Field Shoot (US Air Force Museum)

A perennial favorite, the U.S. Air Force Museum offers an excellent opportunity to test your handheld, low-light photography skills and appreciate some outstanding U.S. military history. The National Museum of the United States Air Force (formerly the United States Air Force Museum) is the official museum of the United States Air Force located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, six miles (9.7 km) northeast of Dayton, Ohio. The NMUSAF is the oldest and largest military aviation museum in the world, with more than 360 aircraft and missiles on display. The museum draws about a million visitors each year, making it one of the most frequently visited tourist attractions in Ohio.

We will meet just inside the main doors of the museum at 14:00 (that's appropriately enough military time...)(2:00 p.m.), from there we will work our way through the museum, while at the same time progressing forward through history, watching aviation evolve around us. As we photograph the static displays we encounter, we will be challenged to manage our exposure settings by balancing aperture, ISO, and shutter speed. From a compositional standpoint, remember that entire airframes can capture and display scenes, and don't forget to work in the occasional macro and close-up shots.

If you have the option, I think three lenses stick out in my list of choices to shoot with:

24-70mm f/2.8 zoom lens (for most images)
14-24mm f/2.8 zoom lens (for those even wider scenes)
105mm f/2.8 macro lens (for those more artistic/close-up studies)

Of course, if you have different models or choices, bring what you own, and you can take pictures with whatever lens you have/want.

As far as other concerns, refer to this excerpt from the museum's website:

Do you have any tips for taking photographs at the museum?
The museum's theatrical lighting may pose a challenge to some photographers. Here are a few hints that may help:

1. Bring a tripod, if possible.
2. Turn off the flash on your camera, especially if you're taking pictures of artifacts behind Plexiglass.
   The lighting seems brighter in the fourth building than the rest of the museum. Why is there such a difference?
   The museum's exhibit lighting is made up of three major subsets: theatrical overhead lighting, artifact case lighting and wall lights for illumination of exhibit text panels. Previously the museum relied on lighting fixtures that gave off ultraviolet radiation and were harmful to many of the artifacts. Therefore we began looking for lighting alternatives that would preserve the museum's collection, adequately light our artifacts and provide energy savings. LED technology was identified as the best solution, and we began using LED lighting in all new exhibits.
   The fourth building features 100 percent LED lighting and we plan to convert all of our exhibit lighting to LED technology as funding and manpower allow.

LAST BUT NOT LEAST!

The museum and parking is free, which makes it one of the best deals around!