Well, I've got the "Mustangs and Merlins" names registered and the domain is up-and-running on the server. So I'll have mailing lists and other tools going over the next few days.
The assembly of the thread for publication could be done, although it would take a group and some time. However, I'm not sure that we could go out and sell 5,000 books, or whatever number is required to actually make anywhere near enough money to warrant the effort. In fact, that is precisely the reason "Mustangs and Merlins" was born: to allow aviation photographers to create money out of thin air and then support worthwhile causes with it.
I thought for a moment you were referring to me, then I thought again. Did you mean Dolfo of the très-cool abstract up there, or Rodolfo of "hasn't seen a single bloody airshow since Oshkosh" fame?
Rodolfo Paiz wrote:
I thought for a moment you were referring to me, then I thought again. Did you mean Dolfo of the très-cool abstract up there, or Rodolfo of "hasn't seen a single bloody airshow since Oshkosh" fame?
JWilsonphoto wrote:
Good work Dolfo!
Where do we go from here?
JW
I would have to think Jim meant Rodolfo Paiz instead of Dolfo, as I know nothing about servers, domains and book publications, and I really can not see where to go from that completely blurry panning shot...
It would make more sense.
If I ever go, I definitely want the Martha Stewart treatment, especially the part where my jet is waiting and whisks me off to my estate for the monitored probation.
That was a slip up "my jet is waiting and whisks me off", right.
We expected.
"my T6 is waiting and whisks me off" or
"my P51 is waiting and whisks me off"
Something like that
Great shots. I love the old Corsairs, and the Tomcat was nice too.
Since I'm sure you know a ton about aircraft in general, including military jets, I was wondering ... is the F-22 for real? I mean, is it as good as they say it is? Thanks a lot JW.
The 22 is better than they tell us. There is no aircraft in anyone's arsenal, including ours, that can go up against it, and return home. The guys who fly them will openly tell you, they are untouchable.
Hey everybody, what a fascinating thread! I've been following since the beginning.
Next week I'll have my very first opportunity to get some aerial shots. I'll be flying over DC and Maryland - I won't be going up in anything fancy, just a Cessna (or some other small 1-2 engine plane) on traffic spotting duty, but I'm super excited nonetheless
I realize this may not be the exact proper location for this query, but I've seen several posts in the past on tips/suggestions for aerial photography, but all the searches I perform just bring up this thread and it's way too large to navigate through. Can anybody link me to the proper threads? If this shouldn't be here, just let me know and I'll delete the post immediately and start a fresh one.
I'm looking forward to actually have something to contribute to this thread, although I imagine it won't be up to par, but you've gotta start somewhere!
Welcome! There's plenty about air to air and air to ground photography in our 200+ pages. I don't know that there's anyone who can point you to the specific pages that speak to technique. Ya just gotta pay your dues and go through it. Best of luck on your first shoot, keep both eyes open if you are the slightest bit prone to motion sickness, don't use long lenses (over 85) until you get your feet wet and wear a dark colored shirt if you have to shoot through plexi. Don't be bashful posting, we've all been there, and we're just a crummy, bumpy day from being there again.
While we're on the subject, this is the time of year when we get a "Blue Northern" through Texas every three days or so. One is poised to swoop down on us this afternoon with winds gusting to 40 at the surface. I decided I'd get my aerials of our airport out of the way before it got to that extreme. When I took off from DBI and called TKI I was greeted with the dulcid tones of my buddy Bryan's voice clearing me on in. During the next five minutes 8 knots at the surface rapidly turned into 20 to 30 knots from 400 agl up. A wild ride to say the least and when I turned SSW to head for home bugs were running into my trailing edges as they attempted to pass me.
Murphy was alive and well as I discovered my Kenyon Gyro wasn't stabilizing. The air was way too rough to trouble shoot that so I had to try to shoot between the jolts. When I landed back at DBI I found the plug from the gyro to the power supply had pulled out, no doubt in one of those momentary 6G whacks I was experiencing every few seconds, ugh!
A quick review in Lightroom showed that I had cheated death and fuzzy pictures again!
Beautiful shots of the 22 JW. Its amazing just to look at this aircraft, and to imagine what it can do is all the more insane. Thanks for posting and the great response.
Every once in a while I shoot something that isn't related to aviation, just to pay the bills. Actually that's tongue in cheek because architecture is one of my favorite subjects. This is a new pool installation on top of a residential tower in downtown Dallas...
Really enjoying this thread; and since my son and I, along with several friends, were able to enjoy the Blue Angel's Homecoming show @ NAS Pensacola, FL I thought I'd add several more humble attempts of my own. I must say, I learned two things on Saturday. 1) It's rather challenging to shoot moving objects with a 300mm lens @ slow(er) shutter speeds. 2) Man, I have got to clean my sensors! Small apertures really show the dirt and goop. ;-)
