Aircraft Photography

Red Devil Hornets in the sandbox.  Live ordnance, someone might have a bad day...

Some more Hornet pics. 

A little secret for the Nikon Guys. John's (see next post) 55-200 lens is quite the buy at less than $200. Even though some of the shots I've been showing have been shot with the gargantuan Nikon 200-400 f4, John's 55-200 is quite the lens for the money. It is a lens I carry when weight and bulk is an issue. At the 200mm setting the $200 lens would be difficult to tell any difference in sharpness from the $7K whopper. For wildlife, sports, airshows and such the big lens is twice as powerful and has a bigger f stops and is also remarkably sharp but its extreme weight, size and cost makes it a specialty, low use lens.

I recommend the 55-200 for its versitility, zoom range and sharpness which along with the standard 18-55mm makes for a combo that almost any any professional photograph could be captured with. For people wanting to get into photography this combo is also offered as a kit with different Nikon bodies with a cost savings.

Max

wolfhammer1

Here are a few shots from Osh Kosh last year.

One of my favorites from the Rockford airshow 2015

All shot with a Nikon D5300 with a 55-200 Nikkor lens.

John

 

Oops, sorry gang , I missed John's pictures on the above post. Quite a shot of the Blue Angels with the 55-200 lens! (The Dogfight is another one I like!)

Max

Again in the right place at the right time.
Taken with phone camera while watching the International Space Station pass overhead.

Moon, ISS & Airplane [just to the right of the ISS]

Plane to left of ISS and Moon.

Max, I agree that the 55-200 lens is a good deal.  When I decided to buy the camera, I watched sales and caught Best Buy offering the D5300 body with the 18-55 and 55-200 lenses and several accessories for about $800.  I loved the 55-200, but found that I had to constantly change lenses going through museums and the like since may of the shots I wanted either wanted about the 40 setting or the 100 setting.  So I went to my local camera shop, looking to buy a 18-300 lens and found my current Nikkor lens used for about $600.  Its a bit heavy, but no more swapping lenses and I have not found any issues at either extreme with the image.  I kept the 18-55 as a basic back up, but now use almost exclusively the larger lens.  Another advantage is the front lens is a larger diameter, so it can get more light.  Also, shooting wildlife, the longer lens lets you be a bit further away so as to not disturb the target.  The leaping deer was caught on the 300 lens, while the airpalne shots are on the older 200 lens.  Thanks for the compliments.

John

Hey John, the 18-300 is quite the lens also. Lens changing is not only a problem of inconvenience but is a time when dirt can get on the sensor. In the days of film you had a fresh piece of film for every shot and along came digital and that piece of dirt was in every shot. When shooting an event in adverse conditions an extra camera body with different lenses is used for that very reason. The newer zooms cover greater range without being too big and heavy. Good move on your part!

Max

Max, you are embarrassing me.  Thanks again for the compliments, and making me feel like maybe I do know something after all.  I still feel the camera is smarter than me, though.  Maybe I'll get over that someday.

John

Hey John, all new model cameras are smarter than us. LOL! I'm still trying to figure several things out on the new models. Being from the old school, I like auto exposure and autofocus. I find myself on auto settings quite a bit of the time. Hey, we're all photographers and I try to learn something new each day. Beware of "Experts" which means that they have stopped learning because they already know everything! Carry on.  

Max

I'm really enjoying this thread.  So much stuff to look at. Going through my files and seeing photos from a decade ago sure makes me nostalgic.  Like its been expressed before, I wish I had the expertise and equipment I have now back then.  I took these photos at the FT. Worth Alliance Airshow when I was still in the military, so I was able to get up close and personal.  Those opportunities aren't so numerous these days.

One of the first A-10s on its way to its first assignment:

It was escorted by the aircraft it was replacing, the A-37.

Shots from my Father:

you had to be more careful back then.

Here's a quick one to keep the new thread going.

Max

Planespotting airliners. 

A Viper by any other name is still a Viper... Unless its a falcon, desert falcon, fighting falcon, lawn dart, electric jet, sahra saqr...

Some photos I took last April 9 during an Open House after during Balikatan 2016, an exercise with the US Pacific Forces and AFP held every year. 

Pilsung! A-10C Thunderbolt IIs from Osan Airbase, 25th Fighter Squadron, 51st FW. The crew on the A-10 that was on display recognized me from last year's Open House. (Notice the ATAC Hawker Hunter FGA.53s?) 

http://ofnir-1.deviantart.com/gallery/58518740/Balikatan-2016 The whole gallery is here, there are also images from the 2015 Open House where I was able to go inside the E-3 and see VMA-231's Harriers. 

FA-50PH 002 taxiing right behind FA-50PH 001

Cool stuff Gang!

Max

Just had to show you this cool T6 ll. What an impressive performance this thing gave. Not only did it look good, it was fast, loud and aerobatic. Big turboprop engine, exit seats and performance--What could be better. Next model maybe! Has anyone built this?

Max

Hey Gang, Ish's pictures through Image Shack are way sharper than my Photobucket ones. I'm looking into that immediately. 

And Ish, those airliner pictures are great!

Max

Hodakamax

Just had to show you this cool T6 ll. What an impressive performance this thing gave. Not only did it look good, it was fast, loud and aerobatic. Big turboprop engine, exit seats and performance--What could be better. Next model maybe! Has anyone built this?

Max

 

Very cool plane, indeed!

I haven't built it yet, but I do have the 1/48 kit from Ibex. Seems to be getting hard to find these days. Basic review...Plastic is a bit clunky feeling and farely thick. Ya get resin seats, as well as exhaust stacks, nose(forward of nose gear) and spinner, and main wheels. There's also two copies of vac-formed canopies. Marking options are for 8...yes 8 different plane...all in the same scheme as pictured above, just different tail codes...and another option for the IsrealiFlight chool/Aerobatic team...red/white, a little more "eye catchy"!

Thanks for the compliment.  Photography has become my main hobby while I'm working overseas since its not really feasible to build kits over here.

Continuing on with the T-6 to a certain degree, here's the PC-21, its European cousin.

I got a few halfway decent shots yesterday of one of our resident C-130's.  I don't have a very good camera, but it does the job well enough most of the time.

The C-130s look great.  What kind of camera do you use?  Where were the pictures taken? 

John

The camera is a Sony cybershot DSC-H200, and the pics were taken in Niagara Falls, N.Y.  The air base is near my house, so when they are flying around doing the touch and go routine I go to where they fly over right before the runway.

Just a nice P-40 that I thought fellow builders would like to see.

Max

Nice shot.  The only real P-40 I ever saw was back in 1970 at teh Air Force Museum.  Most of my indoor shots didn't come out.  The old building and hanger they had back then had pretty good lighting, just needed a better camera and photographer.

" alt="" />2007 CAF Annual Fly In, Midland, TX.

Cool stuff Ish! This is fun digging through our archives finding stuff that may have been filed away forever! Here's my submission for the day.

Max

OK, how big is a B-52? Answer: Really big!

Max