Wings Over Houston in B&W
During the Wings Over Houston airshow, they have a Tora Tora Tora portion that simulates the attack on Pearl Harbor. I arrive at the show when it opens to get a seat along the fence line so that I can have an unobstructed view of the action. They blow up bags of gasoline to simulate the bombs, which can make for some cool photos.
My goal during this part of the airshow is to capture the action with more than just the planes flying by. I’ve got tons of plane photos but like to get some of the smoke in the shot and other planes in the background to enhance the interest/story in the photos. Use shutter priority to blur the propellers with 1/320 for the Zero’s and 1/250 sec for the rest of the planes.
Here are some of my favorites from last Saturday, converter to B&W with NIK Silver Efex Pro 2. Gave me the opportunity to break out my new 100-400 II lens and it worked very well.
All were taken with Canon 1DX and Canon 100-400 II lens, hand-held.
Shutter Priority, 1/320 sec @ F22, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
Shutter Priority, 1/250 sec @ F11, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
Shutter Priority, 1/320 sec @ F25, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
Shutter Priority, 1/250 sec @ F25, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
Wings Over Houston 2015 Airshow – Friday’s Practice
Friday at Wings Over Houston is a two-hour show for special needs kids and the opportunity for the pilots to practice for the main shows on Sat/Sun. It’s not open to the general public so I found a spot along Hwy 3 at the end of the runway to get some close-up photos.
This was the first time in a few years that the F-18 was back at WOH and it’s always my goal to get a photo of the vapor cloud when they approach the speed of sound, around 600 mph. A cold front coming through this weekend reduced the humidity in the air so Friday was going to be the best chance to get that shot. Caught him starting to form the vapor cloud as he flew over me and it fully formed as he got over the runway. A head-on shot would have been better but I’ll take it.
Taken with Canon 1DX and Canon 500mm F4 IS II with 1.4X III teleconverter, hand-held
Aperture priority, 1/3200 sec @ F5.6, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
They have one original Japanese Zero flying at the show, with the rest being replicas from the movie Tora Tora Tora. Being at the end of the runway allows for this shot as he banks around back toward the field. Converted this one to B&W as the colors were muted anyway. Used shutter priority to slow down the shutter speed to get the prop to blur. The Zero prop’s spin faster than the P51 Mustangs so I usually use 1/320 for the Zero’s and 1/250 for the rest of the prop planes.
Shutter priority, 1/320 sec @ F14, ISO 400, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
Only 3 of the Thunderbirds flew at the show around noon, which was a surprise. Minimal cropping on the first two shots with none on the last one.
Aperture priority, 1/6400 sec @ F5.6, ISO 400, evaluative metering, +2/3 exposure compensation
Aperture priority, 1/6400 sec @ F5.6, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
Aperture priority, 1/3200 sec @ F5.6, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
Incoming Japanese Zero
Here is my favorite Zero shot from Wings Over Houston airshow on Friday. Taken from along Hwy 3 near the end of the runway. I like the straight-on perspective, the tilted wings and that you can see the pilot. It was a cloudy day but it works for this shot. This is the only authentic Zero at the show. The rest are mock-up’s from the movie Tora Tora Tora. The 500mm lens makes a great airshow lens when you aren’t too close to the action.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II, hand-held
Shutter priority, 1/320 @ F16, ISO 400, +1 exposure compensation
1/1000 sec @ F5.6, ISO 400, 
Tim Timmis Photography 