Taking Pics of Blue Angels
May 20, 2018 19:47:27 #
Plan to take pics of Blue Angels practice in Annapolis Tuesday. Nikon D7500 w 55-300 zoom. Looking for suggestions on autofocus set up? Thinking a bout using shutter preferred mode, maybe 750?
May 20, 2018 20:17:54 #
bet53 wrote:
Plan to take pics of Blue Angels practice in Annapolis Tuesday. Nikon D7500 w 55-300 zoom. Looking for suggestions on autofocus set up? Thinking a bout using shutter preferred mode, maybe 750?
If it is a Sunny day, it is easy to focus. If the jets are real close and passing by, you need the faster shutter speed. Most of the time, they are farther away. I like to use two cameras. One for close encounters, and one for farther away.
May 21, 2018 08:09:04 #
I always get them in my FOV far away and as they get closer, dial the zoom in as you pan when they pass! These shots are not cropped I took recently. Nikon D300S 70-300mm
May 21, 2018 09:10:43 #
CanonTom
Loc: Birmingham
bet53 wrote:
Plan to take pics of Blue Angels practice in Annapolis Tuesday. Nikon D7500 w 55-300 zoom. Looking for suggestions on autofocus set up? Thinking a bout using shutter preferred mode, maybe 750?
I shot their practice over Pensacola beach a few years ago. Around noon full sun. Used Tamron 28-300 on a crop Canon 60D.
Suggest back button (continuous) auto focus, set shutter at 2000 around f8 possibly f11, I think and checked camera's auto ISO selection which was fine with all the light available. No problem stopping action. Wish I had had a second camera pre-set for slower shutter (very little time to fool with camera) because some motion blur would have been interesting I think. Those folks say they are traveling as fast as approx 900 mph and some of my shots caught the pilot quite clearly in the cockpit.....thats close! Close ups will happen quickly! You will get some great shots I am sure. Have fun........but speed that shutter way up!
May 21, 2018 11:09:57 #
bet53 wrote:
Plan to take pics of Blue Angels practice in Annapolis Tuesday. Nikon D7500 w 55-300 zoom. Looking for suggestions on autofocus set up? Thinking a bout using shutter preferred mode, maybe 750?
I shot my first air show last Oct with the Blue Angels. I was fortunate to have the Blue Angel team doing practice runs from a base less than a mile from my house. They literally flew directly over my house so there I was in my front yard shooting away. This gave me good practice for the actual event. I use a Nikon D500, back-button focus, hi continuous shooting mode, shutter speed 1/1250 and panned a lot. I used a 80-400 lens (heavy) hand-held thus the hi shutter speed. When these jets make a steep climb, watch for vapor forming around the aircraft. Makes a good picture. Here's a quick slideshow I made from the airshow: https://youtu.be/M1Yeq8sTf6g. I'm sure you'll enjoy the experiance and be sure to post some pics.
Don
May 21, 2018 11:52:26 #
DJD wrote:
Well done Don! What do you use for your slideshow software?
May 21, 2018 11:58:36 #
bsprague wrote:
Well done Don! What do you use for your slideshow software?
I use Apple’s IMovie. It’s fairly intuitive. I like it’s ability to add and edit music. Thanks.
May 21, 2018 12:14:25 #
DJD wrote:
I use Apple’s IMovie. It’s fairly intuitive. I like it’s ability to add and edit music. Thanks.
I like video software for slideshows too.
May 21, 2018 12:25:18 #
Don't forget exposure. The brightness of the sky can fool your metering system, leaving the aircraft a really dark blue. I mean really dark. Last time I saw them, I had better luck setting the exposure off some average terrestrial stuff, and using that.
May 21, 2018 19:20:59 #
Appreciate the advice. Thinking about using the 51 point auto focus for panning. 4fps, shutter priority somewhere between 1000 - 2000 depending on shot.
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