FighterControl

Anybody use a monopod for aircraft?

I once tried using my tripod, gave up very quickly! But a monopod might help my attempts at panning?

Any thoughts? and if they are a good idea, what make/model features etc?

Without wishing to state the obvious, it may well not be obvious to everyone, better if used on a lens with a collar and tripod socket on the lens collar. Have seen some people use them directly fitted to the base of camera bodies and they don't really do whats designed of them. On the lens it provides a supported pivot point with rotation within the lens collar. I use them a lot but for motorsport or field sports etc, I find the vertical movement of aircraft too impractical for a monopod which is better suited for supporting a lens steady at long focal length, or for support during panning.

I also use monopods with a head fitted that allows tilt only up and down rather than a ball head. This allows me to leave it slackened off but the lens can only effectively move in one plane. Any rotation to fix the horizon is then done via the collar on the lens. I've used various monopods, some with pull out feet, some without but always use the Manfrotto 234RC Monopod Tilt Head with Quick Release on the top. Personally I find monopods with feet a waste of time as they are never good enough to leave / support a lens / camera combination standing so they serve little purpose. Personally I like a decent diameter tube to the monopod and less sections. Its all personal choice though, this type of monopod isnt the lightest set up, but then Im never travelling to far with it.

Hi Sneezy,

I use a Manfrotto full size monopod for ship photography, but when attempting to use it for even the most simple aircraft shots (like a U2 landing at Fairford) I find that it is cumbersome and does not really bring much benefit.
It’s a tricky one as I am invariably using my Canon L Series 100-400 which gets damn heavy after a while and I would love to have something take the load a little.

Regards
Mortz

Thanks chaps, they are cheap, so I might get one and test it at my local airfield (Blackbushe) before taking to RIAT. It might suit me (or it might not!)

Would a gimbal head be an improvement?

I have found using a monopod for flying shots to be more bother than it's worth. It is, however, useful for taxiing shots of prop-driven aircraft taken with heavier lenses (such as 100-400 or 70-200), allowing a slower shutter speed to get better prop blur.

I use a monopod. Put a ball head on to get the right angle and put the foot into a tripod holder from my camera bag that is secured to my trouser belt. That way I have stability and can pivot to pan.

I think the biggest benefit is taking the weight of a long lens, when it comes to panning I think it comes done to practice (I get better as the airshow season progresses) and good mode 2 stabilisation in the lens. I have tried but unless you are only doing runway shots I found the monopod just "got in the way"..

I used mine when I visited the USAF museum at Dayton, certainly helped to get reasonable results.

I don't know if could be of any use to you, but WEX do a CALUMET-7101 - MiniPod which is basically like a short handle and is about 7" ( in old money ) in length and sell's for £4.69
for that price it could be worth a try? It can be found on the Wex Site under Mini Tripod's

I bought a 3LeggedThing Alan monopod on offer a few months back, only had a brief use of it as a monopod and am still to be convinced. Where it does come into its own is as a column extension on my 3LT tripod to give stable extra height to raise a camera above the wooden fencing at Coningsby, however...

Thanks for the replies, after thinking about it, trying some panning with cars etc, I think I am better off hand-holding. Lens is not too big (Canon 70-300 USM) so weight not a big issue.

On the subject of panning, I did the viewing village at RIAT in 2018 (I think). The plastic chairs are perfect for swivelling around as the planes come over!

I use a mono pod on my Nikon d500 with Nikon 200-500. I also mount a Sony camcorder on top to video so it gets a little heavy if holding for long periods. I don't use it for jets but for anything rotary I use it and it can help in the wind to stop the jerkyness I attached a quick release to the lens foot and monopod. I have a ball head but leave it loose. If the aircraft are just traveling in a straight line it's ok but at say an airshow it could be more cumbersome if the aircraft goes high as you then either have to just pick the mono pod up as you look up or try and stoop down as your len's points up. I use it for low level action so it's mainly in straight lines for hercs, a400 Texans etc. I like to get full discs if possible on aircraft so shooting 1/100th It definitely ups my keeper rate. You can buy decent cheap monopods and ball heads off Amazon now. It's all i buy and it does what I need it to.