This section is from the book "Airplane Photography", by Herbert E. Ives. Also available from Amazon: Airplane photography.
In airplane photography the need for a finder or sight is fully as great as in everyday work. A new condition, however, prevails, for except with hand-held cameras, and even to some extent with them, the operation of pointing the camera involves pointing the whole vehicle that carries the camera. The pointing of airplane cameras is therefore akin to the sighting of great guns. While the observer may perform the actual operation of taking the picture, the responsibility for covering the objective rests with the pilot. Teamwork counts equally with tools. Airplane camera sights may accordingly be divided into two classes: sights attached to the camera, for use principally with hand-held apparatus, and sights attached to the plane, for the use of pilot, of observer, or of both.
 
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