Honoring Those Who Served...

Last Thursday, in preparation for Veteran's Day I had to shoot some airmen from Dyess Air Force Base placing flags at the headstones of those buried at the Local Texas Veteran's Cemetery. This was the second year I had shot it and it's good that I had done it last year, since last year I noticed there were almost as many airman putting out the flags as there were grave sights. Knowing this, plus knowing the right places to shoot to get the best light helped since the whole event is over in a snap. This year I just stayed in one spot and basically staked out where I was going to shoot, it was just a matter of waiting for someone to place their flag. It worked out really well, everyone was only putting out 2-3 flags. So, there were quite a few out while I staked out the spot I was at. In a period of only about 2 minutes I was able to get both my shots. From relatively the same spot. That was a good thing given that the whole cemetery was finished in less than 15 minutes. Thank god for nice light.

Welcome Back Nukies...

It's kind of hard to believe the Cold War has been over for about 20 years now. But, during the height of the Cold War and America's big nuclear buildup Abilene was a big part of it with the Atlas missile project. And the guys who attached the warhead to them were the men of the 42nd Munitions Maintenance Squadron, who back then were known as the "Nukies," at Dyess Air Force Base. It's really crazy when you think about it that 18-20 year old boys were in charge of the one key element in the destruction of the planet. And one of the first devices to deliver those warheads were the Atlas missiles, which had their silos almost in a circle around the city of Abilene.

So, last week, the men of the 42nd MMS had a 50th anniversary reunion. To get together and reminisce about old times. It was really cool listening to some of these guys talk about what they did. Thinking back on it, it was kind of a big deal, but most of them had the same response about it back them "it was just a job and we did it." In the morning, the group got to go take a tour of their old work area at Dyess and meet with the guys doing the similar job to theirs now. The one major difference being that the guys now only work with conventional bombs as opposed to the nukes. Then, later in the afternoon the guys were going out to Oplin to tour one of the old silos that they worked on the missiles, that has been converted to someone's home now. That was really cool, being able to go into the silo, see how it had been transformed into a really cool home, while at the same time being able to go into the silo and see just how massive the place was, not to mention how the guy had fixed it up and put in a new hydraulic lift to open up the missile doors. Between that and getting to hear the old stories of what things were like back then made for a really cool history lesson you just can't read about.

300mph Hanging Out the Backdoor...

On Sunday we ran a special section on the 50th anniversary of the C-130 at Dyess Air Force Base in Abilene. So, in preparation of the section another photog and I were sent up in a C-130 on a media flight. The main reason I was going was to shoot video, yay me (that was sarcasm, in case you didn't know). So, of course there was no way I was going up there and ONLY shooting video. The cool thing about this was we were pretty much given free reign of the plane. Before take off, I got all the basics out of the way. The video interview, which I split up between shooting a minute on my video camera and the rest on my audio recorder to save camera battery (the video function on the D3s suck battery like crazy!). However, I needed something other than just a talking head. Luckily, the super cool crew that I was flying with hooked me up with a headset to listen in on the pilots' and controllers' radio chatter.

After getting some really good audio, it was off to my seat for the takeoff. I'd heard the pilot saying he was going to let us feel like it was to make a true "combat takeoff." Unlike a jet the C-130 can get full power from its engines right away allowing it to take off from much shorter runways. The C-130 only needs 1,500 feet to take off, less than 1/3 of what it takes a normal cargo plane. So, about 15 seconds after the throttle ramped up, we were in the air. Not long after that the loadmasters had us strapped in at the back of the plane and the back door was open. It wasn't long before the older model C-130H and the newer C-130J were flying up behind us in formation.

We spent about two hours flying across the Big Country banking left and right, climbing and dropping and fighting winds and a little turbulence. It wasn't too long before a couple of people pulled back and had their head in the barf bags. To me, it felt a lot like a boat in really choppy waters. It didn't really bother me much except for having a hard time holding my camera still while shooting the video clips. After I made a few nice frames of the C-130's flying past the Trent windmills I decided to go grab some video and photos from the cockpit.

As I climbed up into the flight deck I noticed my coworker with his head in the bag. I got a good laugh and got a good thumbs up pic of it. The cockpit was a little more choppy-feeling than the back, I guess it's because I was sitting down back on the ramp, in the front I was standing and trying to work my way around the pilots, who were awesome. I finished out the flight up front. The whole thing lasted about two hours and probably went a lot longer than we really needed but it went by quick.

Overall it was a lot of fun. As for the video... well, the audio I got was really good, and the video was well received, so I was happy with it. But, it still won't change my feelings on video as a whole, or the importance of it versus a strong still image. And, a big thanks to my good friend and video guru, Rebecca Ducker, for some great advice and encouragement! Here is a link to the final product: 50 Years of the Flying Hercules

Airshow...

These are the photos from the airshow I shot the day following the Thunderbirds dress rehearsal. This was supposed to go a lot smoother than it did. I had a parking pass to get on base and was supposed to be cleared to get through the front gate in the morning, well that didn't happen. So after waiting 40 minutes at the front gate to be turned away, then after waiting another 30 minutes in traffic and know I'd never make my noon assignment had I actually gotten on base, I left to shoot a crappy softball game only getting in about 40 minutes and then heading back to the traffic jam.

This time I figured I'd try a different route at getting in. I took the back way in through Tye and got right up to the gate. So, here I am thinking cool I'm almost there... not so much. It was STILL another 40 minutes to the parking lot. Then after that more than a half mile walk to get in the gate! So by the time I got there the Thunderbirds were about the only thing left. I guess I'm glad I shot the dress rehearsal, at least I knew how the performance would go! I was able to get most everything I needed plus some shot from the static displays and get out.

Ironically, the traffic getting out was just as bad, not to mention that there were still people lined up to get in after all the performances were over. I did feel bad for them. And, since the cars going out weren't moving that fast if at all I sat in my car and edited all my photos. After another 30 minutes I saw things were moving pretty quick, since everyone had gotten in they reversed the direction and had all lanes going out. Luckily it was only 30 minutes to get out!

The Fabulous Thunderbirds....

Last week was the annual airshow at Dyess Air Force Base. This year the Thunderbirds were performing. This is something that brings back memories from childhood, I grew up with my dad taking me to airshows growing up in Atlanta and the Thunderbirds were always amazing to watch... they still are. So, on Friday I was sent out to cover the Thunderbirds' dress rehearsal for the big brothers big sisters and some Make A Wish kids. It was really cool and kind of helped with my planning on shooting the performance the following day at the airshow. Since there wasn't too much of a crowd for this one since it was basically a private viewing I spent most of my time shooting the planes flying, that is when I wasn't gawking at them.

World's Largest BBQ....

This is one of those events I cover every year. I've tried to shoot it differently in the past but after 10 years you kind of run out of ides. So, you just have to keep an eye out for nice moments. Since we pushing so hard to put more content on the web and my day was pretty open and I didn't have another assignment for a few hours I was able to spend a little more time than normal. Usually I concentrate on just shooting the airmen since they are the ones being honored, and deservedly so. But since I had extra time and an outlet for the photos I decided to shoot some extras with the volunteers as well. I think the overhead meat cutting shot is one of my favorites, mainly because it was a shot I hadn't done from here before. However, a close second would be the little girl in the pink cowboy hat. She was an absolute doll. When I was getting her name and the names of her family members I told her I liked her hat, and after I did that she raised her leg up above the table to show me her matching pink cowboy boots, it was just too cute and I got a great laugh out of it. It's the little things like that, that make my job so much fun.

Last assignment of the year...

Today was the last game of the year for me. The Armed Forces Bowl in Ft. Worth. The University of Houston was playing Air Force. I hate 11am games, anyone who knows me, know I'm up at the crack of noon on a regular basis. I value sleeping in, it makes me happy. In fact I'm usually up in the middle of the night when I'm writing in this blog. So, getting up to leave at 6:30am was, to say the least, difficult.

The main reason I was at the game was one player, University of Houston quarterback Case Keenum (above). Case is from Abilene and I've been shooting him since he was in high school (below). He was one of those kids in high school that, on paper, didn't look all that special. But, the kid knew how to win. His high school coach told me Case's 40 time was always "one step faster than the guy that was chasing him." That's just the way he played, if you needed three yards he would always get you 3.5. He was fun to watch, so when Houston was selected to play in the Armed Forces Bowl just down the road in Ft. Worth covering him was a no-brainer.

So, while I'm shooting the game, not only am I looking for good pictures to go with a game story, I'm also thinking about getting stock-type images of Keenum for any story or stories we will be doing about him in the future. Since the University of Houston doesn't play in a major conference and isn't ranked in the top 25 getting wire photos them isn't a sure thing let alone getting photos of the one kid on the team you need. Although, it is a little bit easier since he plays one of the most important positions on the field.

The game itself was all it was supposed to be. Air Force runs an option attack, while Houston runs the spread. I was really impressed by how well Air Force played considering the limitations on them as far as recruiting because they are a service academy. Houston ended up winning its first bowl game since 1980, but it was really close.

Santa Claus is coming to town...

Well, it's December, so it's time for the jolly old fat man to be all over the place. I shot this while shooting the tree lighting ceremony at Dyess Air Force Base. This was the first time I had actually shot the ceremony, and for some reason I was expecting a real Christmas tree to be lit outside the Dyess chapel. When I got there it was just the tree growing outside the building with a few strings of lights wrapped around it. It was also bitterly cold, so the ceremony was cut short. Luckily my saving grace was the fat man showing up at the end. When he did, this little girl was jumping up and down and could barely contain her excitement. I figured I'd just follow her, knowing she was going to be my best chance of getting a nice shot... I guess it paid off.