove the door and strap yourself in snugly. Stow everything well as the wind will blow it all away.
2. Set your camera ISO to as high as you can and tolerate the noise levels for you camera
3. Use AV mode at the lowest f stop (i.e. widest diaphragm opening) and the result will be the fastest shutter speed possible for your camera and lens. Since you are high up there is no requirement for a wide depth of field, so the low f- stop works just fine.
4. Shoot in continuous mode as some shots will be sharper than others.

It is very critical that the shutter speed be fast as ongoing vibration in a helicopter will cause blurring even at reasonably fast shutter speeds. Try even higher higher ISO settings since today's software and plugins can reduce noise levels quite well.

Good luck.

David

David,

If you flew in a Robinson and especially an older model, maybe,MAYBE your recipe is needed, but if you shoot in a Bell Jet Ranger, not needed. In good light, ISO 200, 400 at the most and no need for continuous mode which just burns up the memory card and produces hundreds of images that now need to be edited.

Over the years, I've spent hundreds of hours flying, mostly in helicopters and only once in a Robinson, and once was enough.

March 22,2015, Orlando Florida:

"The crash sent the helicopter’s rudder flying into a fence, photos show. The Robinson R44 chopper was airborne for two miles after takeoff from the Orlando Executive Airport before it tumbled into the home." Killed all three passengers.

Rich

Thanks for the tips David, but I already went on the flight. I did shoot on high speed continuous mode and I'm glad I did. Not only for the reasons you mentioned, but because some shots had the rotor tip in them. I'd rather have several shots to choose from than photoshop rotors out. I filled a 32 gig card and part of another one. I shot over 900 images, but most won't be edited because I pick the best of each scene and some scenes aren't even going to make the cut. I'd rather have too many images than wish I had more. Shutter speeds ranged from 400 up to about 1500 because I was in aperture priority and the light was highly variable. ISO ranged from 200 to 800 for the same reason. However, the shots at 1500 were not noticeably sharper than the ones at 400, so I believe 400 was fast enough. Also, this particular company won't fly faster than 100 knots with the doors off. I don't know about others.

Yeah, Rich, you've made it clear you don't like those helicopters. Life is risky. I drive a car, too.

Edit to add: I shot with my 2.8 lens set at f5, not open all the way. Different terrain may allow for a wider aperture.