Birdseye View, National Mall 2010

This was a first time Kite Aerial Photography (KAP) shot over the National Mall, using a simple setup of a Sutton Flowform 16 kite, basic aluminum picavet and mount, Canon G11 and 500ft of 150lb nylon kite line.  As the flags indicate, it was windy with gusts up to 25mph, too windy for a stable flight, even with tails (the ones you see below were too short). Nevertheless, the shot here was one out of twenty-something that yielded a sharp image and included the Jefferson Memorial in the background.  No special timers or shutter releases were used.  The G11 has a 20sec timer that will take up to 20 frames on its own.  While my wife held the line (our daughter almost wound up in the Tidal Basin trying to hold it), I brought the camera down, reset the timer, and let it fly.  Watching the camera and rig shoot straight up in the air for 100 ft is a neat thing to see, if not a little unnerving.  Use an inexpensive point-and-shoot camera, visit Kite Aerial Photography and go fly a kite! (and take pictures)