# [Samples inside] What's the best camera/lens for shooting out of a plane window?



## FlynShoot (Jul 6, 2018)

Hi all,

I am considering to upgrade to SLR with shooting out of a plane window as the main reason. So I would like to have recommendations on the best lenses for such purposes.

I found a great deal for a D7200 with AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-105mm F3.5-5.6G ED VR. Do you think it's appropriate? (you have then an idea about my budget)

Thank you !

*My goal is to have way better shots for scenes like this:



































*


----------



## Jeff15 (Jul 6, 2018)

Hello and welcome, you seem to be doing OK as you are......


----------



## 480sparky (Jul 6, 2018)

The window itself is going to be the limiting factor.  Shooting through it will degrade any image, even if it's taken with a top-shelf camera & lens.  Improving your gear, IMHO, won't improve the image quality.


----------



## FlynShoot (Jul 6, 2018)

That's so kind Jeff, but that's because of the small size of the uploaded photos! but they are full of noize !

I am missing a lot of great shots because of:

- Not able to have proper zoom
- Not able to set Aperture, Shutter speed
- Not able to shoot RAW
- Not able to shoot at night
- Not able to shoot sunset and sunrize
-etc.

These photos are taken with a compact camera and my smartphone  

What do you think of a used (8K shots) D7200 with AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-105mm F3.5-5.6G ED VR for the purpose described above ?

Thank you


----------



## FlynShoot (Jul 6, 2018)

480sparky said:


> The window itself is going to be the limiting factor.  Shooting through it will degrade any image, even if it's taken with a top-shelf camera & lens.  Improving your gear, IMHO, won't improve the image quality.



Even if I have just a low-end compact and a mid-end smartphone ?


----------



## 480sparky (Jul 6, 2018)

FlynShoot said:


> 480sparky said:
> 
> 
> > The window itself is going to be the limiting factor.  Shooting through it will degrade any image, even if it's taken with a top-shelf camera & lens.  Improving your gear, IMHO, won't improve the image quality.
> ...



IMO, it won't help much.  Yes, you may get lower noise, or having a better high-ISO ability to shoot at night.  But the fact remains you're taking an image through two, three and maybe even _four layers_ of material that was never designed to be 'optical quality' like camera lenses and filters.


----------



## chuasam (Jul 6, 2018)

FlynShoot said:


> 480sparky said:
> 
> 
> > The window itself is going to be the limiting factor.  Shooting through it will degrade any image, even if it's taken with a top-shelf camera & lens.  Improving your gear, IMHO, won't improve the image quality.
> ...



Get the upcoming Sony RX100 VI


----------



## weepete (Jul 6, 2018)

I agree with Sparky.

Ultimatley there is only so much you can do and the glass is going to be the killer of quality anyway. The photos you've posed are pretty small, so small that I can't tell if it's noise or not, can you post a high res 50% crop of an area? that would be better to assess.

What kind of phone do you have currently?

Ultimately I think you are on a hiding to nothing here and I'd hate for you to drop a grand on equpment just to find it doesn't do the job you were looking for.


----------



## FlynShoot (Jul 6, 2018)

chuasam said:


> FlynShoot said:
> 
> 
> > 480sparky said:
> ...



Will that have better performance than the D7200 with AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-105mm F3.5-5.6G ED VR? the deal I'm getting for the Nikon is cheaper than the price of the Sony RX100 VI..


----------



## FlynShoot (Jul 6, 2018)

weepete said:


> I agree with Sparky.
> 
> Ultimatley there is only so much you can do and the glass is going to be the killer of quality anyway. The photos you've posed are pretty small, so small that I can't tell if it's noise or not, can you post a high res 50% crop of an area? that would be better to assess.
> 
> ...



Thank you for your feedback. I'll post right now the full resolution images.

I am using INFINIX ZERO 5 PRO


----------



## chuasam (Jul 6, 2018)

FlynShoot said:


> chuasam said:
> 
> 
> > FlynShoot said:
> ...



No, but it’s much easier to maneuver and carry


----------



## FlynShoot (Jul 6, 2018)

weepete said:


> I agree with Sparky.
> 
> Ultimatley there is only so much you can do and the glass is going to be the killer of quality anyway. The photos you've posed are pretty small, so small that I can't tell if it's noise or not, can you post a high res 50% crop of an area? that would be better to assess.
> 
> ...



Thank you so much for you help.

Please find here full res photos. I think there is a room for better colors, better handling of shutter speed, ISO and focus, but your expert point of view matters a lot for me.


----------



## BrentC (Jul 6, 2018)

I think it a waste of money to get a big huge DSLR just to take pictures out a plane window.   You don't want to carry that around while traveling if its only for plane windows.  Get a good compact point and shoot camera that you can carry around easily or a bridge camera at most.  The Sony RX is too much money to spend for the quality you will end up getting.   Much cheaper options that will give you better than phone and a little more control.


----------



## Designer (Jul 6, 2018)

FlynShoot said:


> chuasam said:
> 
> 
> > Get the upcoming Sony RX100 VI
> ...


Probably not.

The D7200 deal will help you get better photos than what you're using now.  There is a learning curve associated with DSLR's that you should expect will take some time.  Give it time and your dedication to learn the system and also continue to learn how to take photos from airplane windows.  There are some tricks and stumbling blocks to be aware of.


----------



## FlynShoot (Jul 6, 2018)

BrentC said:


> I think it a waste of money to get a big huge DSLR just to take pictures out a plane window.   You don't want to carry that around while traveling if its only for plane windows.  Get a good compact point and shoot camera that you can carry around easily or a bridge camera at most.  The Sony RX is too much money to spend for the quality you will end up getting.   Much cheaper options that will give you better than phone and a little more control.



Thank you very much for your wise feedback.


----------



## FlynShoot (Jul 6, 2018)

Designer said:


> FlynShoot said:
> 
> 
> > chuasam said:
> ...



Thank you _Designer _for your feedback. I have to admit that the DSLR is also a pretext for me to improve my general photography skills. I do also shoot on ground  and I'd like to improve my photos..  

So the idea is to have a Camera/Lens which is good for airplane shots, and then nature, cityscape, family photos. If I found that I am finally good and able to handle a DSLR, I'll then add purpose specific lenses ...

Here few more of other photos which I took with my phone:


----------



## KmH (Jul 6, 2018)

2 points.

1. The angle from the sun to the window and quality of the light has loads to do with how clear the scene will be and how apparently clear the window will be. If the scene is back lit the window will likely not be as transparent as when the sun is exactly on the opposite side of the aircraft from the window being used.

2. On commercial airliners there are 3 windows, outer, middle, and inner. They are made of acrylic or polycarbonate plastics.
Over time the windows are subject to "crazing" -- hairline cracks on the surface of the material that form from dirt, stress, temperature, UV exposure, and the like.


----------



## Gary A. (Jul 6, 2018)

I used a Nikon F film camera to shoot out of this plane window. I think it came out pretty clear.


----------



## 480sparky (Jul 6, 2018)

KmH said:


> ...............Over time the windows are subject to "crazing" -- hairline cracks on the surface of the material that form from dirt, stress, temperature, UV exposure, and the like.



Not to mention surface scratches caused by cleaning, little kids etc.


----------



## weepete (Jul 7, 2018)

FlynShoot said:


> Thank you so much for you help.
> 
> Please find here full res photos. I think there is a room for better colors, better handling of shutter speed, ISO and focus, but your expert point of view matters a lot for me.



Thanks for that. What I'm seeing isn't a lot of noise, there's a little posterisation in the sunset shots, there's some that are lower resolution than the others so pixelise more quickly on zooming in, there's quite a few with motion blur, there are a few with a fair bit of noise reduction applied which can ruin detail (I'm assuming it's built in to your camera) and there's just some general clarity issues which are probably more to do with the window and the atmosphere. You'll be able to mitigate the latter a little with clarity, contrast and colour boosts in post (Lightroom's dehaze function is pretty good at this). But 115144_5 is probably about the quality I'd expect generally.

Of course the D7200 is a cracking camera, and if you want to use it for general photography it's a great choice which will offer you lots of flexibility, but it may not spesifically fix some of the issues in these shots.


----------

