In photographing the service Demo Teams, you could argue that once you've seen them perform and have some photographs of them - what else is left? To a certain extent that might be true. I have some great photos of the Blue Angels from two years ago at MCAS Beaufort. Blue skies, with just a hint of haze. And the only reason I know there was haze, is because when the skies in Reno are clear, it is really clear blue. Again, I fall back to the Best Buy TV conundrum. Then you get a hazy Michigan sky, flat as can be. Even Photomatix can't do anything with it. Couple a flat sky with the air show smoke which didn't evaporate this weekend and photography is a real challenge. Doh! With that, many of my Blue Angel shots are throw aways. Practice.
I have a number of good team formation shots. When these formations go by now, I mostly enjoy the show. And looking for the next cross maneuver. It is an art.
What I don't have, is the perfect cross shot. Frankly, I'm not sure the perfect cross shot exists. It's not my white whale, but close. So when I get the almost perfect cross shot, I can't let a flat sky, slight motion blur issue and a bit of distance get in my way. Like most projects, just break it down and attack what you can.
The distance issue is easy - Gigapixel. If this was just going to be a web post, this step wasn't necessary. But this shot is going to be screen saver so gave it a bit of a push. This shot also had a bit of motion blur. And yes, motion blur is possible at 1/3200 second.
When setting up for a cross shot, you follow either the left or the right aircraft until they intersect, then press the button. I find it is easier to follow the aircraft from the right. Following this aircraft, as you pan left with your right eye in the viewer, you can see the aircraft on the left coming in when it is close with your left eye. With practice, it becomes easier. This would be really great if the aircraft coming in from the right was closest to you. The aircraft coming in from the right will remain in focus, while the passing aircraft will have just a hint of blur. The closing speed on these aircraft is over 900 MPH. But it always seems that I'm following the wrong aircraft. Must be a pilot union thing. But we are talking just a bit of blur - and a touch of sharpening will save it.
Replacing the sky is the tricky part. I've found that to really be successful with sky replacement, just tweak it a bit, don't go overboard. In this case, I need something that is 10 degrees from flat, Something with just a bit of definition. I will often take sky photos for just this purpose, replacements. I had a shot of some storm clouds that with a bright adjustment would fit the bill. The aircraft have nice edging so the mask was very easy.
Put it all together and: The Almost Perfect Cross
While technically the shot is Photoshopped, the aircraft are real. I can live with that.
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