Monthly Archives: March 2012

Winter Zoo Time

A sunny winter weekend is often a good chance to check out the zoo.  Since a lot of the animals are not fond of winter weather, there are only a few that will be outside at this time of year.  Consequently, the zoo doesn’t charge for entry so it is good for those after a cheap day out.  We are members anyway so it doesn’t make a difference to us but it is good to go anyway.

During our previous visit the Snow Leopards had been pretty active.  We were hoping to see them again – they aren’t too bothered by the cold – but we also wanted to see what else was about.  Since you aren’t paying, you can make a short visit without feeling like you should make a full day out of the admission price.  As it happened, the Snow Leopards were soundly asleep while we were there but there were other things to see.

The Tiger was showing more action that is normally the case.  This is one cat that likes to sleep.  However, we timed our arrival well and saw a fair bit of movement.  Tigers are also fine with the cold of course.  Bears are similar.  Both Polar Bears were about and one of the Brown Bears was wandering around its enclosure.

We also saw a few birds wandering around the place.  The Pelicans were out near one of the ponds and another group of birds (I am thinking Guinea Fowl but you can correct me if I am wrong) were also strutting around.  The light was very nice so not a bad afternoon.

 

Camera Bag Review

I was a lucky boy and got a new camera bag for my birthday.  Since getting my first piece of Think Tank equipment, I have been taken by how well their products are designed.  I have had (and continue to have) many camera bags and usually they come with some shortcoming or other that leaves me still searching for the right product.  My first Think Tank bag has never left me feeling that.

This time I was after a smaller bag that would be good around town.  The one I wanted is also designed to be inconspicuous since it doesn’t look like a camera bag at all.  It is called the Retrospective 30.  This is a great looking bag on its own.  The fact it is well designed as a camera bag too is a bonus.  Some nice little features include Velcro closures that can be doubled over to make the flap silent in use (obviously without being secured in the same way) if you are keen to be inconspicuous when accessing the bag.

It can carry a surprisingly large amount.  On its first trip out I ended up with as much in it as I sometimes get in a Computrekker backpack from Lowepro.  I had two bodies and three lenses plus some straps and a spare card holder and it did fine.  One thing to note, though.  It is a sturdy shoulder strap that carries all this and putting all that weight on one shoulder can be a bit tiring after a while.  The bag is fine – I’m more of a wimp!

Night Skating

As has been the case a few times recently, I was down in Millennium Park recently at night.  I was there to see something else but, while I was there, I took some time to watch the ice skaters.  There is an ice rink beside Millennium Park that is free to the public to use.  If you don’t have skates, they are available for hire.  However, if you come equipped, you are free to skate!

The rink stays open relatively late each evening and I spent some time from above watching everyone having fun.  Of course, I couldn’t resist the opportunity to take some pictures (and also some video – I figure that all of these clips will one day be part of a larger montage of Chicago footage).  Since it is dark, it is time to try other techniques.

I was surprised how well lit the rink was.  I could get some quite fast shutter speeds if I wanted to.  However, that wasn’t really the point.  I can come during the day if that is what I want.  Instead, the slow shutter speeds were actually what I was looking for.  The question then becomes how slow.

I was mounting the camera to the railings with a flexible arm and clamp so my motion wasn’t a problem.  If the shutter speeds got too long, the blur of the skaters became so vague, it was hard to see whether they were there or not.  A slightly faster speed meant they became a bit more distinct.  This was what I was after.  You still needed to get the larger groups of skaters to make it show up noticeably though.  The perfect combination was when someone would stay totally still (or close to it) during the shot.  Then you had the juxtaposition of the movement and the lack of movement.  That was my favorite.

Some O’Hare Arrivals

A bit more time stuck indoors than I would ideally have liked had meant that I was beginning to climb the walls a bit.  Some good weather had been about but I had been unable to get outside to enjoy it.  However, I did get a Sunday when I was able to get out and the weather showed signs of clearing up.  (It had been pretty murky early in the day but the forecast said it would get better and it wasn’t wrong!)

I decided to head to O’Hare to watch some European arrivals.  A strong westerly wind meant the arrival direction would be reliable as far as sun angle was concerned and the low temperatures should hopefully avoid too much heat distortion.  Apart from that, an afternoon out shooting the arrivals is better than plenty of other options even if it isn’t something new and unique.

As it was, there were a fair few interesting aircraft coming in along with the regular O’Hare types of traffic.  I was able to keep close to the car which meant I could hop back out of the chilly wind between interesting targets and listen out on LiveATC’s app on my phone to know when something was coming my way.  Flightaware also allows a bit of planning ahead.

It was a fun afternoon and some good results showed up.  Some new bits to add to the catalog along with some of the familiar stuff and some that will soon no longer be familiar and need to be remembered before they are gone.  Here is a small selection of the day.

Thornton Quarry Part 2

I mentioned before what the lift at the quarry involved.  However, I thought it was worth talking a little bit more about the work of the guys on the ground.  There was a good team spirit needed for this job and the guys worked hard throughout the day to get everything done.  With the many rolls of netting to put in place, there was plenty to do!  These were long rolls.  The later rolls were over 300′ long and they were hanging from 150′ of lifting line!  Also, it could be breezy and keeping the net under control was interesting!

There was one group of guys at the top of the quarry who were responsible for hooking up the nets.  They would put the roll into place and unroll it along the roadway.  When the helicopter came in, it had a special fixture on the end of the line.  This was a spreader bar with hooks for the net.  The bar was attached at the bottom but a ring was placed into a hook to turn it up the other way.  This meant that the hooks would be the right way up to hold the net.  When the release was triggered on the hook, the spreader bar would flip over and the net would fall free.  Then the whole thing could be repeated.

The other guys were on the top of the rock face ready to attach the net.  A wire line was rigged across the top of the rocks.  When the net came in, they guys had to grab the net, bring it into place and start wiring it to the line.  Two guys would be in harnesses and they would head over the edge as the net was lowered to ensure that it was aligned correctly and were it needed to be.  Joining each net down the rock face would follow another day.

The guys worked well together handling the nets into place and making sure they weren’t aligned incorrectly.  If the wind twisted the net, they had some good techniques for getting them back around the right way.  The was vital since the release would not work if it was facing the wrong way!  Jim was flying during all of this with a very long load so he did a great job to stay focused.

Thornton Quarry Part 1

The main job of the day was at a quarry.  This was a more unusual job than the ones I have normally seen with Midwest.  For a start, it was a long job.  This was actually the second day of this job and a third would be required before it was finished.  The task is to place wire netting on rock faces to stop and falling rocks from flying freely at anything below.  The nets hold any debris against the rock face.

You will have seen things like this before.  However, if you are like me, you hadn’t really given any thought to how they are put there.  Today I am going to focus on the flying aspect of the job.  The work of the guys on the ground was a separate issue and I am going to give them their own posting to follow this one.

The rolls of net are laid out on the ground and picked up by the helicopter.  Then Jim had to fly this very long roll across to where it was supposed to be placed.  The guys on the ground would attach it and then Jim would lower the net down so the bottom became the top and the top ended up at the bottom.  There are over a hundred of these rolls and each one takes several minutes to place.  Consequently, it was necessary to land several times during the day.  One need was for fuel but another was for a break.  This is a long time to be hovering a helicopter!

The weather was really nice for the majority of the day and I was able to get around the site and see the work from many different locations.  I also got to have a break during the day which most people didn’t so it was easier for me.  Even so, I was bushed at the end of it all.  At least I got to fly back to base and not deal with the traffic!