Outdoor photography can be a demanding business, a constant battle against wind, rain, flying insects and temperature extremes in the search for just the right light and composition. However, some photographers — usually those who pursue their trade with little beneath them but thin air — must add the force of gravity to this list of everyday hardships.

To get their unimpeded bird's-eye views, aerial photographers George Steinmetz, Adriel Heisey and Lindsay Hebberd use some relatively unconventional aircraft: a motorized paraglider, a self-built plane and a blimp, respectively.

"If I fly in rain, I get wet. If I fly into a swarm of insects, I get bugs in my teeth. If I fly through smoke, I get choked up," says the Arizona-based Heisey about shooting from his open-cockpit...