HOWUDN

Hey Everybody

I just bought a new Digital SLR camera and was wondering when you guys go take photos of aircraft, what kind of lens do you use and do you set your own ISO, aperture, and shutter speeds? what are some typical settings you use? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

B-16707

depends on how far away you are from what you are shooting. a 70-200mm range is popular for a 1.6x APS-C sized senor (youll need to tell us your camera to see if it is) since it really becomes 112-320mm.

lowest ISO, fastest shutter speed and aperture f8 (most lenses perform best at f8) is a good start given each unique light situation. I always shoot in the manual mode since i know what gives me the best results but if you are uncomfortable with that try the aperture or shutter priority settings.

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The Completed Customs The Airport

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HOWUDN

I bought a Nikon D40X it comes with a 18-55mm lens which is no good, so I guess I will try and find a lens to fit for taking these pics.

B-16707

ok that has a 1.6x smaller sensor (smaller than a standard 35mm size) which means you get more reach out of whatever lens you buy. just remember to multiply 1.6 by whatever mm the lenses you buy. buy the lowest f number lens too (aperture) as that will give you more flexibility.

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The Completed Customs The Airport

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Mystère

Shutter speed also depends if you're shooting a jet or prop. Don't use high shutter speeds (over 1/350) if it's a prop aircraft, as it will "freeze" its propeller, which gives a weird result.

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C-Rex

Much of the information is already mentioned.

Addition to what have already been said:

Never face the sun at 12 o'clock, meaning always have the sun at your back, thus eliminating backlit fuselages. You can do the next step, when you have gained experiences.
Play with the apertures, shutterspeeds, try out your camera, get to know what works best for you.
Like Mr. Mysteré have already mentioned, using a fast shutterspeed really freeze the aircraft expecially when its a prop-plane you are shooting, when I first started with aviation photography, I tend to not care about the shutterspeed, I thought it looked cool, stopping the aircraft as if it is just hanging there, no power on the engines.(But it became boring) So I started playing around with it, experimenting what programs worked best for me.
Later I slowed down the speed, creating some motion blur on the props, it really add something to the shot.

When Im out shooting airplanes, I am usually using ISO100, that's the lowest ISO your camera and my camera can go, when using a low ISO, it minimizes the noise or grain in your photos, assuming you're taking photos in broad day light with plenty of sunlight ISO100 is the way to go. The higher the ISO, such as ISO400 or ISO800, the more sensitive the image sensor and therefore the possibility to take pictures in low-light situations evening or early night shots.

L-1011-Heavy

Yeah First You Slip The Card Into the Card Thingy, Then Turn The Whatsitsname Swicth On Until You See Some Lights Turn On.
Then Remove The Round Black Whatchamacallit In Front Of The Camera.
Keep Turning All The Knobbies Until You See Some Picture On the TV. Push The Picture Doomaflicker On The Top Right To Take A Picture.
And There You Have It, Photography 101...

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The Heavy Armada
"In The Absence Of Excellence, There Is Only Mediocrity."

HOWUDN

Very funny

Thanks all for your help I will use this info and go and have a crack at it.

L-1011-Heavy

I Miss The Days Of Kodachrome 25 P

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The Heavy Armada
"In The Absence Of Excellence, There Is Only Mediocrity."

C-Rex

Any updates on how it goes with your settings.?

Hope you're enjoying your spotting