Author Topic: Croyde from the air (Kite aerial photos) (Read 7575 times)

andygates · « **on:** 20 October, 2008, 12:44:16 am »

This has been on my to-do list for ages, and at last the Mark 2 rig is alive! Surf was blown out so I pressganged some minions and launched the skyhook, hauled my rig aloft and made the best of wild swinging and a grey day:

Mk 2A will have some tweaks to reduce torquing while aloft and damp out swinging...

pcolbeck · « **Reply #1 on:** 20 October, 2008, 09:01:07 am »

How did you fire the shutter Andy ?

Charlotte · « **Reply #2 on:** 20 October, 2008, 09:12:13 am »

That's rather impressive - next stop Menwith Hill?

Jaded · « **Reply #3 on:** 20 October, 2008, 09:17:01 am »

What fun!

What (35mm eqiv) is the lens?

andygates · « **Reply #4 on:** 20 October, 2008, 10:00:37 am »

The camera's a Casio Exilim (in "sport" mode, antishake on). It's being lifted by a single-string soft aerofoil kite, which has plenty of power. The camera is fitted into a cradle I made (from bent alu and scraps) which has three servo controls: pan, tilt, and "take". "Take" is just a servo replacing the human finger -- there's no cable or IR release.

Here's the rig sans camera: Mk 2 Camera Rig on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

The kite had about 200m of line. I want to get half a klick!

Next stop... probably Maiden Castle. Unless you can point me to Jacqui Smith's address?

Woofage · « **Reply #5 on:** 20 October, 2008, 11:17:40 am »

cool

andygates · « **Reply #6 on:** 20 October, 2008, 11:20:01 am »

Ah! Flickr have slurped out the metadata:

Exposure:    0.002 sec (1/640)
Aperture:    f/2.7
Focal Length:    6.2 mm

(full stats here)

1/640 is interesting, because that means that the blur on most images isn't swing, it's vibration. There are tricks to damp that out. Or it's the sport-mode autofocus failing, in which case a switch to landscape mode (infinite focus) will sort it out. Stuff to try next time! Yay!

PaulR · « **Reply #7 on:** 20 October, 2008, 11:31:08 am »

Quote from: andygates on 20 October, 2008, 10:00:37 am

Next stop... probably Maiden Castle. Unless you can point me to Jacqui Smith's address?

I cycle past her house on my way to work most mornings. I think your kite would have lots of little holes put in it pretty quickly.

Jaded · « **Reply #8 on:** 20 October, 2008, 11:43:32 am »

That's a 38mm equiv in 35mm.

andygates · « **Reply #9 on:** 20 October, 2008, 11:55:14 am »

Quote from: PaulR on 20 October, 2008, 11:31:08 am

Quote from: andygates on 20 October, 2008, 10:00:37 am
Next stop... probably Maiden Castle. Unless you can point me to Jacqui Smith's address?
I cycle past her house on my way to work most mornings. I think your kite would have lots of little holes put in it pretty quickly.

It's a cheap kite, be worth it for the stunt.

Quote from: Jaded on 20 October, 2008, 11:43:32 am

That's a 38mm equiv in 35mm.

= short but not fisheye? That's about what I'd expect from a fag-packet snapper on minimum zoom.

I'm sore tempted to feed this set into Photosynth!

Jaded · « **Reply #10 on:** 20 October, 2008, 12:08:03 pm »

I'd say it is a medium wide angle. I always viewed 24mm as 'wide wideangle' for 35mm, 21m as extreme wide angle and 35mm as just wide angle.

Fish eye is usually less than 18mm, I think.

My Panasonic Lumix has a 25mm equiv, which is why I bought it.

clarion · « **Reply #11 on:** 20 October, 2008, 02:09:53 pm »

Is this from your Cody?

andygates · « **Reply #12 on:** 20 October, 2008, 03:17:36 pm »

I only wish I had a Cody! The lifting kite is a 1.5x1.2m single-string parafoil. Parafoils pack down teeny-tiny and don't break when I crash 'em! Once it's out of the turbulence zone, the thing is basically a skyhook.

clarion · « **Reply #13 on:** 20 October, 2008, 03:32:17 pm »

I heart my parafoil.

I much prefer single-line kites - fighters are more my thing, but big pullers are fun. I had a Double Conyne - also known as a Double (French) Military or Double Pilot that I flew for many many hours...

Incidentally, the site that pic comes from sell extended wing Codys, Marconis, Rollers, Rokakkus etc

Pretty cool kite website

Jurek · « **Reply #14 on:** 20 October, 2008, 04:17:58 pm »

Andy - you've done something I set out to do oh..... about 20 years ago

Nice one!

I still have the RC device I built for triggering the shutter of my old skool Canon AE1 (with autowinder).
The plan was to loft that lump on a delta with a 4 metre wingspan - but somehow I never got round to it.

The 4 metre delta and my other kites ('xcept for the Flexifoils) have been donated to my mate's 8 year old.
I'm expecting to see him crossing the sky over Blackheath anytime soon.

andygates · « **Reply #15 on:** 20 October, 2008, 04:34:29 pm »

It has taken me about four years!

andym · « **Reply #16 on:** 20 October, 2008, 05:35:57 pm »

Nice.

Friend of mine did something similar, but with a Canon Powershot. I thought he said the camera was set up to take pic every N seconds, but can't be sure of the specifics. Obviously needs a bit of tweaking to get acceptable focus, DoF, and exposure though.

Pics from above of us launching rockets here...
Picasa Web Albums - hartrockets - Kite Aerial P...

pcolbeck · « **Reply #17 on:** 20 October, 2008, 05:41:42 pm »

Does the camera and its cradle go up with the kite or ride up the line once the kite is at altitude ?

andygates · « **Reply #18 on:** 20 October, 2008, 05:53:02 pm »

Quote from: andym on 20 October, 2008, 05:35:57 pm

Friend of mine did something similar, but with a Canon Powershot. I thought he said the camera was set up to take pic every N seconds, but can't be sure of the specifics. Obviously needs a bit of tweaking to get acceptable focus, DoF, and exposure though.

The powershot has a scripting language - you can make it snap away every ten seconds or whatever. Perfect for this sort of thing!

Quote from: andym on 20 October, 2008, 05:35:57 pm

Pics from above of us launching rockets here...
Picasa Web Albums - hartrockets - Kite Aerial P...

How cool are those smoke columns?

Quote from: pcolbeck on 20 October, 2008, 05:41:42 pm

Does the camera and its cradle go up with the kite or ride up the line once the kite is at altitude ?

I launch the kite and get it out of the messy low-level air, then attach the cats' cradle rig with the camera in, and send it all up. A line-climber would be neat - but it would also be complicated and need sturdy batteries to be able to haul the rig up and down, so it would be heavy. With luck I'll have some shots of the rig going up, when the other surfbums get back.

pcolbeck · « **Reply #19 on:** 20 October, 2008, 06:29:32 pm »

A line climber doesn't use batteries. It uses a sail to let the wind push it up the line until it hits a stop below the kite. Usually there is a method for it to fold the sail so that it can descend again using gravity (with some kind of breaking mechanism otherwise it would come down too quickly).

See here for some details.

Kite messenger

clarion · « **Reply #20 on:** 20 October, 2008, 06:45:40 pm »

That's very like the Messenger that the parachuting teddies use, that release as soon as they get to the top.

rogerzilla · « **Reply #21 on:** 20 October, 2008, 06:48:40 pm »

Quote from: Charlotte on 20 October, 2008, 09:12:13 am

That's rather impressive - next stop Menwith Hill?

Wow! 'Shrooms!

rogerzilla · « **Reply #22 on:** 20 October, 2008, 06:49:15 pm »

I have a Ricoh FF-9 (35mm film camera) with an IR remote release. Hmmm...

clarion · « **Reply #23 on:** 20 October, 2008, 07:01:14 pm »

Quote from: Charlotte on 20 October, 2008, 09:12:13 am

That's rather impressive - next stop Menwith Hill?

*ahem*

RAF Menwith Hill, if you please!

andygates · « **Reply #24 on:** 20 October, 2008, 07:04:20 pm »

I've started a thread over in Phototalk for musings, as it's exceeded the scope of a gallery.

I'm just running the raw photos from Sunday's session into Microsoft Photosynth, which takes a bunch of flat photos and automagically creates a 3D space-cum-cardstack. You have to see it, really: Photosynth. It's going to take a couple of hours to build the point cloud, assuming it works at all...