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the aerial eye
GADGETS & GIMMICKS
a quarterly publication of the aerial photography committeeof the American Kitefliers Association
volume 1 / number 4 / fall 1995
24
sourcesIf you can’t find what you’relooking for locally, try these:
Stanton Hobby Shop, Inc.4718 N. MilwaukeeChicago, IL 60630Phone: (312) 283-6446Fax: (312) 283-6842
Dethermal timers; R/C equipment.AKA Member Merchant.
Small Parts, Inc.13980 NW 58th CourtMiami Lakes, FL 33014-0650Phone (305) 557-8222Fax (800) 423-9009
Gears, belts, nylon fasteners, andall manner of little stuff. Catalog.
A Working Farm, Cornwall, England by Rob Green. Yashica T-3, 18' Delta
GADGETS & GIMMICKS
on the horizonAKA Convention
September 27 - Oxtober 1, 1995Tulsa Marriott, Tulsa, OklahomaInfo: Jim Miller, (312) 642-8962
Kite Aerial Photography Workshopwith Craig Wilson & Brooks LefflerOctober 21, 1995National Air & Space MuseumWashington, DCinfo: Barbara Harrick
(202) 633-8926
10èmes Rencontre des Cerfs-VolantsEaster Week 1996Berck-sur-Mer, Franceinfo: Gérard Clément, Paris
(+33) 1 44 68 01 86fax (+33) 1 44 68 03 86
M. V.Matanuskain Stevens
Passage,Alaska
byHenry Jebe
US$4.00USA & CANADA
US$5.50overseas
2 the aerial eye
the aerial eyeThis newsletter is produced by the
Aerial Photography Committee of theAmerican Kitefliers Association. It isour goal to publish quarterly, in August,November, February, and May.
Single copies and subscriptions(including back issues) are available toAKA members and non-members alike,under the following fee schedule:
single 4 issuesAKA $3.00 $10.00overseas $4.50 $16.00
Non-AKA $4.00 $15.00overseas $5.50 $21.00
Domestic subscriptions will bemailed by first class mail; overseassubscriptions (i.e., outside NorthAmerica) will be mailed by air.
Advertising is available in modules of2.25 inches wide by 1.25 inches high, at$20.00 per module, payable in advance.Advertising in which aggressivelycompetitive pricing is featured will notbe accepted; call if you have questionsor need more info. Camera-ready copyis not necessary, but is acceptable if itmeets the above criteria. Copy deadlineis the first of the month of publication.Contact Brooks Leffler.
american kitefliers association aerial photography committeeSteve Eisenhauer, Chair Brooks Leffler, Editor229 Lake Ave, Pitman, NJ 08071 PO Box 34, Pacific Grove, CA 93950
(609) 589-2049 Fax (609) 785-1766 (408) 647-8363 Fax (408) [email protected] [email protected]
Wolfgang Bieck Craig WilsonAm Britzenberg 23 7210 Harvest Hill Road
29549 Bad Bevensen, Cermany Madison, WI 53717(+49) 5821 24 43 (608) 831-6770
[email protected] [email protected]
now it's your turnAs of this issue, we have a paid read-
ership of 75+, but only 18 have contrib-uted words, pictures, or letters duringour first year. We're all volunteers, andthe success of the publication dependson each of us—yes, you too—to partici-pate. So send us something, early andoften! Each contributor will be pub-lished!
Text via Email or on 3.5" (9cm) high-density disk (Mac or IBM in ASCII textformat) is preferred, but typed text orhandwritten letters are welcome too.Likewise, diagrams in PICT, GIF, or TIFFformats are best, but pen drawings,preferably on white paper, will work aswell.
Photos may be sent as negatives,prints or slides. We can also readKodak PhotoCD, or Macintosh disks in inJPEG, TIFF, or GIF formats. We'll keepthe prints unless you direct otherwise,but return all negatives, disks, CDs, andslides—eventually.
Send everything to Brooks Leffler atthe address below.
fall 1995 3
Whether you call them tricks, gad-gets and gizmos or techniques, inven-tions and creations, in this issue wewill feature those original and not-so-original solutions to kite aerial photog-raphy problems that we spend hoursthinking of and converting to use.
This issue contains several gadgetsfor line handling, an aiming device, avibration damper, a line hanger, a de-tailed discussion of the Picavet sus-pension system, and more.
I’ve got my own list; it’s probablysimilar to those of other KAPers. Hereare some of my favorites:
LEVEL INDICATOR
This lightweight plastic device isavailable for $12.00 from Edmund Sci-entific Co., 101 E. Gloucester Pike, Bar-rington, NJ 08007-1380, USA (order Lev-O-Gage II, part #Y36,612) [below]. It al-lows you to quickly check (within onedegree or less) if your cam-era is hanging level from itscradle. Do this check withthe camera pointed in thefour perpendicular direc-tions. Use rubber bands totemporarily fasten thegauge to the bottom of yourcradle; it is so light its ownweight does not affect thecradle’s balance if it is fas-tened under the center ofyour cradle.
PAINTED LENS CAPS
Any quality camera should have itslens covered when not in use. Someviewfinder cameras have built-in lenscovers; all SLRs have separate lenscaps. I paint my lens cap white, red or afluorescent color [below]. lt’s disturbingwhen you send your camera up, take aroll of photos and then realize the lenscap is still on. The standard black capwill sometimes ascend unnoticed; awhite or brightly-colored lens cap ismuch more obvious.
LENS SHADE
If your camera’s lens isn’t threadedfor filters and shades, you might wantto fabricate a shade for the top andsides of your lens. Don’t make it too bigso the wind can catch it and destabi-lize your cradle. And make sure it’swide enough so it doesn’t interfere
• continued on next page
our feature this issue:
gadgets, gimmicks, & trick devicesby STEVE EISENHAUER
4 the aerial eye fall 1995 5
•æ
gadgets continued from page 3
with your photos. If your lens permits ascrew-on shade, buy the proper onefor your focal length and then cut itdown (most stock shades extend outtoo far and the wind catches themwhen panning aloft). As an added plus,a shade helps protect your lens fromscratches.
TEFLON/ALUMINUM DAMPER
This device increases my percentageof acceptable exposures [right]. It helpskeep photos horizon-level and alsodampens cradle swing and allows for aslower shutter speed. But since I’mone of the few KAPers who uses twinaluminum strips for the pendulumswing of my cradle, I don’t know howmany KAPers can easily use a similardamper. The smooth friction createdby two teflon washers sandwiched bythree aluminum strips allows the cam-era to remain nearly level even whenblown by wind gusts or when the kitequickly changes elevation or its lineangle. By tightening the lock nut in thepivot center of this sandwich, pendu-lum swing is minimized. If you can’tobtain teflon washers, try nylon wash-ers; they should work similarly al-though not as smoothly as teflon.
DELTA-CONYNE TRAINS
With many lift kites, you can adddelta-Conynes below the top kite foradditional lift in light winds. However,not all DCs can be easily trained. Manyhave upper and lower box sectionsequal in size to the center opening; a
good train DC has an opening largerthan each box section. Devotion to Mo-tion Ultralight Kites makes DCs withlarger center openings and a bridlethat makes training easy.
Send your primary lift kite aloft,then simply add DCs as needed bypassing your winder through the cen-ter opening and hooking up one ormore additional DCs at the desiredspacing (I usually space them 100 ft.apart). In flight, keep your line tautwhen flying in train, and make sureyour top kite has a tail or drogue tokeep it facing into the wind. It shouldalso have more pull than the lowerDCs; I once used a small delta for thetop lift kite, but the lower DCs wouldoccasionally dive earthward and thelittle delta couldn’t straighten themback out again.
Flying in train is safer than singlekite flying when you fly above 500 ft.; a
train makes your line more visible toaircraft and any nearby kitefliers. (8’ultralight DCs suitable for training areavailable from kite stores for about$60.00. Replace 1/4" wood spars withfiberglass tubes since wood is morefragile and tends to warp with age.)
FOAM R/C CONTROL DAMPER
The Futaba radio control lever for mycamera’s shutter returns to the “off’position automatically. The other r/cfunction, panning, works better if thelittle internal springs that tension thelever are removed from inside the r/cunit. But with the springs removed thelever flops back and forth loosely, so Iepoxied a block of closed-cell foam(like that used for sleeping pads)against the lever to keep it in position.[below.]
PRESET AIMING
If you don’t like squinting up at yourairborne camera and fiddling with yourr/c controls to aim each photograph,then practice a little on the groundand mark your r/c controls with whitepaint marks. Use the direction yourkite line is pointing as a reference
point. Adjust and mark your controlsso when set in the center the camerais pointing in the direction the kite isflying. If your cradle’s servo gearingallows 360 degrees of panning rota-tion, then put paint marks at the r/csetting for 90 degrees left and rightpan, and 180 degrees (directly towardsyou). After a little practice, you’ll beable to aim your camera by feel alone,and you can keep your eyes focusedon your kite’s flight, with occasionalglances downward. If your cradle has aservo for tilt control you can adjust andmark your r/c unit similarly.
BITS AND PIECES
• Graphite powder is a good lubri-cant for teflon or nylon washers.
• Don’t use microservos with SLR-equipped cradles on anything but theshutter control; use the standard ser-vos that weigh more but last longer.
• If you use Kevlar® line, use adrogue or tail. Dacron line is heavier,thicker and acts like a drogue by pull-ing the kite back and down due towind and gravity forces.
• Buy a radio control unit with re-placeable batteries, not onewith a built-in battery pack.If you forget to turn off ther/c unit after use or if it’sused a lot in one day it’llhave to be recharged fully.If you can immediately re-place the batteries withfully-charged spares,there’s no down time.
6 the aerial eye
picavet — past & presenttext & drawings by RALF BEUTNAGEL, with WOLFGANG BIECK & OTTO BÖHNKE
fall 1995 7
NOMENCLATURE FIRST
Ralf Beutnagel has developed anomenclature for Elliptical PendularSuspensions, based on a diagram inPicavet’s article. Each of these sys-tems is described and built using thesame nomenclature.
1. The system is fixed to the kiteline at two points. A is closest to thekiter, B to the kite.
2. At the fixing points there areblocks installed. The blocks get a let-ter and a number, e.g. Al. Lookingtowards the kite, they should benumbered 1 for left (or lower) one,and 2 for right (or upper) one.
3. The ends of the cross are num-bered clockwise. 1 is the furthest leftposition. If there are more possibili-ties it is the one towards the kiter.
4. If there is a ring in the line it isnamed Ri; St is a stick with eyeletsand Kn is a knot.
The important thing is which crossends are connected by a block, notthe specific numbers assigned tothose ends. In some variations, thethreading pattern and its mirror im-age will give the same result. In prac-tice there is no difference using a pat-tern or its mirror image; the place-ment of points A and B can be re-versed as well.
On the other hand there are forone type of cross often several differ-ent ways to thread the line. Thesevariations work differently (as dotheir mirror images), some betterthan others.
THEME & VARIATIONS
The authors have experimentedwith many variations on the Picavettheme, starting with the simplest:
1.) The Cross-beam [above]
A1-1-B1-2-A1
2.) The Longitudinal-beam
A1-1-Ri-B1-2-Ri-A1 [not shown]
These two “beams” are the basis forthe other models. They return fast andgood in a rough way but have then along oscillation. The models with morethan two ends are better.
3.) The Triangular [see page 18]
Kn at A1-A2-St-2-B1-St-1-A1-2-St-B1-Kn
The line is not continuous. Two partsgo over B1; one end is fixed half waybetween B1 and 2. The other holds theblock A1 over A2, which
• continued on page 18
A1
B1
1
2
ed with saving the Picavet suspensionfrom obscurity.
In his article Picavet named from theexisting suspensions one by CaptainSaconney as useful, but he didn’t de-scribe it because it was too complicat-ed to build. As a variant he pointed toone used by Mr. Aubry. From this Aubrysuspension the suspension we call inlater days Picavet suspension is de-rived.
Picavet’s basic design [below] pro-vides a self-leveling, two-point suspen-sion for a camera cradle through a con-tinuous line passing through eyeboltson a central cross-shaped memberfrom which the camera is hung.
IGNITING THE FIRE
The First International KAP Meetingin 1993 in Germany brought togetherKAPers from two continents and fourcountries. Participants included theauthors and other KAPWA members
from Europe as well as Anne Rockfrom the USA. The co organiz-er Wolfgang Bieck showed
here his version of Picavet’sdesign with modifications in
building and function. This eventbecame the starting point for mod-
ern improvements to the Picavet sus-pension.
The three authors of this articleworked hand-in-hand and visited eachother several times. They decided todocument their results so that each
[This article has been adapted fromone published in Sport&DesignDrachen in May 1995. English transla-tion is by Ralf with a little further inter-pretation by me. -ed.]
THE BEGINNING
In November 1912, Pierre L. Picavet[pronounced Pickavay] published anarticle in the French kiting magazine LaRevue du Cerf-Volant, entitled “Suspen-sion Pendulaire Elliptique.” This articleshows that kiters experimented on thestability of a camera cradle as early asthe beginning of this century. Michel
Dusariez of the Kite Aerial Photogra-phy Worldwide Association re-
printed this article in KAP-WA Magazine in April
1988. For this hemust be
credit-
Cross-beam
8 the aerial eye
braking windtext and diagram (and yes, the headline) by CRAIG WILSON
fall 1995 9
•æ
To those who enjoy braking wind inpublic places with your fabric and fi-berglass air brakes, I don’t need topoint out how much power the windhas. And that power has quite an ef-fect on the kite and line, not to men-tion gloves, rig, and muscle mass.
In this article, I want to address howthe wind produces vibration in the kiteline, and hence, how that vibrationaffects everything that is hanging onthe line.
As we have all learned, the fasterthe air goes, the less pressure it exerts.The different air speeds and subse-quent difference in pressure is whatgives lift to the surfaces of a kite.
Your kite line is stretched out in theair stream and it is subject to the sameforces acting on the airfoil above it. Asan article in KiteLines once said, yourline flies too.
Pluck your kite line, like a guitarstring, and watch the disturbance trav-el in a wave up to the kite. That waveis a large, slow example of what hap-pens as the wind passes the line. Thekite stretches and pulls the line tightand the wind induces energy into theline.
The wind is “strumming” your lineand the result is that tiny waves of vi-bration, whose energy is proportionalto their frequency, run rapidly up anddown the line, making it buzz.
There is a really simple, cheap, light-weight solution to this problem. Get a3"- 4" rubber ring and a 6" length ofdowel. I use a tire from a model car, butthere are many other possibilities*. Putit on the line above your camera rig. Toput it on the line simply pull a loopthrough the hole in the rubber “dough-nut” and insert the stickthrough the loop ofline. Let the slack backout and voilà!
What the rubberdoughnut does isprevent the wavesof vibration in theline from travelingpast it. Feel theline abovethe rub-ber andcompare with the line below.
The difference is really remarkable.The rubber has isolated your rig fromthe energy waves traveling in the line.
The amount of vibration in the line isdirectly proportional to the length ofline in the wind. By adding the rubber“stopper” in the line you have insulatedyour rig from the length of line abovethe rig. If you are going to lift your rig50-100 feet then you probably will notrequire a second insulator below therig. If you are going to lift your camerarig to great heights, you will end up
with a large amount of line below therig exposed in the airstream and youmay want to install a second rubberring right below the rig.
When you create this area of calmon the line where your camera is, youare adding greatly to your overall goalof consistently good results. An equally
important benefit in controllingvibration is that you
are help-ing to preserve
the integrity of yourrig and camera.
Vibration is theenemy of all that
has ever been creat-ed. Vibration will
wear your rig andcause parts to fail. It
loosens nuts, wears servos, fa-tigues plastic and metal components,and weakens glue joints.
Get into the habit—make it a ritual—to carefully inspect your equipmentbefore each use. Do not fly your equip-ment if it shows signs of fatigue or fail-ure. Always check critical attachmentpoints so that a failure will not meandropping part or all of your rig off theline and onto someone’s head or intothe lake. We have the responsibility tobe safe with our equipment. A struc-tural failure, or error in judgment couldmean tragedy to an innocent bystand-er and the end of your fun.
Remember:
A POUND ON THE HEAD IS WORTH ANOUNCE OF PREVENTION!
The first law of thermodynamicsstates that processes and systems nat-urally move towards equilibrium. Ener-gy entering the system goes some-where and must be accounted for; itdoesn’t just disappear. In 1884 Frenchchemist Henri LeChatelier stated theprinciple that “a system that isstressed will adjust its character to re-lieve the stress.”
The system of kite and line stay inbalance with regard to energy in andenergy out. The excess energy enter-ing the system must come back outand it does that through vibration.
Now, if you are simply flying a kitethis is not a problem in the least. How-ever if you hang a camera on the vi-brating line this can be a very impor-tant issue.
When you hang an object in themiddle of a vibrating line the systemwill begin to use that object to helpitself dissipate its excess energy. As thesystem strives to maintain equilibriumyour camera becomes the funnel forthe energy carried in the line. Thecamera rig will accept the vibrationtraveling in those tiny waves up anddown the line and it too will begin tovibrate.
If you want to keep the vibration outof your rig, camera, and film, you mustinsulate your rig from the vibratingline.
• I use a 2" lavatory drain washer. Drill asmall hole in the edge, tie and short line thereand tie the other line end to a 3" length ofbirch dowel. Glue the knots.
— Steve Eisenhauer
10 the aerial eye
brooxes hangup™
text and drawings by BROOKS LEFFLER
fall 1995 11
Place the hangups™ about 3 - 5 feet apart on the line as follows:
•æ
a wonderful windfall from wolfgangby BROOKS LEFFLER
The announcement of winners for theWorld Kite Museum’s Eddy CentennialKite Aerial Photography Competitioncame just as Wolfgang Bieck was aboutto start his summer holiday, and therebegins this tale.
Wolfgang decided to spend some ofhis vacation picking up his $300.00 prizein person. His friend Anne Rock persuad-ed him to come through San Francisco,and I offered to drive him the 900 milesto Long Beach, Washington.
Anne is a formidable tour director.Between noon July 1 and midnight July4, Wolfgang went KAPing by the GoldenGate, toured San Francisco, dined withKAPer Cris Benton and his family, anddrove across the state to Yosemite,camping for a night and visiting both thevalley and the Mariposa redwoods.
On July 5, Wolfgang and I aimednorthward for a 2+ day trek through thewine country, the redwoods, and theOregon Coast to Long Beach. Along theway, we looked up KAPer Rodney Thom-sen in Eureka, showed Wolfgang’s port-folio to the staff of Catch the Wind inLincoln City, and stopped for some KAPat Cannon Beach. We became goodfriends.
The Museum had invited the localpress and interested hobbyists in theregion to come for an informal work-shop on the beach with Wolfgang onSaturday. About a dozen came andwatched the maestro at work with hismagnificent camera rig.
•æ
At the awards ceremony that night,Wolfgang showed his slides, and wasawarded the Key to the City. Then camethe surprise.
Upon being presented with his cashprize, Wolfgang thanked the Museum—and handed the unopened envelope tome, announcing that he was turningthe money over to the Aerial Photogra-phy Committee to be used for the ad-vancement of KAP!
The committee has discussed thisgenerous gift, and will use the fund ini-tially to establish a traveling exhibit ofKAP, with as many photos from the Mu-seum’s competition as we can securerights to as the core. It is our intentionto display them first at the AKA Conven-tion in Tulsa.
actual size
endtop
I’ve been using thePicavet suspension [seepage 6] for several yearsnow, and wanted a bet-ter way to attach it tothe kite line than ringsand lark’s head knots.
So I came up with auniversal hanger whichprovides a secure, quickconnection with littlesacrifice in line strength.I made it on my tablesaw from UHMW poly-ethylene (the stuff cut-ting boards are made of)because it was available.Delrin or ABS would beat least as good; maybebasswood would worktoo.
The drawings show aversion with a split ringattached. I leave out therings and just lace myhangups™ into the Pi-cavet system at the twoattachment points A-B.
A longer single hangershould work well with apendulum system too,or for “line laundry.”
12 the aerial eye fall 1995 13
aerial gallery
below: Paths at Spanish Bay, by Brooks Leffler below: Oarsmen, by Cris Benton below: Strathmere, New Jersey, by Steve Eisenhauer
Left: Star, by M. Kanowsky, over Rindby Strand, Fanø; by Ralf BeutnagelBelow: Seawall, Berkeley, California, 1995; by Cris Benton
14 the aerial eye
sports techniqueby STEVE EISENHAUER
fall 1995 15
•æ
Outdoor sports activities at localparks and playgrounds produce fasci-nating aerial images. In late afternoonor early morning, when players’ shad-ows are long, put your kite up next toan ongoing tennis, basketball or soccergame. Even the most inept group ofplayers looks artistic from above. Avoidorganized events where your kite is adistraction if it’s too close to the play-ing field or court.
Don’t suspend your camera directlyoverhead unless you have prior permis-sion from the sports participants; peo-ple are uneasy about a two-poundweight on a string a hundred feetabove their fragile skulls. With the par-ticipants permission, or with yourfriends, you can be more flexible in po-sitioning the camera. People may posefor the camera: your brother shooting abasketball andyou releasethe shutterwith the ballin midair, oryour daughterslamming atennis servepast the out-stretched rac-quet of yourson.
If the participants are strangers youcan still photograph them. Just keepyour camera a little to one side of thecourt or playing field, and shoot downat a 45 degree or steeper angle. Ifyou’re using an SLR camera with inter-changeable lenses, you might switch toa 50 mm lens, which has a mild tele-photo effect when used from above.Use the fastest shutter speed possibleto stop the action, but don’t be tooconcerned about blurred arms andlegs: even at shutter speeds as slow as1/500 sec. the most motionless partsor wholes of participants will often bein focus, and the overall effect can lookartistic and convey a sense of motion.
In composing photographs on sunnydays remember that shadows oftendominate the composition, particularlyin early morning and late evening
when shadows are longer than thefigure that casts them. When trying toaim your camera and frame your com-position realize that shadows often tellmore about your subjects than the fig-ures themselves: they create anotherdimension.
Practicing your sports technique is agood way to involve your family andfriends in KAP. Few non-KAPers fullyshare a KAPer’s enthusiasm, but if youinvite family or friends to a park orplayground to play tennis, basketball,volleyball, softball, frisbee or simply tohave a picnic, you’re more likely to geta positive response than if you asksomeone to help you fly your kite. It’salso a good way to make friends or getphotos published in the local newspa-per. I sometimes take the addresses ofstrangers that are in my photos, andthen send them a print when I get thephotos processed. And local newspa-pers often appreciate the unique per-spective your photos provide; but don’tassume you’ll be paid since manysmall newspapers don’t have a budgetto pay for freelance photos.
If you use a non-SLR camera, usehigh-speed film (ASA 400) so your cam-era will select its highest shutter speed(hopefully 1/500 sec. or 1/700 sec.). AnSLR camera is preferred, since mostrecent models allow 1/2000 sec. shut-ter speeds or higher (up to 1/4000sec.). I use ASA 100 or 64 film and setthe shutter for 1/2000 sec.. In brightsunlight, that allows me an aperturesetting of f/2.8 or f/4.0, which is onestop up from the maximum aperturesetting of f/2.0 for my 35mm lens. I try
to avoid shooting at the maximum ap-erture setting since even the best lens-es produce better photos a stop or twoaway from maximum.
Reduce vibration by using rubberdonuts (see Craig Wilson’s article onpage 8) above and below your cradle.For years I avoided using these donutsbecause I didn’t think I needed them,but now that I’m using a lightweightCanon Rebel X camera I’ve finally real-ized their effectiveness. The lighteryour cradle and camera, and the slow-er your shutter speed, the more youneed the vibration-reduction these do-nuts provide.
Above all, have fun and fly safely.Basketballby Steve
Eisenhauer
Volleyball, by Craig Wilson
16 the aerial eye
basics for beginners: my gadget bagby ANNE ROCK
fall 1995 17
Continued on page 22
Brooks has titled my column “Basicsfor Beginners” in past issues, but it
could just as wellbe called “In MyOpinion”—and forthis issue that iscertainly true.
Yes, my bag hasgadgets, manysimilar to thosefound in others’bags. What gad-gets, you ask? Ah,yes, the search forgadgets, gizmos,and goodies thatwill magicallymake us betterkite aerial photog-raphers!
I have large rub-ber o-rings—mineare automobilemuffler hangersfor reducing linevibration. And awalk-down pulleyfor the kite line soI can recover thecamera the quickway. Mountainclimber’s figure-8descenders tohelp handle line,as well as a spe-cial kite flyer’smodel Steve Rock
made. It’s aluminum, with four holes orrings—rather than the two of a figure-8descender—each about 1" in diameter,better suited to kite line, and with acleat for securing the line. [left, actualsize]
A field charger that uses 12-volt pow-er to recharge transmitter and receiverbatteries, purchased after the transmit-ter power switch was accidentallyswitched on during a long car trip, re-sulting in no aerial photos at a veryspecial location. Extra camera batter-ies. Webbing, carabiners. Notebookand pen for notes and ideas for futuresessions (“this place would be great onan east wind day”).
I’d like an exposure counter so Idon’t lose track of how many picturesI’ve taken (and come home with sto-ries of the big ones that got away).
All of these could be considered use-ful tools, items that make some part ofthe process easier, prevent disappoint-ment, or improve picture quality.
But my three favorite items won’t befound at the store or in my bag. Thefirst is the friendship and camaraderieof other kite aerial photographers.Make opportunities to fly with otherKAPers. The first time I flew with otherKAPers was a joyous occasion—otherpeople who understood what I wastrying to do. People with whom toshare equipment ideas and stories.
henry’s handleby HENRY JEBE, PO Box 240221, Douglas, AK
•æ
I use 250-lb Da-cron stored on ahoop. Often onshipboard I can’tafford the luxuryof using gloves.
I have tried us-ing the aluminumfigure-8s thatmountain climbersuse, but have foundthem a bit awk-ward, maybe onlybecause of my seafar-ing nature. This deviceworks better for me.
It is made out of oak,with the cleat attached withtee nuts and machine screws.The wood is drilled lengthwiseabout 5” to accept a piece of 1/8”nylon line; a larger hole in the sideintercepts the first hole, and con-tains the figure-8 knot to stop theline. The other end of the line is at-tached to a small carabiner, which canbe attached to a body harness, or witha loop of rope to a car bumper, ship’srailing, or other suitable anchor whileyou set your camera.
To let out line with a bit of frictionfor braking, just put a round turn andmaybe a turn over one of the horns ofthe cleat and you can control thespeed of the line easily.
18 the aerial eye fall 1995 19
picavet •continued from page 7
should be as close together as possi-ble, but without A2 resting directly onA1.
4.) The Classic Picavet [see page 6]
A1-1-B1-Ri-4-A2-Ri-2-B2-3-A1
The A-blocks are the important ones;they connect only opposite ends of thecross. A1 and A2 can be a double block.[or both ends of the line may be tied topoint A and the Al block eliminated. —bgl]
5.) The Pseudo-Picavet [not shown]
A1-1-B1-Ri-4-A2-3-B2-2-Ri-A1
In this threading, the A and B blocksconnect neighboring ends of the cross,which is not as good as the original.
6.) Type Rendsburg [opposite page]
A1-1-Ri-B2-2-Ri-A2-Ri-3-B2-Ri-4-A1
In this variation, the cross becomesan “H”. The name is from an aerial ferryat Rendsburg. It has crossed the Nord-Ostsee-Kanal since 1913 and hangs onlines in a similar way.
THE END RESULT
Using these designs and modern ma-terials, the authors have made suspen-sion systems which share the followingcharacteristics:
• The camera is always horizontal.The center of gravity of the rig (themovable part) is at the point of inter-
section of the axes.
• Movement due to the riseand fall of the kite is compen-sated for by the movement ofthe suspension system.
• The system is compact andlightweight. Bieck (and otherslater too) have reduced ex-tremely the size of the cross
member from 71 cm as specified byPicavet down to only 10 cm.
• High quality ball-bearing blocksin place of simple eyebolts or screwslet the suspension move smoothly.
The way you build thissuspension will be limitedby your individual condi-tions. The authors’ suspen-sions shown in the picturesshould only be examples.They could be modified indi-vidually provided that M.Picavet’s principles areserved.
It is hard to say which de-sign is the best one, but we
believe that our modern version of theClassic Picavet suspension, and the Tri-angular and Rendsburg variations, areall better than the standard pendulum.
Indeed, Picavet’s design is so stablethat Wolfgang Bieck has used for thelast 6 years ASA 25 film only!
•æ
Otto Böhnke turned the aluminumpulleys for this Picavet
on his lathe.
Wolfgang Bieck's smallestdesign: 2mm aluminum and
model sailboat blocks.
A1
B1
A2
1
2
3
St
A1
A2
B1
B2
2
1
4
3
Ri
Ri
in the winter issue:
CAMERA CRADLESREVISITED
We'll look again at the latestideas in camera cradle design.
Simple or sophisticated, show uswhat you've created
in the last year.
COPY DEADLINENOVEMBER 1
Triangular Rendsburg
20 the aerial eye
aerialetters
fall 1995 21
KIT’S SPY KITE
This picture [below] is from the sec-ond somewhat successful flight of my“spy kite”. The kite is a 12-foot delta Ibuilt with Tyvek and bamboo.
The camera is a 35mm “point andshoot” with battery powered motor-ized film winding that I bought for $10at the local used camera store. Thelens is wide angle, probably about30mm.
I used a standard model airplaneservo to push the shutter.
I mounted the camera on a piece ofbamboo fastened directly to the kite. Ithought this would be a more stableplatform than something hanging on
ter the kite, Jason taking pictures aswe went. A neighbor inquired if thatwas a pterodactyl we were chasing.
We found the kite about four blocksaway in the backyard of an emptyhouse. There was no damage to thekite or camera.
I’m currently trying to think of agood way to control the pitch of thekite by the pull on the string in thehope that I can fly in a variety ofwinds. This has been a fun project.
Kit RichardsArvada, CO
KITOGRAMMETRY?
Do you think your readers would beinterested in an article on making 3-Dmaps from kite photography?
I just discovered the aerial eye onthe Net. I wish I knew about you a yearago.... Two years ago I began draftingSmall Format Aerial Photography. Thebook is in press (Whittles Publishing,Ltd) and should be out this autumn.
You might find it interesting that 35mm aerial photography is used forphotogrammetric purposes—i.e. mak-ing maps and measurements—but itappears most of small camera photo-grammetry is in Europe. For example,the Photogrammetric Society in En-gland has held three symposia onsmall-format work since 1985. Occa-sionally there is a speaker workingwith kites. Symposia papers are pub-lished in the Photogrammetric Record(the Society’s journal).
I’ve used 35 mm aerial photographyfor a variety of survey projects, includ-
the string. It does make getting thekite up a bit more of a challenge andlandings a bit nerve racking. However,the way the camera is mounted to thekite is not rigid and the camera andmount have survived many close en-counters with the ground.
This flight the wind was quite strongand I was letting the string out as fastas I could while my son Jason workedthe joystick on the transmitter to takepictures. when there was about 350 ft.of string out, the kite pretty muchstraight up, the string cut on the edgeof my winder. Most of the pictureswere taken with the kite in free flight,gliding very nicely with an occasionalfull turn. Jason and I were running af-
ing mapping soil erosion, measuringobjects in waste sites, computing thegravel extracted from pits.... AlthoughI’ve used only light aircraft (and micro-lights) as platforms, the same princi-ples apply for kite aerial photography.
Bill WarnerÅs, Norway
Bill has agreed to send us an articlefor the next issue. —ed.
WANTEDKAP OF NATURAL TEXTURES
We will pay $5.00 per usable originalcolor negative for vertical (i.e. straight
down) images of natural textures such asgrasslands, crops, soil types, various
ground covers, riverbeds, marshes, andthe like.
We are seeking a great variety ofmaterial worldwide, including all climate
zones. We do not need specificinformation on the location, subject
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Contact us for further information, orsee our Web page.
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http://www.ced.berkeley.edu/~cris/kap/
22 the aerial eye fall 1995 23
•æ•æ
EASY AIMER
In the summer issue of the aerial eyethere was a letter from Randy Bollingerabout using a laser to aim your camerarig. I have an even cheaper way! [be-low]
Strap a two or three-foot dowel tothe camera frame, so that the dowel isin the same axis as the camera lens.The long end of the dowel must be be-hind the camera (you don’t want totake a picture of the dowel).
When your rig is in the air, walk tothe area of the intended photo, take apair of binoculars and look at the dow-el. If all you see is the end of the dowel,then it (and your camera) is pointingdirectly at you. If you see more of thedowel it tells you which way to adjustthe rig and/or move your kite to getthe area of interest.
Richard AmiraultMalden, MA
Recently I was asked to take a photoof a hotel in downtown Madison, withthe State Capitol building and the lake inthe background, and not showing theother nearby downtown hotel.
Because of the height the cameraneeded to be, the immediate need forthe photograph, and the difficulty of kiteflying in downtown Madison, I made thedecision that I would best be able to getthe shot by trying a newfangled gim-mick that I had heard many good thingsabout—so I rented a plane.
a sense of my frustration. Another irri-tating factor was that we were going asslow as we could go and still be flyingand yet we were still traveling so fastthat my camera would be in position foronly a split second. Metering the sceneto determine camera settings was justguesswork. Timing the flight so I wasthere when the light was the way Iwanted was also a challenge.
It was quite anexperience,tense and
beginners from page 16
The second item is similar to theNike slogan of “Just Do It.” All the gad-gets, servos, cameras, and kites don’tdo me any good if they sit unused. Theperson flying with a disposable cameragets better pictures than the stay-at-home SLR owner.
The last item on my list is the sameitem that appears at the bottom ofSteve1s paragliding equipment list:common sense. You’ve got equipmenttogether, you’re someplace where the
wind is blowing, a subject temptingyou, but a voice says the yellow warn-ing light is on. Listen to that voice.
Steve and I are going to the MonoLake area of the Sierra Nevada thisweekend. Last time I was there I wasalone, and the winds were howling. Ihope I’ll have some pictures to sharefor the next issue, or at least somegreat stories to tell.
Fly safely and have fun.
This was not my first time in a smallairplane but it was my first time as aphotographer. After the experience Iwonder how anyone can get a decentpicture this way.
First of all, after I opened the windowthe noise was so great that communica-tion with the pilot was almost impossi-ble. Then I stuck my 28-200 mm Tamronlens out the window and just about hadit ripped out of my hands with the forceof the wind. That and the vibration inthe plane made it very difficult to steadythe camera. I was in a Cessna 172 whichhas a high wing with a strut runningfrom in front of the bottom of the doorup to the underside of the wing. Aimingthe camera through those obstacles lefta very small area to point the camera.
If you compare that to the unobstruct-ed view from below a kite you may get
fast-paced,and I left the air-port worrying if I had evencome dose to getting the shotthat I was after. The resulting photo-graphs were not as good as I am usedto. I normally end up with one or twoshots out of a roll of 36 that are blurredbecause of camera motion. With theairplane I had seven or eight that wereblurred. I also had several that werepoorly framed and several where thehorizon was tipped. All in all I had lesskeepers, and no real cool surprises orartistic, imaginative treasures.
I will try the airplane again for jobsthat I don’t have access to with my kite,but don’t let anyone tell you that usinga kite is not as good as using an air-plane.
large motorized camera rigby CRAIG WILSON
aerialetters
Rod aimed directly at you Rod (and camera) aimed in frontand left of you
