Tag Archives: california

Qantas Team Australia

Qantas comes into SFO most days. They bring a 747-400ER in and, while most of the, are on the standard colors, I happened to see one that has special colors. I assume it is related to some sporting association but I don’t know what team it is. However, they have Team Australia markings on the side along with some graphics of a boxing kangaroo. It arrived early so the light was harsh but it was cool to see. Interestingly, when it was further out on the approach, the sun was reflecting off the graphics so they were impossible to see.

Surfing the Bigger Waves

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With the big waves coming in at Santa Cruz, the surfers were working in a way we had not seen before. They were split into two groups, both of which were further away from us than normal. I assume that being closer in to the rocks with such waves was not good for your health! One group was further in to the bay and I assume that they were the less skilled/adventurous surfers. They seemed to be doing okay with the waves that were coming their way.

Another group was a lot further out. They seemed intent on picking up the biggest waves as they came in. Getting on to these big waves was not a straightforward exercise. Plenty of the surfers started paddling as the waves came in but they weren’t all able to get up to speed. The big waves with their long wavelength must require a different technique. Once up, some of the surfers were getting a long run as the waves didn’t always break right away. Other times the wave would break and they would head either towards us or away from us. When they went away, we often couldn’t see much of what was happening to them unless a board flipped up in the air. When they came our way, we had a far better view.

Scott’s Clipper

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The trip to photograph Eric’s Clipper that I described here included a bonus (as if the flight wasn’t bonus enough). Eric had talked to another Clipper owner, Scott, and he had brought his plane across to Sonoma. Scott is not a formation pilot but Eric landed after the shoot with his plane and jumped in to Scott’s plane with Scott in the second seat. We orbited overhead until they joined up and then we got a bunch of additional shots.

Since it was a bit later in the day, the light had got a bit better. The colors of Scott’s plane were particularly receptive to the evening light and, while it was a totally stock aircraft and therefore not possible to get too vertical with (see the roof mods in Eric’s plane in the other post), we could still get some great shots. Thanks Dave and Eric (and Scott for bringing your plane).

Lookout Post Skeleton

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At the bottom of the Devil’s Slide trail, there are the remains of a building. This appears to have been a lookout location. There were a number of military installations here at one point. Just south of the tunnel entrance and up on the headland is the concrete core of what was once one of the buildings. The ground has eroded away at the base of the structure and the walls have gone in some places but the concrete core is still there. It has been covered by graffiti artists over the years and is still popular with the more adventurous types. A couple was climbing into it while we were there. It looks pretty cool on a sunny day. On a cold and foggy day, I suspect it will be a bit more depressing.

Trumpeting Over the Sound of the Surf

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Do you ever see an advertising image of someone doing something artistic outdoors and you think to yourself, “No-one ever does anything like that. It’s so contrived.” How about a guy standing on a rocky outcrop above the pounding surf playing the trumpet? That is exactly what we came across on the shore in Santa Cruz. This guy was just standing out there playing his trumpet. What a strange thing to see. It did sound pretty good though. He was a pretty decent player!

Late Gear Down for FedEx

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Oakland is a big hub for FedEx and they have a lot of aircraft movements through the airport on a normal day. While its use in passenger service is pretty much done, the MD-11 is still a regular on the freight circuit and FedEx is by far the largest operator. When walking along the shore in Hayward, I saw a couple of MD-11s come in. Normally, the jets are configured for landing by the time they come over you in Hayward. However, one MD-11 seemed to be coming in with a little more urgency. As it approached me, it had flaps deployed but no gear. Then, as it came over, the gear started to travel. There is a reasonable distance to go to the airport so I am not suggesting that the approach was not stabilized at the right time but it was a little late.

Devils Slide Exits the Fog

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When my mum was visiting, I thought it would be a good idea to take her to Devil’s Slide to walk along the coastal trail. We drove out there and, coming across the bay we went into some pretty thick fog. I was tempted to bail on the plan at that point but we decided to keep going and see how things were. Even as we were on Highway 1, it was still foggy. It really didn’t look like a good idea at all. The best bet for turning around was at the parking for the trail so we went there anyway. It still looked bad but we got out and decided to take a look. The sun felt like it was trying to poke through the overcast so we took a chance.

Turns out we were lucky. As we walked along the trail, the sun was burning through and the view was opening up beneath us. There was still a lot of cloud around but it seemed to be receding from us as we walked. Equally importantly, the conditions meant there was little wind unlike my previous visit when I felt like I could get blown off my feet at some times.

We walked most of the trail and then headed back. It was a great time to be up there and the waves crashing below us looked great. The whole time, I was only shooting with my phone. I hadn’t anticipated the walk working out so I had left the main camera in the car while we checked things out. Instead, we kept going. I was shooting in RAW for the first time on the phone and that will get a post of its own in due course. It turned out our timing was really good. Once we were back and driving up the coast, the cloud started to drift back in again. I think we got rather lucky.

100th Anniversary Boeing by Alaska

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Alaska Airlines makes a big deal about being an “All Boeing” airline (which I assume does not count the Horizon Q400s and the Skywest Embraers). With Boeing celebrating their 100^th anniversary, Alaska put some special markings on one of their jets. I was wondering where this jet was operating so I could shoot it but I lost track of it for a while. Then, imagine my surprise when it happened to be at SFO when I was there for something else. It lined up for departure early in the day when the light was best. Thanks Alaska!

Stormy Santa Cruz

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The Pacific Coast is picturesque at any time. Add into the mix a decent swell and things start to look really cool. We took a trip to Santa Cruz while my mum was staying and the waves were larger than we have seen on any of our previous visits. The waves were running up to the shore and crashing against the rocks in a very dramatic way. This wasn’t a stormy day. There was some wind but the sun was out and it was a very pleasant temperature. However, something out in the ocean was a bit more active and it had driven the big waves towards the shore.

Not only were the waves crashing into the rocks along the shore, they were also crashing into each other. As one wave hit the shore, it would reflect back out to see. There it would meet the next wave coming in. Waves go in phases with times of small waves interspersed with times of big waves. (An old Navy helicopter pilot friend of mine – used to landing on pitching decks – said they come in sevens. I don’t know whether this is accurate but it seems about right.) When a couple of big waves were together, the impact of the reflecting wave on the incoming wave was pretty dramatic with the water shooting vertically in the air. I can stand and watch waves all day without any trouble. Each one is slightly different and they are so full of power. They are mesmerizing.

Eric’s Clipper

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Eric Presten is a guy who spends his career photographing other people’s aircraft. He is not so often the subject of the photo. Dave Leininger was writing an article on Piper Clippers and wanted some shots of Eric’ aircraft to illustrate the piece along with some details of the modifications it has and how Eric uses it. I was up at Sonoma Skypark on the day that Dave was visiting and he kindly allowed me along on the photo flight. A Bonanza was the camera ship so I took the second spot shooting over Dave while he was seated on the floor.

Dave had a publication date for his feature so I embargoed these shots until his piece had gone live which it now has. It was late in the afternoon so the light was getting pretty good. The Clipper is a cool little plane and Eric is used to formation work so makes a great pilot for bringing the plane in close. In addition, his plane has a roof that is modified to include a transparency which means he has good visibility upwards. This makes some shots looking down on the plane possible since he can maintain visibility of the camera ship safely while below us.

Shooting air to air is so much fun. It is impossible to avoid stopping shooting every once in a while and just looking outside to see the other plane so close to you. Of course, you are there for a reason so don’t spend too much time staring out of the door. However, never lose the enjoyment of doing something cool.