Thank God the Blue Angels Didn't Fly

Things started going wrong long before the start of the air show.  Offutt's long and proud air show tradition has started to fade.  They have been unable or unwilling to attract the top flying teams.  The 2012 show didn't feature the Thunderbirds, the Snowbirds or the Blue Angels.  

Nebraska had consecutive months of drought this summer.  Ironically, the first day of the air show was cancelled due to rain.  Sunday didn't start out much better.  The show was supposed to start with a Golden Knight jumping out of a perfectly good airplane in order to bring the flag to the show.  We waited an hour for the clouds to clear enough for the jumper to find the ground.  Finally they gave up.

I'm not a fan of the TSA and Homeland Security.  They have taken all the fun out of flying.  The freedom that we treasured is being lost and the United States has become a police state.  Air show visitors were forbidden to bring backpacks, coolers and large purses.  Visitors were checked with metal detectors - the little kids didn't seem to mind.  The adults were comforted knowing that if the twin towers were still standing, they would be safe from the Offutt Air Show visitors.

The purpose of the air show is to show the public what their tax dollars pay for and to encourage young men and women to sign up for a life of adventure.  The base gates are opened to the public and everyone is herded onto the massive runway for the show.  The base commander apparently decided that  this was the perfect opportunity to harass the public with random vehicle searches.  I was lucky enough to be selected.  They looked at my engine, examined the contents of my glove box, checked the trunk. verified my driver's license and filled out paperwork with my name, address and any of their observations.  After a military working dog gave my Honda Element a sniff, I was free to go.  

Offutt is a large base and I was directed to a parking spot at least 1/2 mile from the show.  The hike gave me the opportunity to pass large and nearly empty parking lots.  When I finally reached the entrance, I had the opportunity to be searched again.

I arrived too late to get a prime viewing space next to the fence so I was going to have several rows of people in front of me.  Apparently the air show planners sit in the VIP seats and never see the show from the area reserved for the guests.    The other side of the fence was filled with all sorts objects that obstructed the view of the runway.  There were several large tents, at least a dozen  trucks and cars, two port-a-potties and all sorts of other equipment.  

I had planned well for the show.  I researched the kinds of shots I wanted and reviewed images from previous air shows.   I tested several lens and chose the one  best suited for dramatic close-ups and panned shots that use a shower shutter speed.  I had plenty of compact flash memory,  a fully charged battery , extra water, sunscreen, a folding chair - I was ready to spray and pray.

It was very hot on the flight line and the show started late.  Before the show was over, I had photographed the aircraft that I was most interested in.  I decided to leave when the Golden Knights portion of the show arrived.  The 1/2 mile walk to my car was much harder.  I was hot, tired, thirsty and my camera and lens weighed a ton.  At least I was going to avoid much of the traffic when I left.  My out of the way parking spot had a clear shot away from most of the parking lots.  But, when I left the lot, I was directed to leave going the wrong way so that I passed all of the other lots and all of the people crossing the street on their way to their cars.  It was the worst possible route to leave.  I listen to audio books when I drive so I was able to enjoy several chapters of my book.

The down side of taking lots of images happens at the PC.  I had quite a few bad shots when the aircraft were near the runway.  The camera would try to focus on the Tents, vehicles and Porta- Potties when I panned past them.  

I had anticipated problems with my shot of the propeller planes.  The slow shutter speeds necessary to blur the propeller meant that the airplane travelled several feet during my exposure.  Often my panning was less than perfect and resulted in a shot that wasn't completely sharp.  I found that my best shots were often in the middle of a sequence. 

Contrary to what some believe, spraying didn't produce dozens of identical shots.  Even when my panning was perfect, the propeller planes twisted and turned.  The twists and turns blurred some portions of the plane when other areas were sharp.  

I use BreezeBrowser Pro during the culling process.  It takes at least  1/10th of the time that Lightroom would take.  I compare 4 images at a time, evaluating small details like letters on the plane.  I also look to see which images in the sequence had the best view of the pilot.  When I've decimated my days work, I have chosen images that are well exposed and sharp. I was pleased with what I saw.

I copy the culled images to Lightroom.  I still have many more than I plan to keep.  I work on basic color, contrast and composition adjustments  in Lightroom.   I evaluate the entire image.   If I have several similar images, I decide which one to keep and delete the remainder.

 I had problems with my images in Lightroom.  When I panned the propeller aircraft, I needed to stop down to maintain the slow shutter speed.   Stopping down highlighted any dust on my sensor.  The clear blue sky around my aircraft was dirty.  Spraying hadn't helped, each image was dirty in exactly the same place.  The images weren't ruined, but they will need more post-processing now.  

I tend to use fast lens and shoot wide open so the sensor dust has to be large before it shows up.  The self cleaning sensors do a pretty good job  or so I thought.  It was a stupid mistake to shoot the airshow without checking the sensor for dust. The silver lining to this cloud is - At Least the Blue Angels Didn't Fly.  I don't even want to think about making a stupid mistake like this at a wedding.