I remember walking out of the post office and looking up to catch just a glimpse of the small yellow helicopter zipping by overhead. For the months since, anytime I’ve heard the beating of helicopter rotors I jump up and scurry to the windows with binoculars. This little fixation started before the MD 530 came to town, and it’s not just limited to helicopters. I love flying, and not surprisingly, some of this passion for flight splashed onto the machines that make it possible. I think it’s well understood that I’m always very excited by the opportunity to create aerial photographs. This particular shoot was a real treat being able to watch and photograph this incredible helicopter in flight. Special thanks to George and Charlie Mandes for working with me to make this a reality. As an aerial photographer I’m very dependent on the pilots to help bring all the pieces together into a photograph. As you can see, they both did a great job.
Ingredient list for a big smile and some exciting aerial photos:
- One fan of flight
- One passionate photographer
- Two skilled pilots with good communication
- One beautiful winter sunset with mountains and alpenglow
- Two cameras
- One aircraft with opening windows (Husky A-1B)
- One aircraft to model (MD 530F)
Toss the ingredients for approximately 45 minutes. More results displayed below.
Scott,
Totally awesome alpenglow on the top shot. The other shots are spectacular as well.
I can attest that aerial photography is a whole different ball game. From the few times I’ve been up with Ken and a few times over the kenai Fjords, getting good shots doesn’t come easy.
The yellow bird against the great backdrops make for stunning images.
Bob Jackson
http://www.rjacksonphotography.com
Hi Bob, Thanks for the kind words! An image like the top one certainly does require a lot of things to coincide. I think the least of which is me pushing a button.