Well it’s a simple enough question that demands a good answer because anyone that has been to an airshow can tell you that there is a lot going on throughout the day and the majority is happening when there is harsh light. Most people fly airplanes when there is a lot more light out, we photographers are kind of picky and only want the best light in the early morning and evening. But the rest of the crowd tends to sleep in and get there later in the day. So how do you cope? For starters you can’t be afraid to go out in the harsh light. Be smart and picky with your subjects, don’t just blast away. No one needs a hardrive full of bad images trying to find that one.
Next up, watch your backgrounds. Try to minimize the amount of background by not shooting real wide or angling up. If you can look for clean background with colors that aren’t in the blue gamut range you’ll make your life a whole lot easier. It’s real easy to have washed out blues in the middle of the day.
Always remember that under exposing in the camera is your best friend and finally be smart with your finishing. Thanks to the tools in Adobe Camera Raw and Lightroom, like the shadow slider, shooting in the middle of the day is a whole lot easier. These are just a few things that I have noticed from my time on the tarmac but there is always more if you go out and play.
Images Captured with Nikon D5, 70-200 VRII on Lexar UDMA Digital Film