Tag Archives: ISAP

Back from ISAP

Another year’s ISAP symposium has drawn to a close and we have all headed home (or straight off to other assignments for some!).  This was a good year overall and I had a lot of fun.  Having been to a number of them over the years I have built up a number of friends that it is good to see as well as enjoying the content of the presentations.  Not everyone was there this year and I missed the presence of a few people but, hopefully, they will be back at the next event.

I saw a lot of fun things and got some shots so expect to see a few more posts in the coming days that show some of what we saw.

ISAP Here I Come

It is that time of year again when ISAP members get together to share knowledge, learn knew things, see what each other have been up to and generally have a lot of fun.  Throw in some chances to shoot some great airplanes and you have a great time.  I can hardly wait.  Hopefully more to report from the trip.  We even have an air show tucked in at the end of the weekend so it should be fun.

You shall find out more when it happens – or a little while afterwards…  Blogging might be a bit sporadic while I am gone.

ISAP Field Trip – Part 3

Back in the bus and it seemed to be running okay now – that is if you didn’t count the clunking that was coming from the suspension almost directly under my seat! Of course, there was still a question as to whether our driver knew where he was going. However, after a few wrong turns, we did arrive at our last destination of the day.

This was Gillespie Field and, more specifically, Bill Allen’s collection. Bill has developed a series of properties on the field that are combination homes and hangars. They are designed to have a really vintage look though and create a mini village at one end of the field.

Bill was an excellent host. Aside from making his place open to us and providing very welcome refreshments and food, he had some great aircraft on display including Stearmans and a Bucker Jungmeister. This was the day preceding the field’s airshow so a variety of interesting aircraft were arriving while we were there.

As I walked in, a familiar dace wandered up. Paul Dunn if Global Aviation Resource was there. Work had brought him to LA and he had taken the chance to come down and spend time with the subject of one of his articles, Captain Eddie, owner of an immaculate Fairey Firefly. Paul suggested I head around the corner to see it before too many people spotted it. Indeed it was a beautifully restored example and I grabbed a few shots.

We all then retreated to the grass near the Jungmeister. As the evening drew in, the light was just getting better and better. There was no urgency to shoot so we relaxed on the grass, occasionally hopping up if something new appeared. A beautiful evening in great surroundings with friends was pretty idyllic.

As the light finally faded we had a couple more treats. A pair if the Stearmans fired up for some dusk passes across the field. Meanwhile, another aircraft was staged for a lighting demonstration by Joe McNally. He put together the shot and built up a selection of flashes to light it, showing us the whole process as he went. Very interesting, even if I did feel a touch guilty running off occasionally when the Stearmans made another pass.

Finally it was dark and time to bid farewell to Bill and Gillespie and head back to the hotel. What a day!

ISAP Field Trip – Part 2

We all gathered outside the Air and Space Museum to get on the buses for the second part of the trip.  A few people got on the opposite bus to the one that they had come on.  This apparently was a problem from a security perspective since our next stop was to be the Marine Corps Air Station at Miramar.  It would transpire that some would be glad they got back on their original bus before too long.

Miramar is a short drive north of San Diego.  Now it a Marine Corps base, Miramar has operated under the control of a number of services through its life.  It is probably most famous and the center of US Navy fighter operations in the 1980s when Top Gun was filmed there.  Fightertown USA now is home to some marine F/A-18 Hornets as well as a lot of V-22 Osprey tilt rotor aircraft.  These have now almost completely replaced the CH-46 Sea Knight helicopter with the marines at Miramar.

We were to be hosted by one of thes tilt rotor squadrons.  However, first we had to get there!  As we headed up the freeway, the bus suddenly went rather quiet.  We coasted to a halt, our driver/comic hopped out, disappeared around the back and before too long we were on our way again.  This was not to last though.  Very soon we repeated the process and this time we were sitting on the shoulder of the freeway.

One errant bolt apparently was killing the cooling fan and the engine, in full self preservation mode, was shutting down before any damage could be done.  To add insult to injury, we were actually in sight of the base.  While a rescue plan consisting of a mechanic to fix the bus and the other bus making a return trip to pick us up was put into effect, we got to stand on the side of the freeway and watch the Hornets bashing the pattern.

Eventually we were on our way and got to join the rest of the party in the Officers’ Club at Miramar.  There was food left for us and fortunately nobody decided to try and do any Top Gun song routines in the club.  With a little compression of the time at lunch, we were able to get back on schedule.  Off we went to the squadron.

We were given access to the squadron hangar (at least most of us were until the security gate got over its concern about how many people were coming in and locked a bunch outside for a while).  There were a couple of aircraft in the hangar we had access to shoot and the doors were open to the ramp although we couldn’t venture outside.  Plenty of Ospreys were out on the ramp and there was some flying activity.  A Super Stallion also came in and some Hornets and and Orion were also flying in the distance.

The sun was out and the vast expanse of concrete was throwing up a lot of heat haze.  This frustrated any attempts to shot anything too far away but there was still plenty to look at.  Unfortunately, as our time was running out, we gathered together for the group shot.  Just at this point a bunch of aircraft returned.  The security minders were most insistent that we stop shooting and head to the group photo which was a bit of a shame but never mind.

After the group shots it was back to the buses for the final part of the day’s fun.  Another installment will be forthcoming soon…

ISAP Field Trip – Part 1

During the ISAP symposium, we had a field trip out.  The first stop on the trip was the San Diego Air and Space Museum.  Located in Balboa Park, this is one of my favorite parts of the city – even before including a museum with a bunch of aircraft.  I had been to the museum quite recently during a separate trip to San Diego.

We had an excellent breakfast laid on for us as soon as we got to the museum.  The journey from the hotel included a running commentary from our bus driver.  He obviously missed his true vocation (I’m just not sure what that should have been!)

The museum is circular and has a nice courtyard in the center which is glazed.  With a selection of interesting aircraft, it is a very pleasant place to hang out.  I did just that for a bit of the time catching up with some old friends and making some new ones.  I also took a wandering around the museum.  It is a touch tricky to photograph without a tripod since it is rather dark so I chose my subjects carefully.

Also, the basement area where much of the restoration work is done was available to us.  This is normally off limits and provided an interesting place to explore.  The people involved in the restoration were on hand and happy to chat.

Not a bad start to the day!  More to come from the rest of the day…

Another ISAP is Over

Well, I am back on a plane heading from the delights of San Diego back home to Chicago.  I need to catch up on a few bits a pieces from the trip so I can provide some posts with a bit more interest but, in the mean time, I wanted you to know that I hadn’t given up on the blog.

More to come soon!

The ISAP Cometh

Okay, you have to forgive the theatrical title but it made me smile!  It is not long now until the annual symposium of the International Society of Aviation Photographers or ISAP.  This year it is being held in San Diego and I have to admit, I can’t wait.  I have been a member of ISAP for a number of years now and find the annual symposium to be an excellent event.  My first symposium was in Pensacola and I turned up knowing absolutely nobody.  I couldn’t believe the friendly welcome I received from so many people and that is a continuing theme throughout ISAP for me.

The symposium is a very well organized event.  We have two full days of presentations on different aspects of the business with a field trip day in the middle that takes us to some location that would not normally be available with access to great aircraft to shoot – all with a really great bunch of people.  What more could you ask for?

The levels of the attendees vary greatly.  Some are enthusiasts while others are long established professionals.  Everyone is open to discuss the topics on offer and there are a willingness to share knowledge that is very refreshing.  I have learned a ton of good stuff at these events.  It is also an opportunity to share your work.  Putting together whatever I want to take with me is something that I start thinking about long in advance.  Having some prints put together for display along with any other presentational forms is both fun and a little intimidating.  These are the best in the world that you are showing your stuff to!

Soon I will be heading off.  For those of you interested but who have never gone, give it some thought.  For those of you that are members already, see you there!