Choosing the right pilot for aerials is much more than finding the service that fits your budget. I work with pilots who know how to fly the camera and who specialize in film and still photography.

Last week, when shooting in New York City I watched my pilot work with three separate controllers, fly through four air spaces plus keep us on our GPS track. Our flight started in New Jersey where we overflew Teterboro with permission of the Teterboro Air Traffic Controller. Next up as we crossed the Hudson we entered into the La Guardia Class B airspace. Within a minute or so, our flight took us back into VFR flight with no immediate need to speak with ATC. On the south end of Manhattan, we flew through VFR, Newark and La Guardia airspace in less then a minute. If we had chosen to fly out toward Coney Island, then we would have contacted Kennedy.

The demands of aerial shooting are tough on a pilot. Not only are you watching for other aircraft plus constant contact with ATC, you are also responding to the photographers needs for the shoot.

I choose to only work with pilots who understand photography and who know how to fly the camera. Safety comes first. It is the most important element of the mission.

When researching pilots for aerial assignments, my first priority is how much experience do they have in type and with aerial photographers who fly low and slow.

I tend to fly in turbine aircraft such as the Bell Jet Ranger, A-Star or Hughes 500. When I need to fly in a piston aircraft, I ask many questions about the ship and the pilots experience with aerial photography. I have a checklist and as a pilot, I feel it is my responsibility to myself and my client to insure a safe flight and a successful assignment. I brief my client before the flight on what to expect: safety precautions, emergency egress procedures and how helicopters work. My experience has been that clients are interested and excited to be in the air, often for the first time and it is reassuring to know that I know what to do if we have to make and emergency landing. The pilot also conducts a preflight briefing and even though I’ve heard it hundreds of times before, it is important to stay with the checklist and not skip over anything because it is familiar.