Breakfast flight to KJVL

[rottydaddy]

Certainly not new to many of y'all, but it was my first time there, and the food
at Kealy's was not bad. But really this post is just an excuse to post a couple of pics from my ride in McBuzz's "Champ on steroids", which he was kind enough to let me fly a little.
A coupla very short legs from C77 and back, but I think I got my fix for the weekend... very nice. And Buzz is pretty good company.

I'm taking a shine to flying in this part of the country... lots of comforting flat open spaces and very easy nav with all the right-angle road grids. Not at all like my neck of the woods.

Here we are on short final for 04, and a portrait of McB and 4AC that I hope doesn't show how "dirty" it was...
I know... I think it looked pretty damn clean, too... she's a real peach.

 

[ApacheBob]

That camera is impressive! Great shot!
ApacheBob

 

[rottydaddy]

That camera is impressive! Great shot!
ApacheBob

Eh, it's nothing special... a beat-up Kodak digi shooting at 4 MP with a cheap wide-angle lens. I think the first one came out so well because the light was just perfect there at that hour... boy, that was a great morning for flying.

 

[McBuzz]

Enjoyed having you along Sean, and hope you enjoyed the bit of stick time. Pretty good job with turns and basic attitude flying from the rear, particularly on the way out.

All’s relative I guess. As I explained, in decent weather my wife makes sure the plane gets a rinse just about every other flight. After not having a bath in almost 4 months (the plane) and getting snowed on and iced over last week (as you heard) it looked a bit grungy to me. You know how it goes, “eye of the beholder” and all that stuff.

 

[ScottM]

That camera is impressive! Great shot!
ApacheBob

It is not the camera it is the photographer. Think what Ansel Adams was able to do with a very basic B&W large format camera. I don't think anyone with the most advanced camera in the world could duplicate his artistry.

 

[rottydaddy]

Enjoyed having you along Sean, and hope you enjoyed the bit of stick time. Pretty good job with turns and basic attitude flying from the rear, particularly on the way out.

All’s relative I guess. As I explained, in decent weather my wife makes sure the plane gets a rinse just about every other flight. After not having a bath in almost 4 months (the plane) and getting snowed on and iced over last week (as you heard) it looked a bit grungy to me. You know how it goes, “eye of the beholder” and all that stuff.

I know, I was just teasing... nobody's ever apologized for that to me before, and it struck me as funny. It's all intended as a compliment; that attitude is part of the pride you obviously take in maintaining 4AC.
I certainly enjoyed the stick time... a little odd flying it from the back, but my recent intro to the Cub helped me deal with that somewhat.
As for my rudder work, I guess I'm still at a point where I need to settle in a little longer in a given taildragger on a given flight before I get the timing just right- took me a while to learn to do it right in the Champ I flew, even with a good view of the ball. The type is funny like that- needs early rudder but it's easy to put in too much.

Thanks again, take good care of her, and enjoy... even that brief trip was well worth the trouble of preheating, etc... with a good plane and a good morning, there's no good excuse to not go flying!!

 

[rottydaddy]

It is not the camera it is the photographer. Think what Ansel Adams was able to do with a very basic B&W large format camera. I don't think anyone with the most advanced camera in the world could duplicate his artistry.

Come to think of it, that shot might look pretty good in B&W.

I will admit it's one of my better in-flight pics: luck played a role, as I shot it "blind", holding it up a little to peek over his shoulder. No way to look thru the viewfinder or even see the LCD... it doesn't always work out so well, especially the shot being so level.
It's a crummy lens, creates a little too much distortion and colors the images a little, but in a shot like this it sometimes yields a pretty good feeling of depth.
I mostly just use it to try to squeeze more information into the shot- very useful for aircraft interiors or trying to shoot static aircraft when there's not enough room to stand back for a full view.
I think that picture captures the feeling of the moment pretty well, and that's what it's all about sometimes, even if the shot is not perfectly lit or composed.