Jul 25, 2016 | Aviation
Wow, it was an amazing weekend at the Sioux Falls AirShow! Ya, there were great aircraft like the six Texas Flying Legends Museum aircraft we were there in support of. But it was the amazing folks we meet and who became new friends that still has us realing! On Sunday as you can see, we had great skies. Above you see the B-17G “Sentimental Journey,” FM-2P and P-51D “Dakota Kid” above, wait until you meet some of the folks in the next post! mtc
Jul 22, 2016 | Aviation
Oshkosh is coming up next week, you going? Team Peterson will be there all week working on our project with the Texas Flying Legends Museum who will be there flying this six ship program. A photography guide has created and is posted to help you with your aviation photography. You might want to give it a gander! And if you’re at Osh and see us, please say hi and if we can be of assistance, don’t hesitate to ask!
Jul 11, 2016 | Aviation
No matter the genre, photographers are always hungry, wanting to get to the “top” of that genre and usually the sooner the better. IMHO, there is no rushing it, it (whatever “it” might be) will happen when it is supposed to. Aviation photography is one of the fastest growing genre in photography. In large part because it requires so little camera gear and in larger part, because it is so exciting and fun! With over 100 air to air photo missions in the book in less than six years, I’m constantly being asked, “What’s the secret?” In the realities of photography, there are no secrets as light is the number one factor that will make or break your success. There is one thing though the might help speed up your success in aviation photography a tad.
I’m going to spend an hour at Photoshop World talking about this very subject, but here it is in a nutshell. Once you understand light and use it to tell your story you start by creating the gorgeous statics! Statics, aircraft that are parked (like the top photo), are aircraft you can gain access to easily in the beginning. Most photographers photograph statics at airshows where you have a vast variety of aircraft. When you can take a “plane” parked aircraft and make it look like something special, you will get the attention of pilots and plane owners. You will demonstrate not only your talent but also your professionalism. Is that the whole secret? Actually, no. There is one more important step to finish this and if you want to learn it quickly, join us at Photoshop World next week. But starting with this, you’re a long ways on your way to success!
Jun 17, 2016 | Aviation
Wm Barry Needham
Wm Barry Needham, in 1941 this spry 21yr old Canadian found himself in England flying a Spitfire MkV in the RCAF. On 7 July, 1944, he was shot down by flak and became a prisoner of war (liberated 40days later by Patton’s 3rd Army). In between he sung E-boats, shot down a FW-190, straffed locomotives and with a fellow Canadian, chased off two FW-190s from a crippled B-17 whose crew was baling out by attacking the fighters even though he was out of ammo. He was and is just a regular guy who at age 95 (96 in 45 days) is living history sharing his story. For example on Sept 17th, 1943 he was told to scramble with a fellow Spitfire. They were to pursue two FW-190s from England and nearly across the channel. His partner shot down one FW-190 and just as the FW-190 was about to reach the French Coast and out of range of Needham’s Spitfire, he squeezed his trigger on his cannons and saw a puff of smoke on the enemy. In 1995 an author was writing about these hit and run attacks by the Germans and found Needham’s combat report. One thing lead to another and the brother of the German pilot who Needham shot at got in contact with Needham. Needham went to Europe and meet the brother of the pilot. The pilot after the encounter dug out the 20mm Cannon round he had been struck with and mounted it. The brother fifty years later presented that 20mm round to Needham saying, “You gave this to my brother, now I’m giving it back to you.”
Wm Barry Needham
It was an an amazing afternoon and only the start of our time with Barry and his son and son in-law. I had got the word on Tuesday of Barry’s visit to Minot and Wednesday I was in Minot, ND. Meeting this amazing, walking, breathing and delightful storyteller of our history wasn’t to be missed. Ya the camera was out as photography is one of the great ways to preserve these memories and share the stories. But it was half way through the afternoon that photography truly passed along its magic. Barry was asked if he would sign a number of the prints I had taken of the Spitfire MkIXc for the Dakota Territory Air Museum. The prints were spread out for Barry to sign. His son Scott walked over to view the prints. Before we knew it, his eyes had welled up and he had to remove his glasses and dry his eyes. Personally, I’d never been paid a higher compliment for a photo or print. Just as we can learn about how our freedoms we enjoy were preserved by the Greatest Generation through the sharing of their stories, we can continue that storytelling through our photography and sharing it. The best part of this story is, it’s not over. Tomorrow we get to spend a whole bunch more time with Barry, hear more of his stories and learn about our history firsthand. Thanks Barry!
Jun 6, 2016 | Aviation
There we were shooting the gorgeous Spitfire MkIX at sunrise. We had this gorgeous sky that, though bald had a killer glow growing in it. We were in front of the Texas Flying Legends Museum hangar at the Dakota Territory Air Museum on a ramp covered in fresh rain. It was just a great morning. And as always, I was looking around and behind me for other photo opps. That’s when I saw the moisture and light on the F-106 Delta Dart and I knew that was the photograph. So, I grabbed the 24-70VR and took a walk to get the shot. But as soon as it was in the viewfinder, I knew it was all wrong!
Shooting with the 24-70VR, the first thing is I had to get close physical to get the shot. That made the plaque honoring the pilots who flew them in the 5th become a visual eyesore. But more importantly, it makes the nose of the plane visually more important that the wings. The nose “sticks” out and the wings “shrink” in. That’s bad, it totally takes away the F-106 “bad ass” stance. The solution to all these problems was moving way back and take the shot at 400mm. You can see the difference in the two photos. I think about this all the time with all my subjects, in this case even when shooting aircraft air to air. The lens completely changes how you speak about a subject, you need to use that in your visual storytelling. And that’s simply, the long and short of it!
