Acadia National Park – Aerial Photography [Slide Show]

As a landscape photographer, my photographs are normally made with the camera positioned somewhere between just a few inches off the ground (for close-ups) and eye level (for landscape shots). The resulting images show viewers what they would see if they viewed that same subject at a similar height for example, the details of a wild flower from several inches away or a dense forest viewed from an upright position.

     Because most of Acadia is surrounded by water there are many sections of the park, especially along the coast line that cannot be seen well from land. There are also sections of the park that are inaccessible and can only be seen from the air. In my work here to convey to viewers not only the beauty of Acadia but also to share a sense of this place, my hope has been to capture images made both from the air and also on the water, if possible.

     In addition, over the past several years Acadia’s Schoodic District (formerly a US Navy Base) has demolished buildings, constructed others, and carried out conservation work to protect the land. Because of these many changes the park wished at some point to photograph the entire area from the air to help in land management and planning. Steve Collins, owner of Acadia Air Tours, a local airplane tour company heard about my residency and the parks need for aerial photography and generously donated flight time to the Park Service for me to make those photographs.

     The images below are a small sample of 150 photographs made during a 90 minute period while flying over Acadia’s Schoodic District. Besides images for the Park Service, I was also able to capture other fine art images from within the park that would have been impossible to make otherwise. These photos were made in a Cessna 182 Skylane flying at altitudes ranging from 800 to 2,000 feet with the passenger’s door removed so I could photograph more easily. And in case you’re wondering, the temperature around the doorway of the plane where I held the camera to make these photographs was 11 degrees!

Click on the image below to begin the slide show. Once it begins, you can either click on a specific photo to view it in a larger size, or easily navigate from one photo to the next. When you finish return here to learn about some tips for doing aerial photography.

Acadia National Park – Aerial Photography
Click the Image to Start the Slideshow.

TIPS ON PHOTOGRAPHING FROM AN AIRPLANE
With airplanes moving in a forward direction of 100-300 MPH or more, and turbulence caused by winds and engine vibration, capturing sharp images is a challenge aerial photography. Here are a few tips to help:

• Use a fast shutter speed. To do that, set your camera to “Tv”(for time value) or “S” (for shutter priority) and select a shutter speed of at between 1/500 – 1/1000th second. Note: you may need to increase the ISO to 200, 400 or higher in order to achieve that speed.
• If your camera or lens has image stabilization, turn it on.
• Because all subjects in an aerial photo are a long distance from the lens, an aperture setting of f5.6 or f8 is normally adequate.
• Unless you’re a commercial photographer with specialized harnesses, most airline companies will not remove a door or window of a plane for photographing. To photograph through a plexiglass window; hold the lens close to (but not touching) the window, focus the lens manually and if you have one, attach a circular polarizer to reduce glare from the sun. (Read more about circular polarizers in the Oct. 21, 2011 blog entry by clicking here.)