Kiss My Tail
May, 2013Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken at the Martinsburg West Virginia airport. Today I work as a photojournalist for the local newspaper and am assigned to the Fire / Rescue beat. One of my stations is HealthNet 8, an air ambulance service. Although this jet is not part of their fleet I still love finding ways to shoot an aircraft in a different way that what we are used to seeing them.Time
It was mid day and I was lucky to have such unrestricted access to this and other jets.Lighting
The bright sun proved to be the ideal light source to really make the colors pop! The jet was very clean which made it even easier to photograph.Equipment
A simple Nikon D50 with a 18-55 kit lens was what I had that day. I am not a big fan of that lens. It's slow and the colors will not always be reproduced in true fashion, however with the bright sunshine and vibrant colors even it could fail on this shot! The camera was handheld and I didn't use a flash.Inspiration
It's a beautiful, fast bird. The jet was clean, the sun was bright and I was looking for a photo that would show an aircraft in a different way than an advertisement, something more abstract. I felt inspired and shot this for myself for fun. A day with a camera doing that is the best days of all.Editing
Just a small amount of HDR to give the photo a unique look.In my camera bag
As a photojournalist, working in harsh and sometimes dangerous conditions, I go through cameras due to the damage that occurs at car accidents, fires or any other disaster that I may be covering. I love the new Nikons but to tell the truth I just can't afford it so I use Nikon D200's. I have three of them. I also pack a Nikon D3100. It does well in low light and serves as a good backup camera. I carry Nikon 35-70 f2.8 lenses and love them. They are heavy. I also have a Sigma 50-500 lens. All of that fits into an army bag that is constantly slung over my shoulder. I hope to get a Tokina 11-16 lens this year. My camera bag has everything (except the cameras) in plastic zip loc bags to add some more protection. I have cheap plastic ponchos, gloves (for being outside in the cold for extended times, reporters notebooks and pens, spare batteries, a small mag light and a copy of the U.S. Constitution which I sometimes offer to police officers that hinder my work.Feedback
Get Close! Access is key. The closer you can get to aircraft or anything else, with the exception of landscapes, the better it will be. Granted a press pass will get you into places that no one else can get to but before I worked for the press I was always finding ways to the inside. Sometimes the man on the lowest rung on the ladder can be the one with the most access. Flight line personnel, doormen, drivers, maids, waiters - those are the folks that make it all work so getting to know them can be a great advantage. Once you do get in do not betray their trust. In the future you will need them before they need you. Treat them with respect. I think another important thing is to shoot. Everyday shoot something, that's experience and experience is the best teacher!
