Airshow Tips

[LarryG]

Good morning. I am going to the "Power in the Pines" airshow in Central New Jersey this weekend and am looking for some guidance.
I shoot a Nikon D500 with the Sigma 100-400 lens. I also have the 18-250 that I plan to use for shots of aircraft parked on the ground.

Some specifics I am interested in:
Auto-ISO on or off?
Vibration Reduction on or off?
Metering mode?
Best shutter speeds for jets, props and helicopters.

I am thinking of setting up near an end of the runway (instead of center stage) to get more head on shots.

Any other thoughts for increasing my keeper rate would be appreciated.

Thank you very much.

 

[DavidT]

I prefer
auto iso and with a DSLR it will protect you from chimping all day.

For jets to complete freeze them I’d start with 1/3200 but if you want some panning blur lower your shutter speed. It really comes down to taste with jets.

For prop planes you do not want a frozen prop. It looks horrible and is the biggest mistake people make. Depending on the aircraft and speed your shutter speed will vary. Typically below 1/125 and often I am at 1/60. For nice prop blur it’s best to have light hitting the prop head on. Keep in mind more fps is your friend as a lot of shots aren’t going to be sharp. This is by far the hardest type of aircraft photography.

For VR I’d shut it off until you get the slow prop plane shutter speeds. I’d use the panning setting.

For metering mode I’d stick with matrix and watch for shiny aircraft that throw off the meter and compensate as needed.

Typically center of runway is best as that is where you will get more peak moments. Find the photo pit of they have one and that will be a key photography location.

I’m not on my computer but here’s some phone screen shots of my IG with a few prop plane shots. The head on plane had a special paint job that shifts colors so it can appear a bit out of focus but it’s actually tack sharp. I used 1/80 to blur the prop.

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[BrianBirch]

I don’t have any practical experience, but, try looking up Moose Peterson’s website/blog. He’s a wildlife photographer who has gotten pretty heavily into aviation photography over the last several years.