What kind of lens or setup is needed to photograph a face from about 1,000 feet away?
Asked 5/10/2018
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I need to photograph people who are trespassing on large private property, sometimes from roughly 1,000 feet away across a quarry. The goal is not artistic image quality, but getting enough detail to help identify repeat trespassers. What kind of lens or camera setup would be needed at that distance? Are there practical lower-cost options?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
8y ago
2 Answers
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If you want to make publication quality images of persons 1000 ft away you are looking at some serious kit, probably more than $20k. Let's assume, though, that you aren't looking to make pretty pictures. Most circumstances I can think of which would require a picture of a previous trespasser involve holding an image up next to the person and saying to them (or the police officer) "Yes, they've been here before." Utility often requires a different approach than beauty.
So with that goal in mind I'm going to recommend a cheaper solution to your problem. A telescope with a SLR mounted via a T-ring adapter will suffer from barrel distortion and radial falloff, especially if it is a full-frame model. You won't really care about this, though, because you will center the face of the person you want to photograph. Check out this resource on astrophotography. If you happen to already own a DSLR and a telscope then this is a very cheap solution for you. If not you can find either item on ebay or Craigslist. For further reading, plug "telescope terrestrial photography" into your search engine to find articles such as this.
Another cost-effective alternative may be a game camera. This is especially useful if there is a known pathway your intruders regularly take. Further, if your trespassers have a favorite parking spot, a properly positioned game camera can capture them and their license plates.
Motion activated intruder-tracking drones are also on their way.
Originally by user71671. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user71671
8y ago
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Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
At about 1,000 feet, getting a clearly identifiable face is difficult and usually requires very long focal lengths. For high-quality facial detail at that distance, you’re generally into specialized, expensive equipment.
If your goal is simple identification rather than publication-quality images, a practical lower-cost approach is a very long telephoto setup, such as:
- an 800mm lens
- an 800mm mirror lens
- an 800mm lens with a 2x teleconverter (about 1600mm effective)
- or a telescope mounted to an SLR via a T-ring adapter
A telescope/SLR setup can work for record-keeping, though image quality may show distortion and edge falloff. That may not matter if you keep the subject centered. Mirror lenses are another relatively affordable option, but they have compromises in sharpness and handling.
In short: for useful face shots at 1,000 feet, think 800mm at a minimum, with 1600mm potentially more suitable. Expect challenges from atmospheric haze, camera shake, and focus accuracy, so a sturdy tripod and good technique will be important.
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