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Gotham 7.5K: A Rare High Altitude Night Flight Above NYC
- mlrtime 12y agoI'm sure many would love to get high-res versions of these pics, any chance he'll make them available?
- aaronbrethorst 12y agoThis was shot on assignment for a magazine and Vincent Laforet is a professional photographer. Asking for high-res images shot on assignment is akin to asking a software developer to open-source the code they wrote under contract for an employer.
- detaro 12y agoHe or his customer might in theory sell them in some form (art prints?) or someone waving a number with enough zeros around might be able to license them, but results from pro shoots like that generally aren't just "made available", as cool as that might be.
- nrmn 12y agoYou can get them if you look through the network request the browser makes. Largest I saw was 4096x3096, which is just perfect for desktop backgrounds!
- arprocter 12y agoView page source and find "original.jpg"...
- nikanj 12y agohttp://pastebin.com/m0ww3pGK http://pastebin.com/m0ww3pGK
- rexf 12y agoYou may be able to get prints of these photos via his contact page http://fineart.laforetvisuals.com/Contact/1/caption http://fineart.laforetvisuals.com/Contact/1/caption
- ceejayoz 12y agoTruly stunning photographs. Wow.
- trhway 12y agostrange colors - bluish/greenish like toys - real or camera/filter quirks? One can wonder what images this camera would produce http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/146909-darpa-shows-off-1-8-gigapixel-surveillance-drone-can-spot-a-terrorist-from-20000-feet http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/146909-darpa-shows-off-1-... "With an imaging unit that totals 1.8 billion pixels, ARGUS captures video (12 fps) that is detailed enough to pick out birds flying through the sky, or a lost toddler wandering around. "
- nathancahill 12y agoThe "like toys" effect is from the tilt-shift lens he used for some of the shots. Not sure about the colors though.
- msandford 12y agoAhhh, thanks so much for that. I KNEW it looked like pictures from a diorama or a model train or something but I couldn't put my finger on WHY. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miniature_faking http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miniature_faking
- Brian-Puccio 12y agoThat's faking the effect of a tilt-shift lens [0] -- which gives you the same effect, but there are often details that are wrong because most people apply it in seconds in PS without thinking how far each thing should be, they just do a gradient. [0] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tilt–shift_photography http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tilt–shift_photography
- pepve 12y ago"White" light sources are generally not really white. For example compared to sunlight ordinary light bulbs are a bit orange and fluorescent tubes have a green hue. Our brain mostly ignores these differences, but a camera sensor does not. The author might have turned up the saturation on these images though, I don't know how strong the difference is supposed to look.
- brokentone 12y agoVincent Laforet was also one of the first to shoot a video on the Canon 5D MkII - also involving helicopters over NYC. http://vimeo.com/7151244 http://vimeo.com/7151244
- kapkapkap 12y agoCan someone explain the rainbow-like colors? This is from the lenses/postprocessing/other?
- Gracana 12y agoBig advertisements probably have a lot more color than the normal red-yellow-white you see from traffic. Chances are it's not quite so vivid to the naked eye, but a camera sensor with nice flat full-spectrum sensitivity can reveal all the color. You see this a lot with telescope photos; in low light our eyes mostly just pick everything in the sky as white dots, but a photograph can capture a lot more.
- dudus 12y agoI think that's time square. So the colors are real, from all the big screens with ads that stay lit at night.
- sbalea 12y agoYes, that is Times Square and the theatre district. It really is that colorful at night
- pimlottc 12y agoNote, the Vimeo video is not embedded, it's just an screenshot. Confused me for a bit there...
- miahi 12y agoHere's the video: http://vimeo.com/115292381 http://vimeo.com/115292381
- jkot 12y agoHm, how high can drone/baloon legally fly?
- discardorama 12y agoWithout permits, I think it's limited to 500 ft. Not that high, I'm afraid.
- uptown 12y agoThe FAA says 400 ft. for UAV.
- davidw 12y agoIdle curiosity: I wonder how high a hobbyist unit could fly straight up before running out of batteries.
- matthewmcg 12y agoModel gliders soaring in thermals can exceed 2,000 ft. Since the energy is supplied by the rising air, altitude is limited only by the pilot's ability to perceive the aircraft's orientation at that distance!
- PanMan 12y agoI was wondering about that as well. According to the manufacturer, the DJI Phantom[1] (a common consumer drone) has a max vertical speed of 6 m/s. So in 10 minutes (battery lasts about 20, 10 up, 10 down), you could reach 3600m. Higher than these pics were taken! (you remote probably won't reach that...) Not sure if the max speed is up or down... [1]: http://www.dji.com/product/phantom/feature http://www.dji.com/product/phantom/feature
- davidw 12y agoThe heck with down, it'd be interesting to try a one-way trip! I wonder how the thinner air up high affects things.
- discardorama 12y agoFTA: > Had we gone just a few thousand more feet up (around 11,000-12,000 feet) we would have needed oxygen masks! Really? I was roaming around at the top of Mauna Kea last summer (14K'), and hiked to the top of Mt Lassen too (10.5K'), but never felt the need for ozygen masks.
- th0ma5 12y agoRegulations require it, also air likes to cling to to the surface, plus you had a chance to acclimate and/or are experienced with such a thing.
- pc 12y agoThe regulations actually don't require it. Under FAA rules for general aviation ("Part 91"), you need oxygen between 12,500 and 14,000 feet if you remain there for more than 30 minutes, and it's only once you climb above 14,000 feet that the pilot unequivocally has to have it. You need to get to 15,000 feet before the passengers have to have oxygen provided. (More: http://www.faa.gov/pilots/safety/pilotsafetybrochures/media/Oxygen_Equipment.pdf http://www.faa.gov/pilots/safety/pilotsafetybrochures/media/...)
- burger_moon 12y agoYa when skydiving we always exited between 12 and 14k. Only at 15k did you need a mask on the ride up.
- th0ma5 12y agoYup this is right.
- ksherlock 12y agoAdditionally, a cold winter night means dense air which means more oxygen. As far as his lungs/brain are concerned, it's not 7,500 feet, it's more like 6,000 feet.
- hn_user2 12y agoThose images are amazing. Great photographer, and great idea at this unique perspective. Although I think the height above the city drama was a bit overplayed.
- X-combinator 12y agoAgain, Just freaking Awesome!
- HCIdivision17 12y agoThe images truly are breathtaking. His note about the streets seeming like neurons is interesting, but I hope I'm not the only person who immediately thought the shots resembled an exaggerated extruded version of a chip's layered layout. (Here's sort of a small version: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/Cell-Processor.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/Cell-Proc... ) It's a bit odd: the scale of the city is not quite large enough to look like a modern processor's layout, yet is tens/hundreds of thousands of times larger. The scale of complexity is boggling.
- hughes 12y agoI was reminded of the quote from TRON Legacy: > I tried to picture clusters of information as they moved through the computer. What did they look like? Ships? motorcycles? Were the circuits like freeways? These shots definitely capture the city-to-circuit transitions from the films.
- silvio 12y agoNew York as a Microchip layout was the main theme of the intro of 'Hackers'. Check out around 0:40 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9c4KG_8iTZM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9c4KG_8iTZM
- dice 12y agoThat intro was responsible for introducing me to Orbital as well: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orbital_(band) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orbital_(band)
- kilovoltaire 12y agoWow perfect reference. Btw just in case you didn't know, you can link to specific times in youtube videos, e.g. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9c4KG_8iTZM&t=55s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9c4KG_8iTZM&t=55s
- bane 12y agoYeah, it's a metaphor that gets explored a bit from time to time. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJuy7LTBJk0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJuy7LTBJk0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDB9g7l5srA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDB9g7l5srA
- davidw 12y agoAs someone with a bad fear of heights: beautiful pictures but...shudder.
- fnordfnordfnord 12y agoThe narrator in this one claims to fear heights and electricity. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGoaXZwFlJ4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGoaXZwFlJ4
- callmeed 12y agoI've worked on some web things for Vincent in my days in the photo industry. He's always been a favorite photographer of mine. His technical ability and attention to detail in photography is mind-blowing. What's even more impressive is he took to cinematography a few years back and seems to be just as skilled. If you haven't seen them yet, check out his tilt-shift images: http://agonistica.com/tilt-shift-photography-by-vincent-laforet/ http://agonistica.com/tilt-shift-photography-by-vincent-lafo... And here is a commercial he filmed: http://vimeo.com/17355509 http://vimeo.com/17355509
- sokoloff 12y agoOne of my favorite things to do with new passengers is take them up and down the Hudson River corridor, an airspace that "tunnels through" the more tightly controlled airspaces of Newark and Laguardia. From the Verrazanno Bridge up the Manhattan side of the river at 1000 feet and exiting over the Tappan Zee (or vice versa, southbound on the Jersey side, or a round trip) is unforgettable for passengers. These images are breathtaking, but the nofilter, in-real-life version are even moreso, IMO.
- larrys 12y agoHow difficult is it to get clearance to fly a helicopter or airplane over Manhattan as they did? It seems like an unnecessary risk given the population density. For that matter wouldn't it be possible for a terrorist to get approval by creating a ruse of a legitimate (but non essential) reason?
- davidwihl 12y agoIt isn't particularly difficult for a small aircraft, provided airline traffic isn't too busy. NYC ATC is usually pretty accommodating. There are helicopters constantly buzzing the city. Note that the terror threat is very small since the payload of these light aircraft is significantly less than driving a truck full of explosives at street level. Think typically less than 1,000 lbs vs 20,000 lbs.
- larrys 12y agoGood point. Of course if they managed to get a hold of a Chinook they could do much more weight: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_CH-47_Chinook http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_CH-47_Chinook They actually use something like this to hoist HVAC units on roofs (so it's not a total stretch). I was thinking also more in terms of the "terrorism" value of crashing anything of any size into a building in Manhattan vs. the raw damage. Of course airplanes of all sizes are also possible obviously.
- sokoloff 12y ago
- msane 12y agoThese remind me of some of the scenes in the end of the movie "Enter The Void".
- ChuckMcM 12y agoI so want a 2880 image of that for my desktop background.
- miahi 12y agoThere was an interview for Fstoppers a while ago, in which he gives more details about the shooting: https://fstoppers.com/aerial/gotham-above-exclusive-interview-and-air-bts-video-vincent-laforet-50982 https://fstoppers.com/aerial/gotham-above-exclusive-intervie...
- nichochar 12y agoI would love to purchase these in high res and frame them, where can I do that?
- fosk 12y agoI would like to purchase these in high resolution too.
- ssully 12y agoThe photographer mentioned in the comments that they are working on it now. They should be up at the site below, or if you are impatient you can use the contact form to ask. http://fineart.laforetvisuals.com/ http://fineart.laforetvisuals.com/
- cookiesboxcar 12y agocan anyone speak to the non-obvious (like more megapixel) advantages of shooting this on the medium format Mamiya that he mentions? I've always been intrigued by MF cameras, but they cost so much more causing them to be inaccessible (to me anyway).
- cjbprime 12y agoMy understanding is: 1) More megapixels, 2) a larger sensor (more than twice as large) means more signal-to-noise at each pixel site which means less noise in low light, 3) the Mamiya has far greater dynamic range (around one stop greater, double the amount of light).
- Matsta 12y agoYou're correct. What I'm wondering is why they used a 1DX instead of a Sony A7S? The ISO range on the Sony would of probably outdone both Canon and the Mamiya. Taking photos at ISO 409,600 would be pretty awesome IMO.
- fennecfoxen 12y agoYou don't really want photos at ISO 409600 per se, though, you just want photos at the lowest ISO that can get you the necessary depth-of-field for your shot (here extended with tilt-shift lens) at whatever shutter speed avoids being too shaky. And then you want as high of a dynamic range of possible, so you can distinguish the brightest brights from the darkest darks in a single shot. If you can do that already with the sensitivity you've brought, higher ISO doesn't buy you anything...
- jzwinck 12y agoWhy use the Canon 1DX? The photographer has a long-standing and public relationship with Canon. Why not use the Sony A7S? The photographer uses a Canon 200-400mm f/4 lens, and the nearest Sony equivalent is 70-400mm f/4-5.6, which means at the long end it captures only half as much light, instantly negating any possible ISO range advantage offered by the A7S.
- 12y ago
- gandalfu 12y agoFor comparison, here is the view from the Empire State at night with 30s exposures. Not only his pictures are visually stunning, but also incredibly difficult to capture. https://www.flickr.com/photos/63499655@N02/sets/72157629805159101/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/63499655@N02/sets/721576298051...
- morcheeba 12y agoThat's 30 seconds at f9 at ISO 100. They were shooting at 3200-6400, at f1.4-2.8 Counting down, that's 30/100, 15/200, 8/400, 4/800, 2/1600, 1/3200 ... so same aperture cuts it down to 1 second. Then increasing the aperture 1/f8, 0.5/f5.6 0.25/f4 (1/8second)/f2.8 (1/15second)/f2 (1/30second/f1.4). That's still difficult to capture, but a wide lens and/or image stabilization will help. Getting all 50 megapixels sharp would be hard to do.
- iwince 12y agoTruly amazing! I wonder what would happen to a large city like that if in a blackout for 3 days.
- mcjiggerlog 12y agoNo need to wonder: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City_blackout_of_1977 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City_blackout_of_1977
- iwince 12y agoYep that's what I was thinking, "Thirty-five blocks of Broadway were destroyed".
- rajat2109 12y agoFUck!!!! Beautiful images!!!!!!
- ck2 12y agoReminds me of the scene from Contact - they're alive
- sokoloff 12y agoAn acquaintance of mine manufactures a reasonably-priced gyro mount for in-flight photography and videography and is based out of NY. He has some excellent sample videos on his site from the NYC area (Statue of Liberty, GW bridge, Rockefeller Center ice rink, etc): http://www.aerialexposures.com/video3.htm http://www.aerialexposures.com/video3.htm
- shanwang 12y agoWooooooww, this is the most amazing photos i've seen for a long time.
- rajat2109 12y agoAmazing!!!!!!
- chdir 12y agoLove them. Why disable right click though? document.getElementsByTagName('img') https://d12oemfd9cl6ha.cloudfront.net/i/images/imgs/278391461073204345/original.jpg?w=2048&h=2048&crop_mode=fit&v=1 https://d12oemfd9cl6ha.cloudfront.net/i/images/imgs/27839146... https://d12oemfd9cl6ha.cloudfront.net/i/images/imgs/278338934178992040/original.jpg?w=2048&h=2048&crop_mode=fit&v=1 https://d12oemfd9cl6ha.cloudfront.net/i/images/imgs/27833893... https://d12oemfd9cl6ha.cloudfront.net/i/images/imgs/278338875039968515/original.jpg?w=2048&h=2048&crop_mode=fit&v=1 https://d12oemfd9cl6ha.cloudfront.net/i/images/imgs/27833887...