The Big Wheel is coming! Landscape / Aerial advice needed please.

[Clivegriff]

The Big Wheel will open in Leeds in a few days.

http://www.observationwheelleeds.co.uk

Landscape photography has always been something of a closed book to me and I have little experience of or aptitude for that discipline, but I am determined to take a ride on the Wheel and would love to get some memorable images.

I'll be using a D600 and the lenses I have available are: Nikon 50 1.8; Nikon 80-200 2.8; Nikon 28-300 and Sigma 15-30.

Any advice on the best lens for the job and the most suitable camera settings would be much appreciated.

 

[Steven Sax]

If you can, bring a tripod, really...Setup at twilight or later, go to aperture priority and choose f16 (your lights will flare in a cool starlight pattern. Got to iso 100 or 200, your shutter speed will probably be 5 seconds or more. You'll get a cool shot of the spinning carousel...Then take just your 50 and you 15-30, go to shutter priority, choose 1/125 or faster, auto iso or iso 800 or higher and shoot away. shoot from 1 hour before sunset until whenever. Then get creative!

--Steve

 

[Clivegriff]

Steven Sax wrote:

If you can, bring a tripod, really...Setup at twilight or later, go to aperture priority and choose f16 (your lights will flare in a cool starlight pattern. Got to iso 100 or 200, your shutter speed will probably be 5 seconds or more. You'll get a cool shot of the spinning carousel...

I was thinking more about shots from the wheel rather than shots of the wheel, but you've opened up a new set of possibilities. Thanks, Steven.

Then take just your 50 and you 15-30, go to shutter priority, choose 1/125 or faster, auto iso or iso 800 or higher and shoot away. shoot from 1 hour before sunset until whenever.

Will do.

 

[pluton]

28-300 has the useful range.

 

[Clivegriff]

pluton wrote:

28-300 has the useful range.

It does.

Unfortunately it's also my least favoured lens. I bought it for its reach when shooting Under 11s soccer but have been less-than-impressed with its IQ.

But it's an option. Thanks for your input.

 

[Steven Sax]

You might try one more thing...With your 15-30 on tripod shoot the carousel with 2-4 second exposure (shutter priority) and gently (GENTLY!) zoom from 30 down to 15 during the exposure.

Then....get on the carousel (no tripod) and in addition to all the other shots, stabilize your camera on the rail and shoot a 2-4 second or even longer exposure as you come from top to bottom.

or even...timelapse. short exposure as I originally suggested, but set your camera to take shots every second (you'll need 24 or 30 shoots just for a 1 second timelapse, so shoot 300 shots at 1/second....

have fun!

 

[ShotFromTheSidewalk]

put on the 15-30, set it at 15, camera on hyperfocal, manual aperture and shutter preset,Cl 2 or 3 frames a second,secure to your wrist. go up when you can get a shadow of the ferris wheel in some of the shots. do continuous and don't worry about straight verticals. just get the shots. don't rest the camera on the frame. try to absorb some of the mechanical shake with a bent arm. hold it over the edge of the gondola so the frame isn't in the pic sometimes.

there aren't many images like this. the usual blurry ones abound. be unique.


distillery district toronto (temporary ferris wheel in december)

 

[Clivegriff]

Steven Sax wrote:

You might try one more thing...With your 15-30 on tripod shoot the carousel with 2-4 second exposure (shutter priority) and gently (GENTLY!) zoom from 30 down to 15 during the exposure.

I'm not known for gentility - but I'll try!

Then....get on the carousel (no tripod) and in addition to all the other shots, stabilize your camera on the rail and shoot a 2-4 second or even longer exposure as you come from top to bottom.

I'm told that a single revolution takes 12 minutes. Therefore from top to bottom should take 6 minutes. Don't forget - this is an Observation Wheel, not a Ferris Wheel. But I'll think about a variation of your idea.

or even...timelapse. short exposure as I originally suggested, but set your camera to take shots every second (you'll need 24 or 30 shoots just for a 1 second timelapse, so shoot 300 shots at 1/second....

We're planning at least two separate trips on the wheel; one during the day and the other late evening when it's dark. On the second trip - when I'll be more familiar with the lie of the land - I'll try a time lapse.

have fun!

I'll try - and your help towards that end is appreciated.

 

[Clivegriff]

frank-in-toronto wrote:

put on the 15-30, set it at 15, camera on hyperfocal, manual aperture and shutter preset,Cl 2 or 3 frames a second,secure to your wrist. go up when you can get a shadow of the ferris wheel in some of the shots. do continuous and don't worry about straight verticals. just get the shots. don't rest the camera on the frame. try to absorb some of the mechanical shake with a bent arm. hold it over the edge of the gondola so the frame isn't in the pic sometimes.

there aren't many images like this. the usual blurry ones abound. be unique.

Food for thought. Thanks for your input.