That looks like a front/rear projection to me:

Posted by Fall Guy from pool0036.cvx19-bradley.dialup.earthlink.net on May 03, 2000 at 14:17:50:

In Reply to: Compare to opening sequence of Raiders posted by BMan on May 02, 2000 at 19:24:02:

: I know a plane wouldn't be stable, but I always thought the blue screen looked so fake. Their hats don't even move, which given the speed they must be flying isn't realistic at all.

: I love the scene in the opening of Raiders with the pontoon plane and Reggie the snake. Look at Indy's hat. You know they're in the air there. No wimpy blue screens. (Of course, it was a lot easier to edit back and forth and still have a pilot fly the plane in that scene.)

: My opinions only,

: BMan

There seems to be A LOT of depth of field in that shot. The mountains in the background are quite in focus and only an extreme wideangle lens could have delivered that much depth of field. The lens was not very wide, as far as I can tell. So, I would think they filmed that scene in the studio with a gimbaled section of fuselage in front of a rear projection screen. Then it was also easy to light the scene. Add a wind machine and you got a scene that looks much better than most blue/green screen or rotoscoped shots [as long as the shot is a "close" shot]! That method also is in line with 'Raiders's' serials heritage. Fall Guy

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: : I know a plane wouldn't be stable, but I always thought the blue screen looked so fake.  Their hats don't even move, which given the speed they must be flying isn't realistic at all.

: : I love the scene in the opening of Raiders with the pontoon plane and Reggie the snake.  Look at Indy's hat.  You know they're in the air there.  No wimpy blue screens.  (Of course, it was a lot easier to edit back and forth and still have a pilot fly the plane in that scene.)

: : My opinions only,

: : BMan

: 
: There seems to be A LOT of depth of field in that shot. The mountains in the background are quite in focus and only an extreme wideangle lens could have delivered that much depth of field. The lens was not very wide, as far as I can tell. So, I would think they filmed that scene in the studio with a gimbaled section of fuselage in front of a rear projection screen. Then it was also easy to light the scene. Add a wind machine and you got a scene that looks much better than most blue/green screen or rotoscoped shots [as long as the shot is a "close" shot]! That method also is in line with 'Raiders's' serials heritage. Fall Guy

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