Aerial Photography Internships??

Fellow_Pilot

Fellow_Pilot

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Fellow_Pilot
Is there such a thing as internships for aerial photographers?? I love aviation and photography. Why not do both at the same time?
 
Ugh oh, here we go again...
 
Who said one has to be a pilot in order to conduct aerial photography? It's not unheard of for professional photographers to expand their services or to explore a different genre of photography all together. Additionally, I'm not aware of any regulation that prevents someone, professional or otherwise, from taking and selling photographs from an airplane if they are not operating the flight.

I could be wrong though...
 
You don't have to be a pilot to take pictures out of an airplane. I was under the impression that all the awesome cover shots of airplanes in flight were taken by professional photographers while somebody else flew the plane and kept formation. I would think it would be not only near impossible to get those amazing shots while flying the plane yourself, but also very dangerous.

To the OP if you're still checking this- Find some great aerial photographers, their names are always credited in the magazines, and contact them about an internship. Here I imagine Google would be your friend. They may well say no, but I bet some of them will talk to you and give you great advise.
 
I am a pilot, but I'm never the pilot-in-command when doing a photo shoot. I don't have to have my commercial license to take photos. My pilot doesn't even have to have his commercial license if I'm not paying him.

Fellow_Pilot said:
Aerial Photography
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That's a vague answer. Are you wanting to do photos from air-to-ground, air-to-air? Air to ground is pretty easy and if you're into photography you wouldn't need any training. If you want to do air-to-air, it's a small world without a lot of work. You would need to find a pilot to fly you, a plane that is capable of flying with most other airplanes, get formation training, and learn how to talk to the other plane.

In my case, I'm usually in a 170, which is good for most planes. I have access to a 210 for faster planes. Depends on my pilot, sometimes I talk to the pilot and he relays info to the subject plane, sometimes I put the push-to-talk on my thumb and do my own communication. If you really want to do this as a job, full or part time, Scott Slocum teaches it for a fair price and is considered one of the best.
 
Lowflynjack said:
I am a pilot, but I'm never the pilot-in-command when doing a photo shoot. I don't have to have my commercial license to take photos. My pilot doesn't even have to have his commercial license if I'm not paying him.


That's a vague answer. Are you wanting to do photos from air-to-ground, air-to-air? Air to ground is pretty easy and if you're into photography you wouldn't need any training. If you want to do air-to-air, it's a small world without a lot of work. You would need to find a pilot to fly you, a plane that is capable of flying with most other airplanes, get formation training, and learn how to talk to the other plane.

In my case, I'm usually in a 170, which is good for most planes. I have access to a 210 for faster planes. Depends on my pilot, sometimes I talk to the pilot and he relays info to the subject plane, sometimes I put the push-to-talk on my thumb and do my own communication. If you really want to do this as a job, full or part time, Scott Slocum teaches it for a fair price and is considered one of the best.
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Oh I meant doing air to ground. Like taking pictures of landmarks and stuff like that.
 
Read what you can find about it online then just go try it. Some flights schools around here will let you open the window of a C-172 during flight to eliminate the glass between you and the subject. Pick a subject, rent the plane, and give it a shot.

If you want to turn it into a business, it's going to be difficult. All the more so since there are a lot of people turning out some pretty nice images from UAVs/drone. Try to figure out what you can do from a real aircraft that your competition can't do with their UAV/drone.
 
skier said:
Read what you can find about it online then just go try it. Some flights schools around here will let you open the window of a C-172 during flight to eliminate the glass between you and the subject. Pick a subject, rent the plane, and give it a shot.

If you want to turn it into a business, it's going to be difficult. All the more so since there are a lot of people turning out some pretty nice images from UAVs/drone. Try to figure out what you can do from a real aircraft that your competition can't do with their UAV/drone.
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Honestly this is more for just fulfilling a passion, not making money.
 
Then there's even less of a reason to worry about an internship or formal direction. Look online for aerial photos you think are really good. Look at the light (color, quality, direction) in those photos. Look at the composition. Figure out how to duplicate what you see. Then rent a plane (or find a friend with a plane) and go give it a shot. Have fun.

That's really all there is to it. An aircraft that you can open/remove the door or window from would be best.

Other than being more expensive to get involved in (since you need a plane), there isn't much of a difference between aerial photography or any other form of natural light photography. It still boils down to camera settings, available light, composition, and post processing. Most of those parameters you can figure out by looking at other photos that professionals post online.
 
Fellow_Pilot said:
Honestly this is more for just fulfilling a passion, not making money.
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One place to look for aerial photos is Flickr. The EXIF information is usually listed for the photos. While most shots you'll fond there are through a commercial jet window, there are still a lot of shots from a small plane.
 
I find an airplane with an autopilot that can follow a heading bug is pretty useful for single pilot/photographer ops. Line up your shots depending on the light and set a heading for the pass. Also you get used to the rate of turn the A/P makes when you change heading and can sort of set up an arc around the subject. Of course you always have to keep up with what the airplane is up to and look for traffic. It's a challenge sometimes and it's way better with somebody else doing the flying.
 
There are definitely technical considerations for air to ground, mostly increasing with altitude. Read up on it to know what settings and filters you use.

Contrast changes, colors shift, etc., especially due to dust, smoke, pollution and things in the air. You'll want to know how to work around that and it should be easy to learn that stuff via books and Internet.

Good luck, and have fun!
 
If you have a lens hood on your camera, remove it. That makes it very hard to hold a camera still. Fly as slow as possible. Shoot early in the morning or late in the afternoon. Shadows look cool when they're really long. Take a lot of photos of the same thing. Just go give it a try!

Someone mentioned being afraid of heights. I am very scared of heights, but hanging out of a plane never bothers me, unless we fly over a tall object. I think it gives me a reference point of how high I really am. We flew by a tall radio antenna once and it scared the hell out of me. During the photos below, when we'd fly over a tall building, I wanted to close my eyes! Had to fight through it, but it wasn't easy.

8025205450_732c057254_b.jpg

8025205581_73f449f15f_b.jpg
 
In addition to what Jack said, also try to get a plane where you can open the window opposite you, and shoot through that. This prevents the slipstream from moving the lens around. This means the plane is banked, and in a turn, usually, to get these shots. This allows use of a longer focal length lens.

JAK_8781 by Jack Silver, on Flickr
JAK_8803 by Jack Silver, on Flickr
High seats by Jack Silver, on Flickr
 
You might check to see if there is a local PAPA (Professional Aerial Photographer's Association) member near you.

http://professionalaerialphotographers.com/

Most of the aerial photography companies I'm aware of though are fairly small operations. I could actually take on a little help if everything lined up, but I'd be looking to develop talent that would stay with us rather than becoming competition...

Ryan
 
RyanShort1 said:
You might check to see if there is a local PAPA (Professional Aerial Photographer's Association) member near you.

http://professionalaerialphotographers.com/

Most of the aerial photography companies I'm aware of though are fairly small operations. I could actually take on a little help if everything lined up, but I'd be looking to develop talent that would stay with us rather than becoming competition...

Ryan
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Too bad you aren't closer....I'd look into that
 
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