AOPA Pilot Magazine - November 2010 - 75

the pilots must know it’s OK not to do them. I’m thinking about the shots I want. They have to know the capabilities of their airplanes. “There’s no real correlation between a pilot’s total flight time and ratings and whether or not they’re good at photo flying. I did an air-to-air shoot with the chief pilot [of an airline] and he was totally unable to put his airplane in position. I’ve also flown with relatively low-time pilots who had a real knack for it. Some pilots like this type of flying and look forward to it, and others don’t. It’s definitely not for everyone. “I typically carry two lenses on air-toair shoots: a 24/105 zoom, and a 70/200.

With those two lenses, I’ve got the flexibility to create the feel I’m looking for, whether it’s a wide landscape or a tight power shot. Shutter speeds are generally between a sixtieth and a two-hundredfiftieth of second. A faster shutter speed tends to freeze the prop, and that just doesn’t look right. On rare occasions I’ll use a five hundredth of a second if stability is a problem. “I try very hard not to shoot through glass. But if it’s unavoidable, I’ll wear a black, long-sleeved T-shirt to reduce reflection, and I’ll try to shoot 90 degrees through the glass to minimize distortion. Sometimes I’ll tape a four-foot black cloth around the inside

of the window and shoot through a slit in the cloth. “My absolute favorite airplane to shoot from is a B–25. It’s a great platform because the tail-gunner position provides an unobstructed 180-degree view, and you can get head-on shots of the subject airplanes from wing tip to wing tip. The waist-gunner positions are also great, and the nose-gunner position allows a view from behind through optical glass. It’s the ultimate platform—but it costs about $2,000 an hour. “Barons and A36 Bonanzas can fly with the right-side aft doors off for the left-side view of the subject airplane. And some Pipers can fly with the leftside doors off, and that provides an aesthetically better view of the subject airplane. Say what you will about a T-tailed Piper Lance, but it’s a great photo platform. “The act of shooting a camera is much like shooting a gun in that you have to be stable to be accurate. If I’m not stable, or the camera’s moving, the results will suffer. “The best times of day to shoot are early in the morning and late in the evening—the first and last hour of daylight. Digital photography extends that time a bit to the first and last 90 minutes. Low light allows shadows to form over the subject airplane, and those shadows and reflections make the images more interesting. Clouds kick up the color, and so does water where you can shoot down and get reflections. “My favorite time in a photo flight is after the takeoff when you look out and can see that the planning has paid off and all you have left to do is the photography. Then the adrenaline starts pumping, and I like to close my eyes and take a few deep breaths to settle down and get my game face on. Even after doing it for all these years, I still get excited. It’s still challenging, and I enjoy the anticipation and the teamwork. “What we do is unusual. It’s fun and interesting, and there’s a great deal of teamwork that goes into it, as well as a little danger. I feel quite charmed to get to do the things we do. It’s hard work and there’s lots of travel and long hours. But when it’s over, I can’t wait to get back out there and do it all again.”
Mike Fizer photographed the aerobatic maneuvers of Greg Poe in his Extra 300L over the Sawtooth Mountains in Idaho (far left). A Lear 60 photographed over the Yuma, Arizona, sand dunes from the tail of a B–25 (left).
AOPA PILOT • 75 • NOVEMBER 2010

AOPA Pilot Magazine - November 2010

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - November 2010