New D200 - Aviation Shots

Hi All,

Just a couple of shots from Thursday from a viewpoint on the approach to runway 25 at Newcastle Airport (UK).

I've had the D200 a week now and been struggling to get sharp shots with it using my Sigma 80-400 OS. Anyway read a couple of posts in the forum and changed a few of the in camera focus & sharpening settings which has helped me achieve these......Any opinions greatfully accepted..

Full EXIF embedded in files;











I was beginning to think i'd made a mistake with this camera due to its exacting technique - but i'm now realising a little patience really helps - By the way the full sized images of these shots are awesome - well at least to me they are !!

Cheers Derek
--
This photography thing is great - I'll get the hang of it soon

http://digiphotog.com/

Hi Derek. Yes, these look pretty good, but (there's always a but isn't there lol) there is still room for improvement. The first image particularly is quite soft around the nose / cockpit area. I think this is more likely to be down to movement rather than poor focus since you were working at very high f numbers.

I note you were working in Shutter Priority mode and stuck at 1/250th sec. In the good light you had, this gave exposure readings requiring very small apertures like f/20. Anything beyond f/11 and you run the risk of image degradation due to diffraction anyway. Soooo, no harm in using shutter priority to guarantee a minimum speed, but keep an eye on the f readings the camera is coming up with, and if you are consistently higher than f/11, wind the shutter speed up. 1/500th sec might have turned that first image into a razor sharp result.

--
Dave (Sgt. Pepper), Epsom, England.
http://www.pbase.com/davecq

Hi Dave,

Thanks for your honest opinion..

Dave Chambers said:

Hi Derek. Yes, these look pretty good, but (there's always a but
isn't there lol) there is still room for improvement. The first
image particularly is quite soft around the nose / cockpit area. I
think this is more likely to be down to movement rather than poor
focus since you were working at very high f numbers.

Click to expand...

Yes i agree - the full sized image definitely displays a bit of motion blur, particularly around the Lufthansa logo just below the cockpit window.

Dave Chambers said:

I note you were working in Shutter Priority mode and stuck at
1/250th sec. In the good light you had, this gave exposure
readings requiring very small apertures like f/20. Anything beyond
f/11 and you run the risk of image degradation due to diffraction
anyway. Soooo, no harm in using shutter priority to guarantee a
minimum speed, but keep an eye on the f readings the camera is
coming up with, and if you are consistently higher than f/11, wind
the shutter speed up. 1/500th sec might have turned that first
image into a razor sharp result.

Click to expand...

Funny you should say that because i used to shoot my D70 totally in manual mode for aviation shots - as it tended to blow highlights in any of the program modes - so i should be used to adjusting aperture and shutter speed according to the conditions.

However the reason why this shot ended up at 1/250th sec was because the image i shot before it was a turbo prop and to guarantee prop blur you really need to be shooting at that speed. So i concur - total user error because i didn't up the shutter speed after the previous shot ;-)

Thanks for replying ....

Derek
--
This photography thing is great - I'll get the hang of it soon

http://digiphotog.com/

Nice shots, What AF mode did you use for these? And how do you like the Sigma for sharpness, contrast, and AF speed?

Chris

--
Please Visit: http://www.vanphoto.roxr.com
http://www.vanphoto.roxr.com/portfolio

The first one did seem to have a little motion around the logo perhaps....overall great sharpness and color.

Hi Chris,

thanks for the nice words and to answer your questions;

Chris Jacobs said:

Nice shots, What AF mode did you use for these?

Click to expand...

Camera buttons set as follows;
AF-C mode
AF Area Mode set to Group Dynamic

Menu settings as follows;
AF-C Mode priority set to Focus
Focus area Frame set to 11 Areas
Group Dynamic AF set to Pattern 1, Centre Area
Focus Tracking Lock-On set to Short

Chris Jacobs said:

And how do you like the Sigma for sharpness, contrast, and AF speed?

Click to expand...

In normal and good conditions, the Sigma 80-400 OS is very sharp, contrasty and renders colours very well - auto focussing is suprisingly fast considering the lens has its own onboard focussing motor (it isn't an HSM lens) - With the lens cap on it will hunt from min focussing to infinity and back in approx 1 second or less - people who have had both the Sigma and Nikkor suggest the Sigma focusses a bit quicker.

My lens occasionally will hunt and not seem to find anything but those occasions are few and far between. For its price and range it should be seriously considered if you are looking for something in that range.

Funny enough one of my pals shoots a Canon 20D with the 100-400 L IS and the results i get from the Sigma are as good as he gets with his Canon L glass!

The downside is the weight - it is pretty heavy, due to its dedicated onboard focussing motor - however i have used it on a number of occasions for a full days session shooting aircraft, without any problems.

Anyway hope this helps....

Cheers Derek
--
This photography thing is great - I'll get the hang of it soon

http://digiphotog.com/

Hi Mark,

Mark53 said:

The first one did seem to have a little motion around the logo
perhaps....overall great sharpness and color.

Click to expand...

Yes the first shot definitely has motion blur around the Lufthansa logo and the 'Operated by Eurowings' text, that blur is more noticable on the full sized picture - i shouldn't have really posted it!!

The other 4 aircraft are much better full sized - on the Thomson 757, the text to the right of the cockpit window is clealy readable, the Monarch A330 registration number and text at rear door is sharp & clear and the flightimages logo on the starboard engine of the Piper Navajo is very crisp.

Anyway thanks for the kind words......

Cheers Derek
--
This photography thing is great - I'll get the hang of it soon

http://digiphotog.com/

These are excellent quality shots Derek, thanks for the heads-up in the D70 forum. Great sharpness and colour rendition, excellent panning technique too. I love the prop shots, you nailed them to show just the right amount of prop blur.

A great start with your new camera Derek, looking forward to seeing your future work.
--
http://www.pbase.com/andydunn

Hi Andy,

Andy Dunn said:

These are excellent quality shots Derek, thanks for the heads-up in
the D70 forum. Great sharpness and colour rendition, excellent
panning technique too. I love the prop shots, you nailed them to
show just the right amount of prop blur.
A great start with your new camera Derek, looking forward to seeing
your future work.

Click to expand...

Many thanks Andy - very kind!! Good job you didn't see the earlier shots from the Bird of Prey Centre at Keilder Water - one day after getting the new cam!! To say it was tough was an understatement!! hahahahahahah

Best wishes to you and the family...

Derek
--
This photography thing is great - I'll get the hang of it soon

http://digiphotog.com/

Hi Derek,

Very nice airplane pictures again. This new camera will probably keep you busy for a while. Glad you're getting the hang of it. Keep posting airplane pictures, works, for me.

Cheers,

Pierre
http://www.pbase.com/northflyboy

Holy Cow!!! Was that last aircraft a Piper Navajo C/R?? Yiiikes! There still flying those lil commuters?!?!

That little plane was one of the commuter work horses of the 1980s. Good to see one in your photos...
memories..

Nice shots, Keep at it!

Teila K. Day

Like someone else said, there is always a but. These photos appear over-sharpened to me, especially the third and fifth shots where a bright halo is quite visible around the entire aircraft. Something to watch out for anyways, especially when post processing with unsharp masking or the smart sharpen feature in Photoshop CS2 (which is quite bad for this specific kind of haloing). These particular kind of halos are usually made worse with images like these ones, where you have a object against a flat color, like the blue sky.

Pierre / Teila,

Thanks for the kind comments - aviation is probably my favourite, So Pierre you will probably get some more!!

Teila - Yes it is a Piper Navajo, first time i've seen one for ages! This one is used by a company specialising in aerial photography - so just think how ironic this shot is - me taking a picture of them taking a picture of me - LOL

Cheers Derek
--
This photography thing is great - I'll get the hang of it soon

http://digiphotog.com/

Hi Katie,

Thanks for the comments - just checked both full sized images for halo's. I can see it on the Piper (last shot) on the front side of the wheels :-(.

But i cannot see any on the Thomson 757 (3rd shot) - can you advise where you see it please.

I thought i was being conservative with the sharpening - just using 2 softish passes of L*A*B sharpening on the lightness channel. Will have to be more careful in the future.

Many thanks

Derek
--
This photography thing is great - I'll get the hang of it soon

http://digiphotog.com/

... enjoyed the images - colours and sharpness are great!

Hope you don't mind the link-up at http://nikond200.dpnotes.com/11/aviation-photography - and super-thanks for sharing the camera settings too!

--
Regards, David Chin
(D.7.0. & C.P.4.5.0.0.)
http://nikond200.dpnotes.com
http://www.pbase.com/dlcmh/nikonlinks

Hi David,

Thanks for the post, kind comments and the link to your info blog - it looks great and i'm really proud to be associated with it - Thankyou

Cheers Derek
--
This photography thing is great - I'll get the hang of it soon

http://digiphotog.com/

Nice work. I agree with previous suggestions. Picking the shutter up to 1/500 on #1 would take care of it. The D200 is a fabulous tool, but very different from the D70. Motion is MUCH more of an issue on the D200.

Love that Sigma. : )

--
Refining my Second Skin

Hi Andy,

Have lost your email address, so it is good to see you. Hoping you can make Fairford in July and if you are lusting ater the D200, I suggest you get some practice in with it beforehand. It is a different beast to the D70, but when you get to know it a little you will fall in love all over again.

Regards,

John (Lechlade) previously knowns as Magic

Lechlade said:

Hi Andy,

Have lost your email address, so it is good to see you. Hoping you
can make Fairford in July and if you are lusting ater the D200, I
suggest you get some practice in with it beforehand. It is a
different beast to the D70, but when you get to know it a little
you will fall in love all over again.

Regards,

John (Lechlade) previously knowns as Magic

Click to expand...

John, great to hear from you! I tried emailing you a couple of times, last time at Christmas,thought you must have changed ISP or something!

Mate, you bet your life I'll be at Fairford again, same spot as last year? I'm going to try and make it every day this year, weather and kids permitting.

So you upgraded to the D200 too, I'm made up for you as I remember your D70 was starting to act up a little the last time we met up.

You going to make Cosford John? Drop me a line anytime my friend, let me know how you're doing.
[email protected]

--
http://www.pbase.com/andydunn

I flew a Piper Navajo up untill last December. The company I worked for has 3 of them and they are still a common sight in Canada. They are used mainly by charter company and as small freighters. The Navajo is an awesome machine in its class.

Here is a link to the Company I worked for, the website pictures are mostly mine. http://www.commercialaviation.ca/ There are a few more Navajo pictures there if you are interested.

Cheers,

Pierre
http://www.pbase.com/northflyboy

Here's a few pics of the ones I flew.