The Joy of Rocket Photography

By Moe Bertrand

NAR L3 #86151

"Range and sky are clear. Going in 5..4..3..2..1..Launch" (click, click, click, click, click)

If you've seen me out at Rainbow Valley or one of the park launches, chances are you've seen me toting my camera. I love to take photos. Sure, I take family snapshots and pictures of the scenery and other stuff. I also enjoy taking photos of fast moving things. Things like rockets. Without getting into a long-winded (who, me?) discussion on photography theory, I'd like to take a few minutes of your time to tell you how I manage to get photos of rockets launching off the pad.

The right stuff

To successfully take photos of rockets at the moment of launch, you need the right gear. In today's world of digital everything, cameras are right up there at the leading edge of affordable technology, and the typical digital camera is of the point-and-shoot variety. These are great cameras for everyday use, and the quality of the images they produce is phenomenal. But most of these point-and-shoot cameras have relatively slow response times when it comes to taking the photo. This slow respone time is known as "shutter lag" and this lag time usually means the difference between getting, or missing, the photo.

The best cameras for catching fast - make that VERY fast - moving objects are known as SLRs, or Single Lens Reflex cameras. SLRs, whether digital or film, make a photo as soon as you depress the shutter button. The fast ones can take multiple photos, many multiple photos, for several seconds as long as you continue to depress the button. That capability is the key to catching a rocket at the moment of liftoff.

As of mid 2008 I've been shooting with SLRs for nearly 30 years...first on film, and now digital. In early 2003 I graduated to a digital SLR (DSLR) after having playing with a 4.0 megapixel point-and-shoot for about seven months. I was hooked on digital, and my film camera had been put away. However, with the point-and-shoot I was getting annoyed at "missing" some of my photos because of the inherant shutter lag. It was time to get serious, so I purchased a Canon 10D DSLR ($1499 at the time, no lens included) which allowed me to shoot something like 3 or 4 frames a second for a maximum burst of 9 frames. Not bad for the time, and definitely a leap up from the point-and-shoot. I was happy again taking photos, and I was filling my hard drive with gigabytes of photos...lots of photos. I had to replace my 10D in early 2007 with a newer model 30D because I wore the shutter out. It simply stopped working because I took so many photos during those 4 years. Rather than spend a bunch to get the shutter fixed, I upgraded to the 30D. Four years between cameras means some significant upgrades by the manufacturer. Much faster "power on" time. An added photo per second, and about triple the buffer size. I can now shoot continuously for nearly 30 frames before I have to back off for a few seconds while the data is written to the card. The even quicker 40D has just recently replaced the 30D...hmmm. Replacing equipment just goes with the territory. And speaking of that, in May 2011 I picked up the Canon 60D.


Freeze frame

To capture that liftoff action at the pad, you need a really fast shutter speed. We're talking anywhere from 1/2000 to 1/5000 of a second. An SLR will give you that. You do this by taking the camera off "auto" and switching to Tv or "time value" mode. You have complete control over the shutter speed this way, and your chances of getting a rocket moving up the launch rod with flame spewing out the tail end are much better. Success isn't guaranteed however. Even fast clicking shutters miss the action sometimes as many of those motors get going NOW!


Lets get sensitive

To compensate for that minute split second of time the shutter opens and closes, you have to adjust the ASA/ISO to a more sensitive setting like 400 or 500, versus a less sensitive or "slower" 100 or 200. Otherwise your photos will be dark because you've not let enough light into the camera the moment the shutter clicks. Just like a roll of film with the ASA of 100, 200, 400, etc, a DSLR allows you to increase the sensitivity of the image chip. And just like with the film, the higher the ASA, the "grainier" the image will be when you view the photo full size on the screen. In the digital world this is called noise. Thankfully, this digital noise doesn't really begin to show up until you get in the higher ASA settings like 640, 800, 1000 and in lower ambient lighting conditions. The ability to control ASA allows you to control the exposure for each photo situation you encounter. Thankfully, we're usually launching rockets in broad daylight...and that helps a lot.


Assume the position

It's nice to be up close to the action but in rocketry, safety is paramount. Sure, I've pushed the safety envelope with model rockets on occasion but I'm backing off these days. In fact, the further away from the pad you are the better your chances. Resist the temptation to zoom completely in on the rocket...it'll likely be out of frame as soon as the motor ignites and it starts moving up the rod. These little buggers are quick so if you provide some space around the rocket in the viewfinder you'll likely get at least one photo of the launch. And for the much larger rockets on the away pads, try the same technique. Often you'll be rewarded with a decent shot or two of a given rocket.

Focus on the subject

Yeah, another play on words, but it serves the purpose. SLR cameras and lenses with autofocus have been mainstream for over two decades. The lenses also have a manual focus capability. I never did graduate to a film SLR with autofocus capability...my first one was the digital Canon 10D from 2003. I still use manual focus when I take my photos because if I get a blurry photo, I want it to be my fault, not the camera's. Besides, that built-in autofocus gizmo and I just don't get along very well...I will blame that on the camera.


Under pressure

Listen to the countdown and as soon as you sense the motor coming up to pressure, start holding the shutter button down. Let the camera do it's thing while you concentrate on composing the photo. As soon as the rocket starts moving, try following the rocket up the rod and into the sky.


I'll take that bet

On more than one occasion one of our fellow flyers, confident I'd miss the shot, challenged me to photograph his rocket lifting off the pad. 'Nuff said.


In closing, a Digital SLR (DSLR) provides the best opportunity to freeze that action at the pad and get "the shot." Do I miss some of the shots? You bet...especially those Warp 9 reloads that left the pad yesterday. But the majority of the time I still get at least one useable photo of a given rocket. The good thing is I usually don't have to wait around very long till the next countdown begins.