Shooting from a Helicopter

[MarkBarbieri]

I'm considering taking a helicopter ride along the Pacific coast during spring break. I've never ridden in a helicopter, let alone shot from one. The operating company says that they don't restrict what camera gear you can bring and that they have a lot of amateur and pro shooters as customers.

Any suggestions on what I should bring? What types should I expect to get? I think this will be a windowed helicopter, but I'll see if we can fly without a door. If we have windows, I guess I'll do the best I can with a polarizer to reduce reflections.

I'm thinking about using my 70-200 as my primary lens. It has IS, which I think well help in the chopper. Then again, their may be more vibration than the IS can deal with. While I'd like the extra reach of my 300, I suspect that the movement and vibration of the chopper will make it too hard to use.

I really have no clue what to expect, so any suggestions would be helpful.

 

[WDWFigment]

In Resident Evil, I once used a rocket launcher to shoot from a helicopter. That worked pretty well. I don't think I'd use it through a window though, unless you were looking to remove the window.

In all seriousness, my dad used to be an instructor pilot for military CWOs in blackhawks. Any shooting they did was with weaponry mounted to the aircraft. So you might consider mounting your weaponry in some manner.

 

[Bstanley]

Helicopters do have a lot of vibration so I imagine you will need to isolate the camera from the helicopter somehow (I've never taken 'real' pictures from a helicopter, just P&S 35mm - mostly I jumped out of them .

Most military helicopters have attachment points over the doors - if whatever you are riding in has that and you rigged some sort of bungee arrangment from there to a lens collar you could kill a lot of the vibration in the bungee.

Good Luck!

 

[saturndb]

The wife and I did a helicopter ride in Maui and it was fun. I find if you can sit co pilot, that helps alot, ask for this spot when making the reservation. Most of the tour companies will load the chopper based off of the total weight of the passengers. I found that if I just framed wide and clicked away, it worked well for me. I did use a Sony Mavica for these pictures and tried to angle the camera to reduce glass reflections.

All pictures straight out of the camera, no editing done. taken in October 2000

 

[Gdad]

Interesting thread- I have been thinking about a hot air balloon ride over central florida (and near Disney if wind cooperates) and pondering the same lens question.

 

[plyeng2ff]

Pictures of Niagara Falls from one of the helicopter tours

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All pictures taken with a 5.0 MP Kodak Easy Share, April 2007

 

[saturndb]

Mark,

Are thinking of bringing 2 camera bodies? I think the 70-200 is a good choice and maybe a 24-70 for a wider look. Keep in mind you will not have alot of room to switch out lenses and if you are going on a tour ride you will have other people to deal with. With the gear you have I would ask for the co pilot seat and that will open up alot of possibilities for you.

 

[dmccarty]

Back in the 80's I was on a helicopter and took my Canon film camera and FD lenses. The photos were ok. I just kept the shutter speed up. This was in before IS/VR and autofocus so I can't imagine you would have problems with new lenses. I actually lost a lens cap on the copter.

The doors on the copter where mighty thin. Which was even more apparent when we circled a three masted ship leaving port. I swear that helicopter was turning so tight it and we were sideways. Falling out that thin door seemed real possible even with a seat belt on.

For some reason I think the doors on the copter I was on could easily be removed. You could always ask if you can fly with your door removed to get better images.

Or not if you want that thin door between you and eternity.

Later,
Dan

 

[pjacobi]

In small planes and helicoptors, you can expect to get weighed in the hanger prior to the flight. If you are sharing a ride, your weight may impact assigned seat position. You will need to include your camera in the your weight.

Don't bring a backpack or camera case. Just bring camera with lens and maybe an extra lens in your pocket.


-Paul

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

In small planes and helicoptors, you can expect to get weighed in the hanger prior to the flight. If you are sharing a ride, your weight may impact assigned seat position. You will need to include your camera in the your weight.

Don't bring a backpack or camera case. Just bring camera with lens and maybe an extra lens in your pocket.


-Paul

When I was in college our family did a helicopter ride in Hawaii. Because of the weight assignments I ended up in the front and my parents were assigned to seats in the back. My dad - who was paying - was not exactly pleased with that!

We bought the video done by the company. I did take some pictures which turned out ok. My longest lens was a 150mm but a lot will depend on the flight pattern the pilot does. Our flight included sections that were quite close to the ground. Most of what we were looking at was scenery and I don't recall feeling like I needed a longer lens.

 

[saturndb]

In small planes and helicoptors, you can expect to get weighed in the hanger prior to the flight. If you are sharing a ride, your weight may impact assigned seat position. You will need to include your camera in the your weight.

Don't bring a backpack or camera case. Just bring camera with lens and maybe an extra lens in your pocket.


-Paul

That is why you make a request to be the co pilot.

 

[disneyboy2003]

In one of his books (I forget which one), Joe McNally talks about how he took this shot of Michelle Yeoh from a helicopter:

​

You and your wife would have to be hanging off opposite sides of the helicopter. I think the key is to use a really fast shutter speed to avoid motion blur.

 

[MarkBarbieri]

Wow, great shots guys! I'm really excited now. I e-mailed the chopper company to see if they'll fly with the doors off. I'm leaning towards taking the 24-105 IS and maybe bringing the 70-200 IS just in case I want something a little longer. And maybe the 17-40 if I want an interior shot.

 

[greens_in_WA]

If you can't have the doors off, I have heard that if you wear a white/light colored shirt, you can get a lot of glare from the windows, so wear a dark colored/black shirt to minimize this.