Helicopter Prop Blur

Hello everyone, I just had a question about this. I was down at about 1/60 and was getting decent prop blur. What do you guys think? More lower shutter? How do you guys shoot helos? Comments/advice is appreciated. Thanks! Also, I don't have my laptop at the moment (usually use LR) and this was done with my desktop on dpp so please excuse the poor quality

Well helos are about as tough as you get to have decent rotor blur but sharp enough body.
Looking at your shot I'd say you did a darn good job there of getting both, not sure you can ask for more!
If the helo is moving i doubt you'd be able to get much lower than 1/60, if it is in hover, maybe depending on the lens.

That's pretty much fine for a Helo...

Better a sharp shot with ok blur than a blurry mess with a full disc.

I'd say you did very well at 1/60. I chickened out and shot mine at 1/100-1/160 with the 100-400. That being said, I think that lens needs to go to Canon for some work. I find I fight the IS frequently and I think I have an aperture blade or spring that is getting hung up at the long end.

Rotor diameter as well as power settings on the helo are going to come into play here as well. How were your shots of the MH-53?

FlyingPhotog wrote in post #14540675
That's pretty much fine for a Helo...

Better a sharp shot with ok blur than a blurry mess with a full disc.

So so true, learned that the hard way (wasting clicks)

Thanks for the comments guys. I've never really photographed a helo before. I pretty much went to tv and started from 1/200 and clicked down the shutter each shot crossing my fingers. This was one of maybe 4 keepers at around 1/60. I was pretty excited!

I got a few good ones, but by then I was more concerned with getting good pictures instead of 'practicing' slow shutters as flyingphotog said I think I just stuck with 160. I have to wait till the weekend to buy a new laptop, seeing how mine decided to break the morning of the airshow. So now I'm going crazy with a couple thousand pictures waiting to be processed.

Anyway, here's one straight out of dpp.

I have static shots of that very same helo .

Thats a great capture of the helo. I don't think i have ever tried less than 1/60....yet... :P

This was at 1/15 but he was hovering so that doesn't really count...

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Try a moving Chinook
These all look great

andrewhuxman wrote in post #14542186
I have static shots of that very same helo .

Oceana Air show 2011 maybe? I've seen them parked at Norfolk but never in flight. They're gigantic

This is the best I've done which is at 1/40 sec & was from a set where I went through most settings from 1/120 down to 1/15 and anything lower than the 1/40 wasn't acceptable. The hover really helped but the troops dropping down the lines were a bit blurry below the 1/40. I think 1/60 was just a tiny bit sharper so eather proved usable. R/C heli's are much easier to shoot re prop blur but they dart about so fast it's a whole different challenge.

One of my fav helo shots...

Desertraptor wrote in post #14543843
Try a moving Chinook
These all look great

Dug this one out from a couple years ago .....

A to A Jay?

300mm was a bit too much as this helo passed nearly overhead. 1/100 sec