[ He may have an idea of what he is doing and could possibly clue me in (i.e. He's going to hover on the left side, go there). Would that be wrong to do?
I use whatever help I can get to allow me the best coverage. If you can plan ahead by talking with pilots before they fly, then that definitely makes your job easier. When pilots know that a photog is present for the specific purpose of "event coverage", they tend to place the model in front of them as much as is practicle.A 'win-win' for everyone.
I
I actually have someone else helping me. He only has an 18-55 so he's going to focus more on the people shot, although I will do both.
That will be a big help to you. It's always good, I think, to get a different perspective on the event through the eyes of another photog. You will both be impressed with each other's work.
That is my plan, quick enough to freeze the action yet blur the props. If I have a chance, though, I want to try blurring the background.
That is my one grievance with my camera, it can only do 4 shots before the buffer fills, I will just need to make do, though. Thank you for all of the help. I have a few more questions, though:
What are my rights to these pictures? If I send them to a sponsor can I still display them? Should I expect any of them to be published/displayed (assuming they are good)? Can I expect any money from it? I'm not expecting to profit at all, but hey, I wouldn't complain if I were lol.
Thank you again for all of your help.[/QUOTE]
If possible, try to practice 'slow-shutter-panning' at your field during a regular flying day. Less pressure on you. If you're not experienced at it, start with 800/sec while pilot flys a low pass down runway at a safe speed for him and safe distance for you. "panning-blurr" is about two things: slow shutter & relative high speed. I say "relative" because it's the speed AND the distance away from the model together that makes it happen. The plane may actually be going a moderate speed but very close to you = a "relative high speed pass". or the plane may actually be flying 200mph and far away ( 300ft) and you're using a long lens like a 400mm. So with your 200mm lens and standing only 50ft from the edge of the runway, the plane flying by at 70mph down the runway center line will almost give you the same challenge of tracking it. Practice,practice,practice.
As far as the last couple concerns:
The photographer is & will ALWAYS be the copyright holder of the image. Don't let someone tell you different. You own all rights.
Now, if you allow someone to publish your pics, you still retain ownership to those photos but you are simply giving / selling them a "one-time-publishing-right" with terms to be determined by you both. Meaning whether or not money changes hands, no one can take away your ownership to your images by paying you money or some other comp.
If the sponors want to "publish" your photos they need your consent. You should expect them to publish because that's why they want copies. I always place some kind of watermark on all my photos. If you're dealing with reputable people then you should have nothing to worry about.
Don't expect money or compensation, but you
can ask for it. It's
entirely up to you. You don't work for them. Also, I don't know what was discussed between you and the sponors. The worst thing is when you find your pics being used in some ad that you didn't agree on or it happens months later without your permission. I have been plagiarized several times over thirty years and two of those times were very recent. With the internet, some people feel that if it's on the net then it's up for grabbs.
I often see my photos on the net with my name / logo removed and said photo displayed on a website or blog and often that website has nothing to do with aviation.
It's a depressing thing to think about. A LOT of people will say - "whats the big deal"
We can discuss whether or not photography has or deserves the same protection as "art". Some say no. But when you spend thousands of dollars and thousands of hours behind the lens and hours upon hours standing in the sun and wind shooting those photos, you get kinda bitter when you're taken advantage of.
Don't worry about it too much, just think positive and have fun while you're shooting those awesome pics.
Ken.
ps; Anything else I can help with, just ask. I don't have all the answers but I will try to help whenever I can.