Horizon Imaging was recently asked to shoot a set of aerial photographs 50 feet above the top of an old building in Marylebone in London which is due to be converted into a high-class hotel.
Most aerial photography companies use vehicle-mounted telescopic masts which are very convenient if you are operating from a flat road. However, getting a car onto the roof of a building in central London is no easy task!
360° aerial panorama of sunrise over Marylebone, London. Click to enlarge.
Horizon Imaging Aerial Photography Mast on site in Marylebone, London. Click to enlarge
Enter Horizon Imaging’s fully-portable 50ft telescopic mast. Within a few trips the night before, all the equipment was safely set up on the roof of the building. The next morning at 0540 I was up on the roof starting to take photos. Despite it being Summer in the UK, I was blessed with good weather! Very few clouds, no wind and beautiful, golden, early morning sunshine.
As the mast gimbal is remotely controlled in pan, tilt and zoom, I was able to take several full 360° panoramas, as well as zooming in to frame specific subjects.
As the mast is effectively a giant tripod, I was also able to take multiple exposures which were then blended together in post-processing to retain detail in the darker and brighter areas of the images. This was key for the panoramas where I was pointing towards the sun in one shot and towards dark streets and alleyways in the next shot.
Despite having my alarm on at 0430, the results were certainly worth the effort, and there was something very serene about being on top of a building just as the sun was rising and as London was waking up.