Let me start by saying I worked for an aerial research and remote sensing company in the early 70's and have been shooting aerials ever since. In addition I'm a pilot.
Several things here, it sounds like you've never done this before. You're going to have your hands full! One, a 172 is not very big. You're going to be very cramped dealing with your camera and film holders. You MUST NOT in any way interfere with the controls of the aircraft. The pilot must have full range of motion of all controls. Second if your camera has a bellows you'd better construct a cowling to keep it from blowing off the camera just in case you get it in the slip stream. Your pilot can slow the aircraft down safely by adding flaps and get you down to around 75knots. But you can't do any tight maneuvers at those speeds. if you're in the US and in a populated area youll be limited to a minimum altitude of 1000 ft AGL. In less or unpopulated areas you can drop down to 500 ft AGL. It's possible your pilot might get cleared to a lower altitude but that depends on location, obstacles, density of population and air traffic. Higher Altitude will allow you to shoot at a slower shutter speed too. You can pretty much forget shooting a wide lens from a 172. Even with a normal you'll probably get a lot of shots with the strut in the frame.
Pick a coll clear day. Aircraft fly better when the temp is low as the air is more dense. Remember it's colder up there than it is down here. You drop roughly 2.5 degrees f for every 1000 ft. It'll be tough to use gloves and do what you're trying to do. Try to fly when winds aloft are less. Your pilot can check that in his weather breafing. You'll want to minimize conditions where you'll have turbulents. Aerial work is strenuous both physically and mentally.
If I had a choice, a helicopter with the door off is better. Even then you need a cowling to keep from losing the bellows in the rotor wash. The air moving down from the rotor is traveling about 150mph. In the 172 it'll be 75-120 knots and unless you have a tight grip on your camera you might lose it. Second choice of aircraft, a J3 Cub shooting with the door open and from the front seat. I flew an Aeronca 7AC Champ for a lot of aerial work and both the Champ and Cub will fly slow. The Cub wing strut is more forward and gives a much less obstructed view. Still they are tiny aircraft. Next choice is a Cessna 177 Cardinal. It's essentially a 172 with no wing strut. The best would be a Cessna 210. It's a good size, more stable 6 passenger aircraft with plenty of power when you need it and there's no wing strut. I've done a lot from a 210 and they get you to your location fast and you'll have much more room and a clearer view. The downside is it'll be more expensive and harder to find.
Keep us posted how it goes.
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