Well Trained Dogs (or Well Trained Sheep)

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Alameda County Fairgrounds in Pleasanton are home to more than just the Alameda County Fair. They also held the Highland Games. This was a mix of Celtic sports and other rural activities from the UK. Part of that included some sheep dog trials. A variety of owners and their dogs took turns in herding a group of sheep around a variety of obstacles and in to a pen – all done against the clock. I love watching sheepdogs at work. They are so controlled in the way they move and keep the sheep where they want them. We have seen them in action for real while in the UK and they really do know what they are doing.

In a more controlled environment such as a show like this, things are a little different. There are people all around them and you can’t help but wonder whether the sheep are beginning to learn the routine after a while. Then again, I have crossed paths with sheep on the hills and they really are the dopiest of creatures so expecting them to learn is probably a stretch. My favorite pose for the dogs is when they are crouched down on the ground waiting for the next sign to move. They look so intent.

Lumps and Bumps on the Sufas

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Lockheed Martin has been evolving the F-16 over the years. It has been massively transformed from the original F-16A (which was a big change from the YF-16) to the Block 50/52 version. The development of the F-16E/F for the UAE took the jet up another level. When the Israeli Air Force decided to buy an updated jet, they created the F-16I Sufa. A lot of local electronic systems are incorporated to the LM designed airframe.

As you take a closer look at the airframe, you see all sorts of bits that are specific to the jet. The big spine is a common feature these days although it was pioneered on Israeli jets a long time ago. Aside from that, there is a circular antenna on the spine. On the sides of the inlets are some more antennae. Head back on the spine and some more side antennae seem to be present (although not on all of the jets I saw). Then there are sensors on the canopy (which I guess are related to helmet sighting systems). The jet is covered in devices. I assume there is a great system for integrating all of the information these sensors are gathering. The crew should have plenty of data to work with.

Trying to Remove the Traffic on the Bridge

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The suspension bridge at Lions Gate in Stanley Park, Vancouver is a magnet for photographers. I was only passing through but, as we watched the traffic moving across the bridge, I was thinking about how to get a shot that didn’t have cars on it. The traffic was steady so there was not way I would get a clear moment. Indeed, while we were there, they changed the lights and reversed the center lane based on the traffic demand.

I didn’t have a tripod but I did decide to experiment with an alternative technique. This is best done using a tripod and a lot of exposures but I figured I would go with shots that were pretty closely aligned and about half a dozen shots. This didn’t work perfectly but it didn’t go too badly. When you get back to the computer, you open up Photoshop. Click on File and Statistics and a dialog opens up. Select all of the files and change the option at the top to Median and check Align Images. Then send it on its way.

If the shots are good and there are enough, the algorithm will look at each shot and see the changing items – cars in this case – as the oddities. It will see what is consistent in each shot and get rid of the odd stuff. If you have it right, the cars will vanish. In this case, there were some overlaps and not enough shots but it still did a reasonable job.

Grand Caravan Go Around – Thank-you

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We spent a day in Stanley Park in Vancouver. This was not a day for photographing aircraft but there are so many operating in the area that it is hard to avoid. As we were walking along the shore, a Grand Caravan made an approach. I didn’t have the camera to hand so just watched it. Having made a dive at the final approach, it floated long (in the air, not on the water) and the pilot elected to go around. This gave me an opportunity to get the camera out.

Meanwhile, I could hear it coming around. It seemed rather loud for the approach path it had taken previously. Indeed, this time they took a path right across the bottom of the park. I got out from under a tree just in time to get some shots of it turning on to final. A far better angle than its first approach. Maybe the pilot deliberately went around because he knew what I wanted?

Lion’s Gate

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Stanley Park may be a great place to explore but it is also bisected by a major road. It cuts up through the park before getting on to a bridge to head across to North Vancouver. This is called Lions Gate. We stopped to check out the bridge as we were making our way around the park. There is a viewing area just west of the bridge which we took a look at. There were several viewing levels down the side of the hill. It was amazing how many people never bothered to go down the steps from the top level to check out the different views.

We also wandered back along the road to the bridge that passes over the main highway. Not only was there a view along the bridge but there were also some little sculptures of lions. These seemed to mirror the larger ones down near the entrance to the suspension bridge but I kind of liked the little versions. I met a couple of photographers at this location. I had some thoughts about experimenting with a shot here but that will be another post.

Have You Been Playing in the Sand?

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Red Flag may be well known for the fast jet activity but the jets aren’t the only ones that get to play. The transports also get to have a role. One of the exercises earlier this year included the U.K. RAF. They brought along a C-130 Hercules. I got to shoot it a couple of times. One thing that was clear as the aircraft took off was that the bottom of the fuselage was very dirty. I think it was safe to say that it had been landing on some rough strips somewhere out on the range.

Alpaca Farming

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San Juan Island is home to some varied creatures. I swear that, as we drove down one road, we went past a camel. We also saw an alpaca farm. There was a shop that sold all sorts of alpaca related stuff. Plenty of yarn (which was pretty pricey) and various alpaca gifts were available. I wasn’t too keen on any of this, though. Outside, you could take a walk around and see the animals themselves.

There were many fields with the alpacas in them. They were well spread out and didn’t seem terribly bothered by the presence of the visitors (of which there were plenty considering how quiet things were generally). They came in a variety of colors. Food seemed to be their primary concern but occasionally they would look around to see what we were doing. Mostly, though, they were more bothered about each other than us.

Dear Volga Dnepr, Please Choose Your Time Better

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Moffett Field is located close to a couple of satellite manufacturing locations. When the time comes to ship the satellites to their launch location, the transport of choice is often the Antonov AN124. Twice, now, I have caught one of these huge aircraft coming in to pick up a payload. The most recent one resulted in getting these shots. The slightly annoying thing is that both times the plane came in in the middle of the day. This is the worst time for shooting at Moffett because the light is almost directly on the tail of the jet. Earlier or later would be fine. Oh well.

Flocking Birds Over the Bay

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San Francisco Bay is hugely popular with birds. One place that they like a lot is the area near to the airport. Birds and planes do not normally mix well but, despite the large numbers of each, they seem to coexist here okay. As the tide goes out, the mudflats that are exposed are a great feeding ground for the birds. They cover all sizes too.

At the top end of the size range are the pelicans. They like to feed in the shallows when the fish are relatively easy pickings. They do stay away from the runways so don’t seem to be a problem (although a pelican would certainly not be a good thing for an airliner). The smaller birds are less of a threat individually but they tend to flock in huge numbers.

I saw a bunch of them flying not too far from the 01 runways. Again, they stay over the mudflats so don’t present a problem. In the opposite direction, there were some rather large flocks circling over the water. While not as large as murmurations of starlings, they were some pretty big groups. They also would move in a similar way with the whole thing looking very fluid from a distance.

Sufas Finally Come Right

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One of the big attractions of Red Flag 16-4 was the appearance of the F-16I jets of the Israeli Air Force. The Sufa is a variant of the F-16 that incorporates the conformal fuel tanks and a lot of local Israeli electronic equipment. In the days before I was there, the jets had been landing on the left runway which meant they broke away from the photographers and landed a fair distance away. When I was there, things changed.

They started to come in with a right break for the right runway. This was really good news. It makes getting shots of them a lot easier. They didn’t fly very tight patterns so they were a little far away on the final turn but it was still better than if they went left. The departures were mainly from the far runway so they were a bit far then but it was still a good result for me.