I am going to Kauai in a couple weeks and plan to take one of those helicopter sightseeing tours. Does anyone have any tips on what lenses work best for this or any other useful hints? Thanks!

I did a Volcano tour on top of Big Island a few months back in an heli with doors removed, was a blast and great for photography, but:



- wind is strong and I found it hard to maintain framing with my 300 f2.8,
- camera straps are strongly advised,

Regarding the shooting, even f2.8 on the 300mm was enough to have sufficient DoF, so favor shutter speed over aperture, I would advise not to go below 1/500 sec if not 1/1000 to be safe.

Focal lenght wise, this is a tough call, but a zoom might be a good idea since it will be difficult to change lens. Wides from the air at typical flying hours are overall not super interesting I find, so I am personnally biased towards longer lenses, but this is just a matter of personnal taste. A 100-300 with VR/IS might be a good compromise.

In lens VR/IS is also a strong plus in that the reduced vibrations help a lot with the framing. You will also not have much time to check histogram and all, so depending on how you camera's meter typically behaves, it might be wise to dial a -0.7 stop under-exposure to avoid having too many blown highlights.

Don't forget to enjoy the landscape though.

Cheers,
Bernard

I've never done the helicopter tour, but from what I hear, it's best if you're smaller in size and weight. For weight distribution reasons, the largest individuals have to sit in the middle, taking away the coveted window seat. I know you didn't ask this question, but it's good to know IMHO. That said, I imagine a 70-200mm f/2.8 would probably be good. With the vibration of the rotors, you are going to want a fast shutter speed. I would bring along a wide angle lens too, because the Na Pali coast has some beautiful vistas. As long as your glass is fairly fast, you should be fine.

One added bonus is that just this week O'ahu and Kaua'i received significant rainfall. Barring any scorching weather, the waterfalls should be running strong when you arrive. Don't forget to check out Waimea Canyon while you're there. Please share your images here when you get back!

I am more of the wide angle school for aerials. It's nice to pick out details, but really it takes a wide view to transfer to the viewer that special thrill of the flying perspective. And the longer lenses will suffer from haze on all but the clearest days.

Talk to somebody who has already taken the ride to find out which side is best for unobstructed views.

For preparation have somebody drive you along the freeway, shoot out the window with camera and arms out enough to get wind buffeting. That's what it can be like.

In looking back through my heli shots I would say 1/400 was absolute minimum for even the 50mm range. Shoot like a fiend, you'll lose quite a few shots to vibration. And for whatever reason it's unusually difficult to hold a level horizon from a helicopter.

I prefer the fixed wing tours as they are cheaper, more stable and more personal
Try AirVentures, I am a bit biased being a fixed wing pilot! But I think you will be much happier
Marc