Big Blue Huddle

And there it is. Good night, folks.

Thank you, guys! Lenn, I was shooting with a Canon 5D3 and a Rokinon 14mm lens. The shots were in the 10 - 15 second range, f/2.8, and ISO 800.

Anyone else see the Northern Lights Thursday night? These were taken outside Charlotte, NC.

Thanks, Ozzie! The Growlers weren't supersonic, but they were probably close. At very high, transonic speeds, shock waves start to form, causing low pressure over the aircraft. When there is some humidity, that lower pressure causes condensation and you see that cloud. That can change very quickly - in the frame before this one, shot less than a second earlier, the lead aircraft had no vapor cloud.

Hey folks! I don't get to this board much in the off season, and haven't shared any photos lately. I've shot some cool stuff lately, but let me start with the latest first!  GF and I are in Ocean City, MD for the annual air show. It's been over a year since I've been to an air show, and have never made the OC show. We're in an oceanfront room with a balcony, right next to show center, so we avoided the crowds, the sand, and the sun!

US Navy EA-18G Growlers making some noise!



Not to be outdone, US Air Force F-22 Raptor made some noise of its own...





The main event! The Italian Air Force demonstration team, the Frecce Tricolori, are making their first US visit in 30 years, and I've never had the chance to see them before - they were the main reason we came to the show this year.

I'm in!

We were up in the hills of Tennessee this weekend, near Gatlinburg/Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Saturday night, I took a ride on Foothills Parkway, along the northern border of the park, in search of the Milky Way...

Thank you, Ozzie!

We were in the Outer Banks for the past week, extended family rented a house on the beach in Corolla. Weather turned out to be almost perfect, GF got to see her son and grandson, and we got to see some neat stuff.

Currituck Lighthouse





12 seconds that change the world forever...the Wright Brothers Memorial in Kill Devil Hills. This marks the spot where their first flight ended.







Pacific Sea Nettle at the NC Aquarium.



The north end of Corolla is home to a herd of wild horses, believed to be descendants of horses lost by Spanish explorers in the 1500s. It is a 4x4 area, where driving is permitted on the beach - there are actually a large number of homes located behind the dunes, reached only by 4x4 vehicles. We took a tour through the area to look for the horses.



This is Dove, a two-month-old foal.



If you are staying at a house in the 4x4 area, you just might find some horses hanging out in your carport.



Jake was an absolute rock-star this week!

I've had an old DVD player, probably going on 10 years old. A few months back, it started to make odd noises when playing, and we figured it was getting ready to call it quits. GF suggested getting a Blu-Ray player instead of another DVD player. A few weeks ago, she got us a new Blu-Ray player, and a couple of movies, including the new Top Gun movie. She also got Downton Abbey, which neither of us had seen before. We're a few episodes into season 3, and we're loving it!

Thanks, Lenn! I try to shoot at slower shutter speeds to try to show some motion - some blur in the background and wheel/tire spin. The first couple of shots, with the car and Ferris wheel, were shot at 1/160 sec. The third shot, with the Porsche passing the other car, was at 1/40 sec. The daytime shots were at 1/320 sec. I'm panning along with the cars as they approach and shoot several shots as they pass me. The night shots were using a 70-200mm f/2.8 lens, wide open at ISO 800. The daytime shots were with my 100-400mm lens. It takes practice, and the slower the shutter speed the fewer keepers I get.

Time for some photos!

We went down to Daytona this past weekend for the Rolex 24 Hour IMSA sports car race. We've been down there a number of times, but for various reasons, missed the past two years. They have a couple of support races and practice sessions Thursday and Friday, then the big event which begins early Saturday afternoon and runs through Sunday.

This was a big year for a number of reasons - there were 61 cars entered among 5 classes, the largest field in years, the crowd was the largest in the event's history, almost 50K, and the top class was new this year, the GTP class with cars featuring electric hybrid motors. BMW and Porsche both launched new entries in this class, joining Cadillac and Acura in the top class.

Wayne Taylor Racing Acura GTP car. WTR won the Rolex in 2017, 2019, 2020, and 2021, and finished second last year and again this year.



New Porsche GTP car, run by Penske Motorsports.



Another Penske Porsche passing a GTD-class Mercedes.



GTP Cadillac locks up the front tires late in the race.



Meyer Shank Racing Acura GTP, the overall race winner, for the second year in a row.



GTP Cadillac



They have a short fireworks display Saturday night during the race.

With that little annual mileage, I would get an oil change once a year. It's cheap insurance to keep it running well.

We visited Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge today. It's in Maryland, on Chesapeake Bay. Of course, the rain started just as we got there, and didn't stop until a little after we left. That made for some lousy conditions for photography, but we did get to see some eagles, ospreys, and other interesting things.

It was a hot day at Dover yesterday, but we had a great time at the air show! It's rare for the Thunderbirds and Blue Angels to perform at the same show, but we got a treat this weekend!













The B-2 looks like it is from another world, but it is actually from Whiteman AFB, Missouri.





This C-47 flew on D-Day and is now owned by the American Airpower Museum at Republic Airport on Long Island. I've been a volunteer at the museum for many years, although I guess I'm more 'inactive' these days since I don't live on the Island now.



They teamed up with an Air Force C-17 for the USAF Cargo Heritage Flight