I'm finishing up my move from Nikon's F mount to Z. My 80-400G and 200-500 are already on B&S, and they'll be followed soon by my 500/4, 24-70, 70-200/2.8E FL, 60/2.8 micro, 85/1.8, and maybe a D850 and some other stuff.
If anyone here is interested in any of that, let me know... MA2A policy is that members always get a heads-up and a deal.
Don't ever recall having so much security on a shoot. This afternoon and evening I had Border Patrol and an Army EC-135 with a gentleman in the open door clutching a .50 Cal. watching over me. Apparently I was shooting in a dicey area, who knew?
I can post an addendum to this now because I'm home safe and sound. My location was, literally, a stone's throw from The Rio Grande and in a spot that is well known for cartel activity, smuggling illegals, dope and weapons. The Border Patrol officers told me not to be lulled into complacency by the fact that my subject was in the country and on the outskirts of Laredo. They told me that any number of bad actors could pop out of the dense Mesquite underbrush. I was very happy to have them present on and off during my shoot, the .50 Cal helo guy was a bonus..........
JWilsonphoto wrote:
Like the country and western song says.............."Don't Blink.............."
Jim, I learned in a '46 J-3 and there's something beefier about yours? It's in beautiful shape.
Polished up the mighty, mighty Luscombe after its annual yesterday. My 27 year old son's first flight was in it at 3 mos to Martha's Vineyard. Great memories. Life goes by fast.
JWilsonphoto wrote:
This shot makes you realize what these guys do on a daily basis.....................
This HAS to be framed LARGE and hung at your hanger Jim!
Just a fine composition!!!
Kudos!!
Just FYI..I have NOT seen your nephew's aviation wing flying here since the air collision in the Winter. In fact I have NOT seen any military air traffic using the normal "air space" it used for the 23 years I have lived here.
If I go 20 miles East towards Balto. there is increased military air traffic seen.
taildraggin wrote:
Jim, I learned in a '46 J-3 and there's something beefier about yours? It's in beautiful shape.
Polished up the mighty, mighty Luscombe after its annual yesterday. My 27 year old son's first flight was in it at 3 mos to Martha's Vineyard. Great memories. Life goes by fast.
That's a beautiful Luscombe Steven! I have a little time in a polished one, not enough to be able to say that I tamed it on the runway. My Cub is really a completely different aircraft when compared to a vintage Cub. The differences between my Legend Cub and my vintage 1939 fill a lengthy list. Having everything new is a big plus, the airfoil handles very differently, less "Corkish" in summer thermals and the controls are a lot more solid. The heel brake/rudder configuration is much easier on one's calves and ankles. Having a new 0-200 is a treat, I used to chase cylinders around on my '39, one or two were always coming up short in the compression department, who knows how many times that A-65 had been overhauled? CG is nicer due to the wing tanks, and it can be soloed from either seat. Tuning the radios is a bit of a challenge from the back but throttle and carb heat are comfortably doable. The aircraft still stalls at 30 knots, and it's a gentler and more predictable break than the '39 Piper airfoil. Oh, one more big difference, the fuselage is 3.5" wider in the cabin than the '39. Having both doors open creates a panoramic view that few aircraft can come close to matching.
Danpbphoto wrote:
This HAS to be framed LARGE and hung at your hanger Jim!
Just a fine composition!!!
Kudos!!
Just FYI..I have NOT seen your nephew's aviation wing flying here since the air collision in the Winter. In fact I have NOT seen any military air traffic using the normal "air space" it used for the 23 years I have lived here.
If I go 20 miles East towards Balto. there is increased military air traffic seen.
Just FYI...
Dan
Thanks Dan! Alex is flying Four Stars around the country in a King Air 350. He still maintains his Helo currency, by he's building turbine fixed wing time at the moment. He went to Rucker to attend some intensive fixed wing training and came out with all the ratings. I haven't spoken with him re: the DC accident, I'm sure he has the inside skinny on the changes that they have made.
Beale AFB is hosting the Beale Air & Space Expo featuring the T-Birds this coming weekend. I guess the U-2 flyover represents the "Space" part of the show.. I'll be there Sunday - Yahoo!
---
Jeff
JWilsonphoto wrote:
That's a beautiful Luscombe Steven! I have a little time in a polished one, not enough to be able to say that I tamed it on the runway. My Cub is really a completely different aircraft when compared to a vintage Cub. The differences between my Legend Cub and my vintage 1939 fill a lengthy list. Having everything new is a big plus, the airfoil handles very differently, less "Corkish" in summer thermals and the controls are a lot more solid. The heel brake/rudder configuration is much easier on one's calves and ankles. Having a new 0-200 is a treat, I used to chase cylinders around on my '39, one or two were always coming up short in the compression department, who knows how many times that A-65 had been overhauled? CG is nicer due to the wing tanks, and it can be soloed from either seat. Tuning the radios is a bit of a challenge from the back but throttle and carb heat are comfortably doable. The aircraft still stalls at 30 knots, and it's a gentler and more predictable break than the '39 Piper airfoil. Oh, one more big difference, the fuselage is 3.5" wider in the cabin than the '39. Having both doors open creates a panoramic view that few aircraft can come close to matching....Show more →
Oh, wow. Much nicer. Yes, the J-3 is simple, rough and pretty crude. The door, particularly floating in a slip, is a joy. My instructor commanding to "drive your elbow through side of the cockpit!" (to keep the stick all the way back) still resonates in my brain every landing rollout. A few inches of cabin width would really be welcome. Your new one has polished up all the edges. I've kept the 8A simple, though I'd probably replace the A65 with a stripped 0200 if I had to. The additional climb would be nice on a hot day. (I was based at Mattituck and engine work was pretty easy. Those guys, retired, still do the work on her.) She's just for elbow-out-the-window summer visiting and evening sightseeing.
Got some new Van's stick grips to keep her up with fashion this year.
Cub is all about that door. You have left & right(!). Great for the landscape trance - just cruising slowly, watching the living map. Can go too far, though. I met a Montana rancher who said he was culling coyotes from the back seat of a PA-18 and shot one of the struts. Wing twisted, folded back and they cartwheeled in. Both staggered out the pile with new respect for ballistics, metallurgy, aerodynamics and Lockhaven.
In this digital age one never knows where their photos will end up.
We were watching the USAF Thunderbirds documentary on Netflix last night (presented by my Warbird Radio mentor, Matt Jolley) and they are talking about when one of their pilots, Major Del Bango "Cajun", died in 2018.
They were talking to his parents and the camera was panning around their living room and I saw a familiar photo on the wall, it was a photo I took in 2016 at the Fort Worth Alliance airshow when he was flying the F-35.
And his parents have my photo of him on their wall.
You guys will enjoy this.....James and his family went to Crystal Beach to a friend's beach house last week. They had a second birthday party for him on his real birthday and he got a new RF100-400 lens for his Canon R body. JR sent me pictures of him shooting away all week. He called me first thing this morning to ask if we could spend the day together and he asked if we could download his memory card first, before we did anything else. I downloaded his card and he was working at the desk that he has next to mine in my office upstairs. He took some great images and I was pulling them up and saying how great each image was, he said "thanks Papa! " I said, "look at these James!", to which he replied....."I know, I saw them in my camera.....". He couldn't figure out why he would need to look at them again.......................there is a disconnect I need to work on here...............
JWilsonphoto wrote:
You guys will enjoy this.....James and his family went to Crystal Beach to a friend's beach house last week. They had a second birthday party for him on his real birthday and he got a new RF100-400 lens for his Canon R body. JR sent me pictures of him shooting away all week. He called me first thing this morning to ask if we could spend the day together and he asked if we could download his memory card first, before we did anything else. I downloaded his card and he was working at the desk that he has next to mine in my office upstairs. He took some great images and I was pulling them up and saying how great each image was, he said "thanks Papa! " I said, "look at these James!", to which he replied....."I know, I saw them in my camera.....". He couldn't figure out why he would need to look at them again.......................there is a disconnect I need to work on here..................Show more →
Gero, Jim, and J-A....I also love the older, but bolder, model aircraft. Something "macho" about them.
Great composition J-A!
There is a great series running on the History Channel called "Air Warriors". Some very fine aircraft from decades ago to now.
Stay cool guyz! Maryland has gone from a nice Spring to the dead heat and humidity of late summer today!
Dan
. I'll be there Sunday - Yahoo!
