First up with any such service is the design application. As always with these, the Saal app has it's idiosyncracies. I didn't find it particularly intuitive and the auto-design function was basically useless. It takes a good chunk of time to learn the software and be able to work quickly and efficiently on page designs. This learning curve can be a real barrier when considering using a new or different service. Overall I wouldn't say it was better or worse than others, just different.
Having submitted the design there seemed to be a lengthy period of upload and image 'checking'. Not sure what was happening here, but it did provide confidence that the software wouldn't let you submit anything bad. Then it was just a case of sitting back and waiting for the delivery from Germany, which took around a week or so.
The finished product is very impressive. I made a 30x30cm lay flat book, with faux-leather cover and gloss paper stock. The book is weighty and the cover looks and feels luxurious. The binding is excellent, straight and solid, and the paper thick and heavy. Reproduction of the photographs is superb and unlike other services I've used, there's nothing in the book where I would question the brightness or colour balance of the print. Overall then, an excellent product.
My only reservation is that this is a premium and therefore very expensive item. The format I chose, with 74 pages, would come in at over £160 at full price. In this case it was an album of wedding photos, so for a once-in-a-lifetime event it's definitely worth it. I don't know that you would spend this much on an album of regular holiday snaps though. Having said that, Saal have a range of other products, at different price levels, which I would be keen to try in the future.
After this experience I will certainly look forward to using their service again.
https://www.saal-digital.co.uk/
#saaldigital
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On this occasion the flying display consisted of:
Supermarine Spitfire Vc JG891 (G-LFVC)
Curtiss P-40F 41-19841 (G-CGZP)
Hawker Hurricane I V7497 (G-HRLI)
Supermarine Spitfire PRXI PL983 (G-PRXI)
Hispano HA-112 M1L Buchon C.4K-102 (G-AWHK)
Supermarine Spitfire Ia N3200 (G-CFGJ)
Supermarine Spitfire FR XIV MV293 (G-SPIT)
North American TF51D Mustang 44-84847 (G-TFSI)
So, a better warbird lineup than many airshows! Other Duxford aircraft were also flying through the day including the 2-seat Spitfires and "The Shark" P-51.
The weather turned out to be very disappointing for photography with bright, white haze for most of the afternoon. Still, I have been able to recover a few decent shots.
Post war MH434 served in both Dutch and Belgian air forces before returning to the UK in the early 1960s to become one of the very first civilian owned "warbirds". Unique in having remained airworthy for almost its entire existence, MH434 became a famous air display act through the 1970s and 80s particularly in the hands of the late, great, Ray Hanna who acquired the Spitfire for his fledgling Old Flying Machine Company in 1983.
Still based at Duxford today, in the ownership of OFMC and the Hanna family, and regularly displayed by some of the best pilots in the business, MH434 continues to hold a special place in the hearts of enthusiasts despite the ever growing numbers of restored Spitfires on the display scene.
www.mh434.com
Old Flying Machine Company
Flying Legends
Old Warden, July 2016. Pilot: Brian Smith
Biggin Hill, June 2009. Pilot: Nigel Lamb
Old Warden, May 2018. Pilot: Stu Goldspink
Duxford, May 2014.
Old Warden, May 2018. Pilot: Stu Goldspink
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I never quite got the combination of scene and light that I was looking for, but here are a couple of the better efforts.
Today just 2 of over 7000 Lancasters built remain in airworthy condition; PA474 with the RAF Battle of Britain Memorial Flight and FM213 with the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum. They fly in commemoration of those who served.
Lest we forget.
The RAF Battle of Britain Memorial Flight
Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum
Lancasters PA474 & FM213 at Shuttleworth Flying Proms, August 2014
The Mohne Dam, August 2010
]]>There are some odd effects in the photos as a result of shooting through the fence, but these pictures made the visit for me.
This is the first of a series of galleries in which I will document The Fighter Collection, with a gallery for each aeroplane. I'm intending these will be evolving galleries with about 10 pictures in each, which may change over time as I capture new images or uncover forgotten ones from the past.
First up is the Grumman F8F Bearcat, a founding and longest serving member of the collection.
The last time I saw this fighter was at Flying Legends 2006. The pictures here are from Sunday 9th July 2006. I'm really looking forward to seeing a P-47 here again - given the types service history in the European theatre, there really should be one flying in Europe.
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It was interesting to compare this show to the May premiere show last year when the Collection were still struggling with the new CAA regulations and display distances. I came away last year feeling distinctly glum, not only that much of Old Warden's unique character as a display venue had been lost, but also with a heavy sense of foreboding about what was to come at other displays. Thankfully since then the Collection has worked with the CAA to secure various dispensations and I can happily say that this display was a glorious return to form with beautiful, close, topside curving passes the order of the day. Clearly it is safer for everyone that the aeroplanes are displayed over the airfield, rather than high and far away over the woods...
All of which means there was good photographic opportunities afforded by the flying and the sunshine. As usual at the beginning of the season though it takes me a few airshow days to get back up to speed on panning and general steadiness so I didn't quite get the results I might have done otherwise. In any case there is a selection I'm happy with in the gallery here.
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]]>I'm pleased to report I thought Flying Legends 2016 was an absolute triumph. Given the challenges of the new regulations and the rather lacklustre interpretation at the Duxford May Airshow, The Fighter Collection did a magnificent job in thinking out of the box and adapting the airfield layout to improve the show. Yes, the tank bank was lost, but the topside passes around the jet pan and the close proximity of taxying aircraft made for a fantastic spectacle nonetheless. Numbers were somewhat down on the biggest Legends shows, not helped by a number of late cancellations, but quality over quantity definitely applied here. Outstanding display of the weekend goes to Richard Grace in the Hawker Fury but Nick Grey's late switch to EP120 for the Sunday Joker slot was magnificent too. Here's hoping we have many more years of Flying Legends shows to look forward too.
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UPDATE Thursday 14/7. It's taken a week, but here are a few more shots from Friday. Some good stuff still to come from the show days too, at which point there will be a proper gallery.
Expecting to see a lot more action and a lot of arrivals on Friday!
One of the things I'm always trying to do with my photography is revisit previous years. Many times, thousands of photos will be left neglected until I find time much later to review and process them. Often there is lots of junk, pointlessly filling gigabytes of drive space. Sometimes though it is a pleasant surprise to find some real gems.
Flying Legends 2006 was my first with an SLR camera and a fairly primitive (compared to what I use now) Canon 75-300mm lens. Nevertheless the weather was good, with beautiful skies for airshow photography and I was able to get some reasonable pictures. Oh how I wish for conditions like this more often...
Posting galleries of old material is something I hope to do more often and I think the 10 year look back is a good one. In this case it is interesting to reflect on the turnover in the European warbird scene in 10 years. Many aeroplanes have been exported or grounded or lost in accidents - Tigercat, Hellcat, P-51 Princess Elizabeth, Spitfire XIV RN201, French B-17 Pink Lady, P-47, P-51 Big Beautiful Doll, Hurricane G-HURR. But on the other hand we have so much that is new - multiple early mark Spitfires, P-40C, P-36, Blenheim Mk.1 etc. Sheer numbers might be down on 10 or 15 years ago, but quality and variety assuredly is not.
I hope to have time to post a picture or two over this weekend of Flying Legends 2016, but if not enjoy 2006 in the meantime...
In the meantime I have now posted some pictures from the Season Premiere Airshow on 8th May. This was a classic instance of feeling quite disappointed on the day and coming home feeling that I hadn't achieved any decent photographs. Looking back a few weeks later however, I'm often pleasantly surprised at what I've got, and that's certainly the case here. Despite the new CAA display regulations and a challenging on-crowd wind, the Collection and visiting pilots put on a great display, including an exemplary demonstration from John Romain in the Bristol Blenheim.
Hope you enjoy the pictures. (Fingers crossed for tomorrows weather!)
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I had hoped to add a few more galleries before publicising the site, but as ever "too many hands on my time"! I'm looking forward to adding some more stuff soon though and getting a bit more variety in the homepage and portfolio selections.
In the meantime, this weekend is the Duxford American Airshow. As ever, I'm excited about a Duxford show, but this time with not a little trepidation given the new post-Shoreham display rules. If the aeroplanes are high and distant then much of the impact and appeal is gone. Arguably the goal of being safer is compromised too, as the displays are moved away from the airfield and consensual crowd and over open land and non-participants. Anyway, let's hope for a good show and weather not too dull for photography.
It will also be my first outing with a new toy, having just got Canon's latest 80D SLR this week. :-)
France 2015 - a selection of pictures from our road trip in August/September 2015 which included a whistle-stop tour of the Hautes-Alpes via Annecy & Briancon followed by a week on the west coast of Normandy.
ZSL Whipsnade Zoo - a selection of pictures from various visits to Whipsnade over the last few years. In 2014 we stayed overnight with the excellent Lookout Lodge experience.
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