How To Photograph/Videotape UFOs - A Primer

I'm a UFO Hunter. By that I mean that whenever I'm outside I sky-watch so that I can be ready to videotape not just UFOs but any unusual aerial phenomena. I make an effort to improve my chances looking for that elusive target by training myself to constantly scan the sky not just in front of me but all around. UFOs are not going to always appear in your frontal line of sight so you have to look behind you and to the sides as well. Stopping at an intersection and waiting for the light to change gives you a chance to to scan the sky in four directions. It takes an effort to constantly look up but doing so additionally provides many pleasant aerial surprises that most fail to notice.

I wear Polarized sunglasses which make it easier to locate objects in the sky as the glasses not only prevent glare, keeping your eyes from being fatigued, but also at certain angles they darken the sky dramatically making white or silvery objects such as planes, helicopters, and certain birds such as seagulls stand out. Don't rule out anything that you see out of hand until you've gone through a quick mental check of possibilities. These include balloons, debris, birds, and aircraft. Airplanes at high altitudes may make you think twice since, usually, the wings are not as noticeable as the fuselage but recognition is almost instantaneous no matter how high it is. Helicopters are rarely seen at high altitudes and their loud engines will precede their appearance. Not so with balloons which will be the ones that will make you reach for your camcorder. Additionally, there are the added anomalous aerial attractions such as sun dogs, displays of rainbow-like colors, etc. The main point is to remember to look up every once in a while.

Prior to the advent of the camcorder very few carried movie film cameras, mostly tourists. Not only were they bulky and heavy but the more common 8mm (and later the Super 8) had a limit of 4 minutes worth of recording per film roll. As with still cameras, the film had to be taken to the nearby drugstore for processing which took days and the processing was expensive. It was always a mystery while you waited for the processed film to be returned because you didn't really know if you were successful at capturing what you saw or not. And to see what you filmed you needed a film projector or a film viewer with a small screen. Even less carried the bigger and heavier 16mm movie cameras.

Because of the carrying facility and their lighter weight and the extended recording time with immediate playback sans processing and processing fees, millions of individuals are carrying camcorders especially the newer models which are a marvel of miniature electronics, some featuring an optical zoom range of up to 70X! Not to mention the additional digital zoom range which goes beyond usability. Thanks to this accessibility, UFOs are being recorded all over the world with more frequency and some of these videos are available on the Internet on sites devoted to UFO videos. While camcorders, analog and digital, make hoaxing of UFOs easier, it can't be said that every camcorder owner is intent on deceiving. So we have to accept that at least some UFO videos are of real objects, in all of their variety.

I was fortunate to have videotaped a UFO in 2004. But let me caution you, no matter how prepared you think you are, as I thought I was, the experience can still be unnerving to the point where if it's over in seconds, as mine was, you may forget the initial details of what was happening prior to your starting to tape although, thankfully, you may still wind up with a priceless videotape. If you always carry a camcorder and/or a film or digital still camera, you may find this article interesting and educating. Before I proceed let me digress momentarily and describe my recent sightings and how I blew those opportunities to videotape 4 UFOs in NYC. Learn from my mistakes.

On the same day that I videotaped the UFO and prior to that I had seen another one flying above the broken cloud cover and as it disappeared into the clouds I watched to see if it would appear where there was a patch of open sky ahead of it and it did. Unfortunately, in my excitement I engaged a nearby stranger to be a witness and in trying to point out the UFO I forgot that I had my camcorder and it wasn't until the UFO was out of sight before I awoke to that fact. After that mental failure I swore that I would be ready the next time, if there was going to be a next time.

The next time was, surprisingly, later that day when I was practicing at videotaping airplanes rising from LaGuardia Airport and I was able to videotape a UFO but, again, it was almost a failure and I wound up with only a few seconds of videotape when it could have been longer. To cut to the chase, I was positioned unsteadily on steep stairs and the moment I saw the UFO through the lens, I tried to steady myself but lost my footing and almost fell over the railing to the rocks and the pond below.

About week after I videotaped the UFO and while standing at a bus stop I looked up and saw a solitary, small, wispy cloud in a clear sky and through it I could see a round, white object. The cloud was stationary and so was the object. Without taking my eyes off the object I reached for my camcorder which was in a shoulder bag, put my hand through the grip, removed the lens cover while turning it on and brought it up to my eyes, automatically zooming the lens to its widest ratio so that I could zoom in on the object after I located the cloud in the viewfinder. If the camcorder's lens is not at its widest, you may not be able to find the object in time since it will be like looking though a telescope to a magnified image. When I looked through the viewfinder I saw nothing! The viewfinder indicator said MAGICVU and I realized I had not disabled that (infra-red) feature after experimenting with it by taping fireflies in the backyard the night before. I had to take the camcorder away from my eyes to find the MAGICVU ON/OFF switch and after I did so, which took just a few seconds, I looked up at the cloud but the object was gone. Before you leave your house, examine your camcorder and make sure it's ready to go. This includes battery condition, looking through the viewfinder to see that the appropriate settings have been made, etc.

My last sighting happened a short time after the above but there is no space left here!