Pro Techniques

Choosing a location is of utmost importance to Siteman and perhaps the most important step in shooting low-altitude aerials. If he does not have the luxury of shooting in the optimum light (as is too often the case), then he may have to shoot into the light for the sake of the appropriate angle, causing an exposure that eliminates details in either the shadows or the highlights. The other problem can be sun flare.

Condo Complex

A condominium complex in Burlington, Massachusetts, under construction.

One of Siteman’s favorite images was taken at the Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge in Concord, Massachusetts. He says, “This picture could not have been made without the advantage of the tripod’s noninvasive qualities. No motorized vehicles are allowed into this pristine environment and since the tripod is light and on wheels, we were able to take it out between the lagoons and get the overview usually seen only by local water fowl.

“The tripod has made me feel very safe in a way because my subject is now diminutive. I am above them—Zeus sitting on his cloud looking at the little people below!”

Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge

This picture was taken at dusk in an area that was not accessible to any vehicle so Frank Siteman had the mobility with the tripod to go into this pristine, quiet environment and not disturb it while at the same time be able to capture the sense of the vastness and fertility of a nature preserve.

To see more examples of Frank Siteman’s tripod imagery, visit his website at: www.franksiteman.com/upshots.

For further information on the tripod, go to: www.LUKSA.com/faq.html.