In 1903 man first flew a plane, in 1909 the first aerial photo was taken….it was used to show crew tracking where the pilots were so their trip could be extended 😉.
During my fathers time in the Army in the 50’s he became a “public relations “ photographer (as it was then called) for the 18th airborne corps. He took many pics from the door of C-119s. Still have a few action shots somewhere of those box car jumps.
what a pleasurable episode Mike. Your work have turned this airplane buff in to a full on aviation buff. You keep expanding my knowledge and breadth of interest
No discussion of aviation photography is complete without a bow to Katsuhiko Tokunaga. His work in Koku-Fan alone is simply amazing, let alone his books. Mike, you should do a follow-up video on Kodachrome film and aviation. The quality of shots taken on that film 80+ years ago is astounding.
I was a lucky enough kid to have a father in the USAF during the 60's and 70's who brought home official poster art and prints to me to put up in my room to go along with all the model aircraft I was building. I still have the bulk of them packed away in crates in tubes in my big 'warehouse' of a storage room. Now I'm going to have to get them out. It's going to take a weekend. What have you done, Mike? LoLoLoL!!
It's amazing how a "Best Buy" drone can do the work, and more, than using a helicopter for those Higher Altitude shots, but the helicopter is more fun....... Some people say "A picture is worth a thousand works," But all the pictures in this vid are worth a million words. Top-notch work.
What a SPLENDID episode, Mike! My now 91-year-old father was a corporate photographer for the old McDonnell Aircraft in St. Louis, MO, during the 1960s, when they were cranking out LOTS of F-4 Phantoms, and also the Gemini spacecraft. Later, with General Dynamics in Ft. Worth, TX, he shot LOTS of still & video of the F-111, including carrier suitability trials when DOD was trying to force the Navy to buy them. In the earlier years of the F-16, GD was VERY big on publicity and marketing, and had significant presence at both the Farnborough and Paris air shows for a number of years. Dad said they were lots of fun - but as other GD suppliers and coproducers in Belgium, Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands were integral to coproduction, Dad & others did a lot of filming at those facilities, and Dad recalled that multiple border crossings and going thru customs with all of their bulky audio & video equipment got to be a chore. Since GD produced and distributed a lot of publicity photos and other knick-knacks, I have a lot of what Dad passed on to me, and I treasure it all.
This can only be expressed in one word. OUTSTANDING!!!!! I am always in awe of what you present. I look forward to seeing your new presentations. Thanks😊
Truly stunning photography. Nice to see/hear the background stories on the photo's. How did the Douglas photographer get such great shots from the helicopter? The vibrations from hovering were often severe and we would try to get the pilot to just "slide" slowly to get any kind of success at a shot, otherwise it looked like we were strapped to a paint mixer while taking the pictures.
Great point Chuck, and that 'copter always circled to get those photos. I remember my very first flight at age 10 in an early-model Bell-47G, and it nearly shook my teeth out! (Looked a lot smoother in the "Whirlybirds" TV show!)
3:20 i recognize this place, rooftop parking at the "Skyport" PanAm terminal and guessing 1974ish time? I spent many a Saturdays with my Cameras, 110 and a Pentak K1000 with a zoom lens...
It's all about access. You, along with the other great photogs, were in the right time and position to have the access to some outstanding subjects. And being able to show you have the skill and eye to capture some priceless moments. Even better when it is or becomes your job. As an Air Force boom operator, I had views that I too was able to capture. Some were daily training, while others are now part of our military history. Thanks for the video.
As a Marine Corps A-4 Skyhawk maintainer, and later an engineer for McDonnell Douglas, I've spent a long time looking at Harry Gann's photos. I was both impressed by the photos and quite envious of him getting to spend some time in the air taking the photos! Good to learn about Don Adams and all of the other skilled and creative photographers. As a hobbyist aviation photographer, I'm still learning about composition and such, but I suspect that finding a new and unique perspective for viewing the subject is a major factor for success. Having a helicopter would sure be handy! Also... clouds are a huge factor, but not exactly something you can buy at the camera store. 😄
As a teen, I took pictures of some of my models. Used my Square Shooter II instant camera, with the film cartridges. The pics all had weird faint blue and pink bands down the pic, due to the chemicals and roller system. Looked like crap. 😫 A buddy out in Idaho was a Photographer's Mate on the carrier USS Ticonderoga during the Vietnam War. He has some great stories, and has shown me some of his photos.
Another great presentation Mike. All of these people are fabulous photographers. I have long been a fan of the work of Jay Miller, Chad Slattery and Tony Landis. Tony is also one of the nicest guys you will ever meet. The work of Don Adams is incredible too. I didn't know about him until recently, that he was the man who took all those superb Douglas aircraft photos decades ago. As always, thank you for all your effort in compiling these fantastic videos.
Awesome photographs Mr. Machat. The photographers; works are excellent. Brought back a lot of memories going to airshows and car shows and taking pictures. Started with A Kodak Brownie to an East German Pentaflex to an Olympus OM1 System camera. The good old days of manual film cameras. While watching this video one story came to mind. The Leica that fell from the sky. A photographer taking pictures for the US Air Force had to eject along with the pilot. The Leica fell over 20,000 feet into the desert. A few years later it was found and the film was still in the camera and the pictures were developed. I remember seeing the camera at a Photo show in Toronto, Canada.
Mike of all of your videos, I like (love) this one the best: speaking as a retired technical writer/photographer. If I had it all to do over again, I definitely would have become an aviation photographer (and artist). By-the-way, I was a USAF officer from 1979 to 1989 serving as a Minute Man Combat Crew member and also as an aircraft maintenance officer. One of my favorite memories was getting to see the last RAF AVRO Vulcan on its fair well tour of the US in 1982 and meeting the crew. PS - I owned a Canon F-1 and have had only Canon SLRs starting with the FX in 1969.
Thanks Mike. Brilliant material and a great presentation. Everyone's a winner as the saying and song goes. Mike, you might have told me that you were the editor of America's Round-Engine Airliners. I'm the guy that wrote in an earlier thread that I once bought a book because the Connie on the front. I was a bit embarrassed to not to have caught that.
Excellent video, as always Mike! Some outstanding, phenomenal photography here! Two of my favourite photographers are a couple of friends of mine, Eric van Gilder and Anders Nylén, in case that you're doing a part 2! 😉 Wish you a most enjoyable weekend!
Your video was an absolute blast. Very interesting subject and well researched. As always you conveyed your passion for aviation this time trough photography, which is so important because this is probably the only way to admire aircrafts. (Even pilots are stuck in their tiny cockpit so they have no clue how it looks like to be 1000 fts behind a cruising 747 at sundown) As for names of famous photographers, I would say Paul Bowden for the civil side and Katsuhiko Tokunaga for the fast jet military side. (Maybe you mentioned them in your video as I type this before having completely watched it)
In the UK, the doyen of vintage aviation photography was Charles E Brown. Check out the three-volume series of books "Camera Above the Clouds". Many of his images are THE photos of various types. Did I see two of his in your opening few minutes - the Saunders-Roe jet flying boat fighter and the air and ground crew in front of the Avro Vulcan? Great video as always, Mike.
Many thanks and yes, I believe those two photos you mentioned were by Charles Brown, but could not confirm that before we posted the video. He was one of the very best in that era!
Sometimes your videos have a sucker punch of nostalgia for me. I'm 55 and more and more you seem like the older brother I never had. I too staged model planes and photographed them. My first camera was my mothers Kodak Brownie and my father taught me 35MM on his Pentax Spotmatic. I still have both. Take care of yourself and keep the excellent videos coming.
Another great video Mike. Really enjoy these. I was hoping to see some of Brain Shul’s work in your presentation. He took some absolutely wonderful pictures of the SR-71 during his time flying it. Sadly he recently passed away but you can find his story pretty easily on TH-cam.
👋🤠 Greetings from Missouri ! Beautimously Wundertastic photograhy !!! 😻 them ALL @3:19 That PA 747 looks like the first time I saw one. Out the window of a TWA 707 in London. March of 1971, I think. I know I was in 5th grade and it was BEFORE the Munich Olympics. 🥲 thank you @15:43 I like the ground DOWN ... where it is SUPPOSED to be 🙂
Hey Mike, the X-47B was built by Northrop-Grumman, not Boeing. Boeing's UCAV Demonstrator was the X-45B, which flew during DOD's J-UCAV Dem/Eval Program.
I love the focus on photography. I am an avid photographer myself (landscapes and flowers mainly), but my system of choice is Nikon. I love my D3x ☺ There is something to be said for the early Kodachrome. I love the warm, almost pastel hues.
Mike, I agree it would be great to-do a video on Kodachrome film. I still have hundreds of slides from JFK EWR and LGA, among many other Airports over 50 years of shooting!
Yes, the hallowed "Fly DOUGLAS" sign (changed in 1980 to "Fly DC JETS) is still on top of Building 80 at Long Beach, protected by its status as a California Historical Monument. The plant is gone, but that building is now used by Mercedes Benz as its West Coast processing facility. Thanks for watching!
This is the first mention I have seen of Major Shul's death. Such a wonderful hero. Past way too young. At least he passed doing something he loved. Blue skies and Mach 3 Major!
@@celebratingaviationwithmik9782 sorry I thought you said the Late Clay Lacey but it was the great Clay Lacey. I took it as he's gone. He saved a C-97 or two from being scrapped but no one seems to no what he did with them or going to do with them.
Just a wonderful vid Mike. But i am calling you out on the X-47.....see that N/G on the wing? That is not a boeing built airplane. It was built by Northrop Grumman.
Mike, why no mention of Brian Shul, who took some one-of-a-kind photos of the SR-71. I know there might have been some copyright concerns with the photos, but he should have been mentioned.
Maybe his focus was more limited, but nobody shot the SR-71 better than the late retired USAF Major Brian Shul. Many of his photographs were unavailable for public view for many years, because they were classified images of a classified airplane, and the locations of the photographs were unavailable to anyone who did not have access to the restricted areas where the photos were taken, including the cockpit during flight. He was not only a photographer of the aircraft, he was also one of its pilots. His book "Sled Driver" is probably the single best collection extant of photographs of the SR-71, and should deserve mention in this video.
In 1903 man first flew a plane, in 1909 the first aerial photo was taken….it was used to show crew tracking where the pilots were so their trip could be extended 😉.
Love it!
During my fathers time in the Army in the 50’s he became a “public relations “ photographer (as it was then called) for the 18th airborne corps. He took many pics from the door of C-119s. Still have a few action shots somewhere of those box car jumps.
what a pleasurable episode Mike. Your work have turned this airplane buff in to a full on aviation buff. You keep expanding my knowledge and breadth of interest
Appreciate the comment, thanks!
On the inverted photo, I'm much much prefer it with the ground up. It pulls me right into the cockpit, and I got a feeling of floating. ❤
Totally agree
Great episode!
No discussion of aviation photography is complete without a bow to Katsuhiko Tokunaga. His work in Koku-Fan alone is simply amazing, let alone his books.
Mike, you should do a follow-up video on Kodachrome film and aviation. The quality of shots taken on that film 80+ years ago is astounding.
Agreed 100% on Katsu, and good suggestion on Kodachrome. Thanks for watching!
I was a lucky enough kid to have a father in the USAF during the 60's and 70's who brought home official poster art and prints to me to put up in my room to go along with all the model aircraft I was building. I still have the bulk of them packed away in crates in tubes in my big 'warehouse' of a storage room. Now I'm going to have to get them out. It's going to take a weekend. What have you done, Mike? LoLoLoL!!
You totally hit this one out of the park!
Many thanks!
Cool photos, I used to work as a skydiving photographer, before GoPros.
Would love to post a couple.
It's amazing how a "Best Buy" drone can do the work, and more, than using a helicopter for those Higher Altitude shots, but the helicopter is more fun....... Some people say "A picture is worth a thousand works," But all the pictures in this vid are worth a million words. Top-notch work.
Many thanks!
Outstanding!
Mike, this is great, BUT I only got 4:45 in (time to run out the door for work.)
Will finish this afternoon. Thanks ahead of time..........
What a SPLENDID episode, Mike! My now 91-year-old father was a corporate photographer for the old McDonnell Aircraft in St. Louis, MO, during the 1960s, when they were cranking out LOTS of F-4 Phantoms, and also the Gemini spacecraft. Later, with General Dynamics in Ft. Worth, TX, he shot LOTS of still & video of the F-111, including carrier suitability trials when DOD was trying to force the Navy to buy them. In the earlier years of the F-16, GD was VERY big on publicity and marketing, and had significant presence at both the Farnborough and Paris air shows for a number of years. Dad said they were lots of fun - but as other GD suppliers and coproducers in Belgium, Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands were integral to coproduction, Dad & others did a lot of filming at those facilities, and Dad recalled that multiple border crossings and going thru customs with all of their bulky audio & video equipment got to be a chore. Since GD produced and distributed a lot of publicity photos and other knick-knacks, I have a lot of what Dad passed on to me, and I treasure it all.
Wonderful story and comment, and thanks for watching!
Beautiful, Mike. Beautiful!
Many thanks!
This can only be expressed in one word. OUTSTANDING!!!!! I am always in awe of what you present. I look forward to seeing your new presentations. Thanks😊
Really appreciate the wonderful comment, thanks!
Another great and informative video thank you and keep them coming.
Hi Mike! Tuned in for another premiere.
Thanks Vik!
Truly stunning photography. Nice to see/hear the background stories on the photo's. How did the Douglas photographer get such great shots from the helicopter? The vibrations from hovering were often severe and we would try to get the pilot to just "slide" slowly to get any kind of success at a shot, otherwise it looked like we were strapped to a paint mixer while taking the pictures.
Great point Chuck, and that 'copter always circled to get those photos. I remember my very first flight at age 10 in an early-model Bell-47G, and it nearly shook my teeth out! (Looked a lot smoother in the "Whirlybirds" TV show!)
Gee...another great video...what more can we expect!!! Ground up BTW...
👍👍👍
3:20 i recognize this place, rooftop parking at the "Skyport" PanAm terminal and guessing 1974ish time?
I spent many a Saturdays with my Cameras, 110 and a Pentak K1000 with a zoom lens...
** Warning** Please allot additional viewing time to the posted 19:05
Pauses on AWESOME photos not in run time.
El sueño de volar, como solo Mike nos puede mostrar..... Congrats, AMAZING job, A-37 our special bird in Guatemala
well done mike,great video. kind regards from australia.
Many thanks!
Well your production team has done it again. Another great video. As always thanks for sharing great work.
Yes, they try hard, thanks!
my favorite planes are the DC 3 and the M 400
It's all about access. You, along with the other great photogs, were in the right time and position to have the access to some outstanding subjects. And being able to show you have the skill and eye to capture some priceless moments. Even better when it is or becomes your job. As an Air Force boom operator, I had views that I too was able to capture. Some were daily training, while others are now part of our military history. Thanks for the video.
As a Marine Corps A-4 Skyhawk maintainer, and later an engineer for McDonnell Douglas, I've spent a long time looking at Harry Gann's photos. I was both impressed by the photos and quite envious of him getting to spend some time in the air taking the photos! Good to learn about Don Adams and all of the other skilled and creative photographers. As a hobbyist aviation photographer, I'm still learning about composition and such, but I suspect that finding a new and unique perspective for viewing the subject is a major factor for success. Having a helicopter would sure be handy! Also... clouds are a huge factor, but not exactly something you can buy at the camera store. 😄
Great comment, thanks!
As a teen, I took pictures of some of my models. Used my Square Shooter II instant camera, with the film cartridges. The pics all had weird faint blue and pink bands down the pic, due to the chemicals and roller system. Looked like crap. 😫
A buddy out in Idaho was a Photographer's Mate on the carrier USS Ticonderoga during the Vietnam War. He has some great stories, and has shown me some of his photos.
Thank you Mike! Exceptionally done!! Amazing moments frozen in time of our favorite subjects. I especially loved the Corsair formation!
I've enjoyed taking aircraft photos since I was a kid. Yes, models too, and some from the air. These photos are great.
Many thanks!
Another great presentation Mike. All of these people are fabulous photographers. I have long been a fan of the work of Jay Miller, Chad Slattery and Tony Landis. Tony is also one of the nicest guys you will ever meet. The work of Don Adams is incredible too. I didn't know about him until recently, that he was the man who took all those superb Douglas aircraft photos decades ago. As always, thank you for all your effort in compiling these fantastic videos.
Awesome photographs Mr. Machat. The photographers; works are excellent. Brought back a lot of memories going to airshows and car shows and taking pictures. Started with A Kodak Brownie to an East German Pentaflex to an Olympus OM1 System camera. The good old days of manual film cameras. While watching this video one story came to mind. The Leica that fell from the sky. A photographer taking pictures for the US Air Force had to eject along with the pilot. The Leica fell over 20,000 feet into the desert. A few years later it was found and the film was still in the camera and the pictures were developed. I remember seeing the camera at a Photo show in Toronto, Canada.
Mike of all of your videos, I like (love) this one the best: speaking as a retired technical writer/photographer. If I had it all to do over again, I definitely would have become an aviation photographer (and artist). By-the-way, I was a USAF officer from 1979 to 1989 serving as a Minute Man Combat Crew member and also as an aircraft maintenance officer. One of my favorite memories was getting to see the last RAF AVRO Vulcan on its fair well tour of the US in 1982 and meeting the crew. PS - I owned a Canon F-1 and have had only Canon SLRs starting with the FX in 1969.
Wonderful comment, thanks!
This channel is a goldmine.
Appreciate the comment - many thanks!
Excellent as always but where is the obligatory box top photo?
I stand corrected. Good eye Rich, I must have blinked.@@SPboxcar67290l
Thanks Mike. Brilliant material and a great presentation. Everyone's a winner as the saying and song goes. Mike, you might have told me that you were the editor of America's Round-Engine Airliners. I'm the guy that wrote in an earlier thread that I once bought a book because the Connie on the front. I was a bit embarrassed to not to have caught that.
The Smasher is awesome. Is it still around?
Excellent video, as always Mike!
Some outstanding, phenomenal photography here!
Two of my favourite photographers are a couple of friends of mine, Eric van Gilder and Anders Nylén, in case that you're doing a part 2! 😉
Wish you a most enjoyable weekend!
A great collection of pictures, Mike. Thanks !
Glad you enjoyed it
Full of photography artistry and artists! Amazing episode as usual, Mike! Greetings from Brazil!
Many thanks!
Your video was an absolute blast. Very interesting subject and well researched. As always you conveyed your passion for aviation this time trough photography, which is so important because this is probably the only way to admire aircrafts. (Even pilots are stuck in their tiny cockpit so they have no clue how it looks like to be 1000 fts behind a cruising 747 at sundown) As for names of famous photographers, I would say Paul Bowden for the civil side and Katsuhiko Tokunaga for the fast jet military side. (Maybe you mentioned them in your video as I type this before having completely watched it)
In the UK, the doyen of vintage aviation photography was Charles E Brown. Check out the three-volume series of books "Camera Above the Clouds". Many of his images are THE photos of various types. Did I see two of his in your opening few minutes - the Saunders-Roe jet flying boat fighter and the air and ground crew in front of the Avro Vulcan? Great video as always, Mike.
Many thanks and yes, I believe those two photos you mentioned were by Charles Brown, but could not confirm that before we posted the video. He was one of the very best in that era!
Sometimes your videos have a sucker punch of nostalgia for me. I'm 55 and more and more you seem like the older brother I never had. I too staged model planes and photographed them. My first camera was my mothers Kodak Brownie and my father taught me 35MM on his Pentax Spotmatic. I still have both. Take care of yourself and keep the excellent videos coming.
Appreciate the comment, thanks!
Another great video Mike. Really enjoy these. I was hoping to see some of Brain Shul’s work in your presentation. He took some absolutely wonderful pictures of the SR-71 during his time flying it. Sadly he recently passed away but you can find his story pretty easily on TH-cam.
Astounding video, incredible photograps and master photographers! Thanks a lot, Mike.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Sure I did, Mike!
👋🤠 Greetings from Missouri !
Beautimously Wundertastic photograhy !!! 😻 them ALL
@3:19 That PA 747 looks like the first time I saw one. Out the window of a TWA 707 in London. March of 1971, I think.
I know I was in 5th grade and it was BEFORE the Munich Olympics. 🥲 thank you
@15:43 I like the ground DOWN ... where it is SUPPOSED to be 🙂
Thanks again, Mr. Machat !! 548👍 ✌
Great comment, thanks!
Hey Mike, the X-47B was built by Northrop-Grumman, not Boeing. Boeing's UCAV Demonstrator was the X-45B, which flew during DOD's J-UCAV Dem/Eval Program.
Yes, that is correct.
I love the focus on photography. I am an avid photographer myself (landscapes and flowers mainly), but my system of choice is Nikon. I love my D3x ☺ There is something to be said for the early Kodachrome. I love the warm, almost pastel hues.
13:50 Is that B58 photo taken at Pima Air Museum?
Yes, good catch!
Mike, I agree it would be great to-do a video on Kodachrome film. I still have hundreds of slides from JFK EWR and LGA, among many other Airports over 50 years of shooting!
Gem of a channel.
Many thanks!
Fantastic Mike!!
Many thanks!
Can't be a photo of N777L ..
No Heavy Oil streaking..
I know..cleaned it.haha
Hello , is the"fly Douglas jet" logo still on the building roof nowadays?
Yes, the hallowed "Fly DOUGLAS" sign (changed in 1980 to "Fly DC JETS) is still on top of Building 80 at Long Beach, protected by its status as a California Historical Monument. The plant is gone, but that building is now used by Mercedes Benz as its West Coast processing facility. Thanks for watching!
@@celebratingaviationwithmik9782 this is a good news ! Thanks 👍
A great military photographer that deserves mention is CJ Heatley. Heater was a Naval aviator that was behind THE book about naval aviation.
RIP Major Brian Shul !!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is the first mention I have seen of Major Shul's death. Such a wonderful hero. Past way too young. At least he passed doing something he loved. Blue skies and Mach 3 Major!
What will become of the two C-97s that Clay Lacey saved now that he is gone. Great video as always.
'Don't know about the two C-97s, and where did you hear that Clay Lacy is gone?
@@celebratingaviationwithmik9782 sorry I thought you said the Late Clay Lacey but it was the great Clay Lacey. I took it as he's gone. He saved a C-97 or two from being scrapped but no one seems to no what he did with them or going to do with them.
It looks like Judy must be in a roll as her hair is not falling down!
Good catch!
Just a wonderful vid Mike. But i am calling you out on the X-47.....see that N/G on the wing? That is not a boeing built airplane. It was built by Northrop Grumman.
Yes, that is correct. Early-onset Alzhiemers...
Mike, why no mention of Brian Shul, who took some one-of-a-kind photos of the SR-71. I know there might have been some copyright concerns with the photos, but he should have been mentioned.
Maybe his focus was more limited, but nobody shot the SR-71 better than the late retired USAF Major Brian Shul. Many of his photographs were unavailable for public view for many years, because they were classified images of a classified airplane, and the locations of the photographs were unavailable to anyone who did not have access to the restricted areas where the photos were taken, including the cockpit during flight. He was not only a photographer of the aircraft, he was also one of its pilots. His book "Sled Driver" is probably the single best collection extant of photographs of the SR-71, and should deserve mention in this video.
FYI, Airbus A^3 is actually pronounced “A cubed”.
My apologies, thanks.
Inverted. Of course!
Too bad IMAX and hi res digital photography didn't exist in the early days of flight test at Edwards.
Agreed!
What a video without a box top, tell me it's not so.
Okay, it's not so😁 Look around 1:36 it's small. I had to go back and rewatch the vid👍
That's better, I must have been asleep. Thanks@@SPboxcar67290l
The F-15 Israeli Air Force IDF & F-16 too Israeli air force IDF.
❤😊🎉Very interesting & informative about aviation. The A-4 Skyhawk Israeli Air Force IDF. Little jet.🛫🛬✈️🛩️