Hit and Miss

Taking aerial shots from aboard a commercial airliner can be hit and miss. After all, you have little to no control over the weather conditions, the flight path and altitude, or the condition of the plane’s windows. The quick movement of a modern aircraft also requires the photographer to react quickly.

Nonetheless, why not take a moment to think about how you can make the most of the opportunity? Here are some ideas:

• Seating: Choose a window seat so that the sun is behind you when you take your photos. In contrast, shooting against the sun will accentuate any imperfections in the window. To avoid convection turbulence caused by the hot engine exhaust, you could try to get a seat in front of the wing. Websites such as AeroLOPA, SeatGuru and SeatMaps are providing seat maps and information on cabin layouts for most common airliners.
• Window: This is an obvious one. Wipe the window with a lens or eyeglass cloth to remove fingerprints and other grease.
• Photo Gear: Even the world’s best camera system wouldn’t be able to compensate for the loss of image quality caused by the atmospherics and the window. Using a smartphone with good camera features can be a viable choice.

• Camera Angle: Keep your camera as perpendicular as possible to the window. Any tilt will accentuate the deteriorative effects of the thick, multi-layered window.
• Focal Length: Avoid extreme focal lengths. Telephoto shots will magnify the the window’s imperfections. Wide angles may include the window frame in the shot.
• Shutter Speed: To avoid motion blur in your aerial shots, use a shutter speed between 1/500 and 1/1000 (for wide angles, you may be able to go a bit lower).
• Composition: Framing your shot as intended may be difficult depending on how shaky your flight is. Just shoot a little wider than usual to allow for cropping in post. Platforms such as flightradar24.com provide you with historical flight data. To get you an idea of what to expect along the wa, you may check the flight path of previous flights for your route.

Happy shooting and have a safe trip!