Shooting from a helicopter with the Nikon D3s
It’s not that I’m competitive with Ed (Digital Camera’s technique editor, who earlier this week blogged about shooting from a bus), but last week I found myself shooting from a helicopter.
I was privileged enough to take the new Nikon D3s for a spin over London, which was an exhilarating experience. Under the guidance of aerial photographer Jason Hawkes we put the camera through its paces.
I’ve got to say, I was hugely impressed. Shooting from a moving and vibrating helicopter with a fairly heavy 70-200mm lens at dusk has got to be one of the most demanding photographic situations I’ve ever been in.
I would have been happy to get one half decent shot from the short trip, but I ended up with a good handful of fine shots. This is of course down to the amazingly high ISOs I was able to use. I mainly stuck to ISO 12800, which meant that even at dusk I could use a shutter speed of 1/400 sec.
The fast Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR lens helped too. To see a full review of the Nikon D3s and some more images from the shoot, check out the February issue of Digital Camera – on sale 12 January 2010.
What a stunning image Ben, cannot believe you took this from a moving helicopter!
#1. Posted on Friday, 04 Dec 2009 at 01:31pm GMT. Report this
Thanks Amy, this is just a small jpg the raw file looks much better, especially in the sky.
#2. Posted on Friday, 04 Dec 2009 at 02:54pm GMT. Report this
I'm not competitive either Ben.... so next week my blog will be on shooting from the moon! Try getting higher than that Mr Brain ;)
... but on a serious note... good shot Ben. I've seen the rest of Ben's images he took from the helicopter and they're great!
#3. Posted on Friday, 04 Dec 2009 at 03:11pm GMT. Report this
You don't say if it's the New Nikon 70-200mm F2.8 VR or the older model? I use the older 70-200mm F2.8 VR as a walk-about lens plus 1.4 converter on a D3 and find it balances perfectly in my hand.
#4. Posted on Friday, 04 Dec 2009 at 11:41pm GMT. Report this
Hi there, I was using the new one. I personally own the much older 70 - 200mm f/2.8 with no VR at all, it's a great lens, but you've got to keep your shutter speeds pretty high to avoid any shake. The new one was a real treat to use. I'd love to get one but it's got a hefty price tag. BB
#5. Posted on Saturday, 05 Dec 2009 at 08:01pm GMT. Report this
Thanks for the reply. I find the older version is OK on a D3 with the 1.4 or 2x converter.
#6. Posted on Saturday, 05 Dec 2009 at 11:01pm GMT. Report this
Considering this is taken at night from a helicopter, it is impressive. But, perhaps too much emphasis is placed on ever increasing technological advancements. While perhaps not overly impressive, the aerial images (http://www.globalstills.com/gallery/Nature_Wildlife/Antelope/) were taken from a helicopter on an old D70 and an old Nikon 200-400 f/4 (with stabilizer). Granted, stabilizer was used - but point being the D70 managed to capture some impressive images. IJ
#7. Posted on Friday, 11 Dec 2009 at 03:58pm GMT. Report this
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