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|  Gear
| Eye in the Sky uses one of three cameras, depending on the clients application. Our workhorse is the Pentax 645, a medium format camera with a large selection of telephoto and wide-angle lenses.
Our premium camera is the Mamiya RZ67. Also with a wide choice of lenses this camera reproduces images with very fine detail, extreme sharpness and an unparalleled richness of color.
When the need arises we also use a Pentax PZ20 35mm SLR. This camera accepts our most powerful telephoto lens, a 400mm, and is capable of a 2 frames per second burst rate.
An aircraft in flight produces a multitude of vibrations. The engine, propeller and turbulence can generate small or large "shakings" of the cabin. A helicopter’s rotor blade also induces a constant shuddering, felt by everything in the cockpit. To dampen these vibrations any of Eye in the Sky’s cameras can be fitted with either of two Ken Labs gyroscopic stabilizers. Spinning at 20,000 rpm these heavy metal gyros allow the camera lens to remain “rock steady” on target in order to produce the sharpest images possible. For more information on these gyros click the KL logo below right.
|  | | Pentax 645 |
|  | | Mamiya RZ67 |
|  | | Pentax PZ20 |
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| Photoshop® | Eye in the Sky uses Adobe’s Photoshop® to make great photos even better. Photoshop® is an amazing software. It offers seemingly infinite choices in tools and filters to "clone", "heal" or "mask".
We flew several hours to Bowling Green, KY to capture the “before” image to the right. It had rained that week and standing water remained on the roof. Additionally the grass was very patchy at best. Our client liked the shot but asked if anything could be done about the water and grass.
Thirty minutes in Photoshop® and voila!
|  | | Before |
|  | | After |
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| Aircraft |  | | Robinson R-22 |
|  | | Bell 47 |
|  | | Cessna 172 |
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| Placing an aircraft in a precise point in space requires a considerable degree of skill and attention by the pilot. Operating a sophisticated aerial camera also requires constant adjustment and readjustment. To try to do both is foolish at best and catastrophic at worst. Eye in the Sky uses FAA certified pilots to fly the plane while we operate the camera. Ongoing headset communication between pilot and photographer assures the highest possible quality of images and a safe flight.
We are often asked “What airport do you fly out of”? The answer, "All of them"! We have taken off from Lambert, Spirit, Creve Couer, Weiss, St. Charles, St. Clair, Sullivan, Festus, Parks, Bethalto, Booneville, Washington, Cape Girardeau and Springfield. The airport used is based on the client’s needs, location of the site and aircraft availability.
Eye in the Sky has used a wide variety of aircraft over the years but the machine of choice is the Robinson R-22. This nimble but powerful rotor wing gets us to the site quickly and is highly maneuverable in a variety of atmospheric conditions.
The Bell 47 was the airborne workhorse of the Korean conflict and remains an excellent photographic platform today. Although less aerodynamic than its modern day cousins it is far more stable in flight and its “big bubble” offers added roominess for extra cameras and lenses.
Available in almost every airport in the region, the Cessna 172 is a superb machine for high level aerial photography. Its ability to climb quickly and navigate great distances economically makes it Eye in the Sky’s fixed wing of choice when images from high altitude or of remote sites are requested.
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