[Chris Buhlmann]

Of all the images I have taken in my career this one is still my best. In the days when I still flew as a Naval officer and got good enough shooting from the cockpit to bring in medium format film, this was a once in a lifetime capture. To try to set the stage here. Your in two jets traveling at 350 mph, your setting up a nose high maneuver that you need to compensate how your hold the camera, your doing a count down over the radio of when the other plane will hit their flare release button and you press your shutter when you hit the word execute. When the 645s mirror comes gets back to normal you only see the last trail of a flare and you do not know what you got until you develop the film. It took alot of years of flying and getting a sense of timing for shots in the air when action happens in 100ths of seconds and then its gone. And to have done that all at the last light of day handheld at I think 1/125th of a second. Just does not get any better.

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[gmans]

You wanted the shot and you got it. great timing. "I nominate this photo"

[SoC1Bar]

I'm normally pretty good at naming jets, so I'm going to name that an Intruder? Apologies if I'm wrong and this shot is SOOO nominated!

[Chris Buhlmann]

Would have been good of me to mention the aircraft type. It is an S-3B Viking S-3s flew from 1976 until 2004. Main mission was carrier based anti submarine and anti surfrace warfare. West Coast had 6 squadrons most of the time and one forward deployed in Japan.
This shot was of the VS-38 Red Griffins

[John Elger]

I nominate this photo. Cause it's so rare and well done.

[SunValley]

I nominate this photo! Well done!

[manntax]

Fantastic shot ! A nomination for the timing and fantastic framing - especially considering the circumstances !

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Last edited by Parallax; 05-06-2014 at 01:43 PM.

[RubyT]

Nominated!

[micromacro]

Amazing. I nominate!

[calculator01]

Nominated for the uniqueness and pleasantry

[lukulele]

Of all the images I have taken in my career this one is still my best. In the days when I still flew as a Naval officer and got good enough shooting from the cockpit to bring in medium format film, this was a once in a lifetime capture. To try to set the stage here. Your in two jets traveling at 350 mph, your setting up a nose high maneuver that you need to compensate how your hold the camera, your doing a count down over the radio of when the other plane will hit their flare release button and you press your shutter when you hit the word execute. When the 645s mirror comes gets back to normal you only see the last trail of a flare and you do not know what you got until you develop the film. It took alot of years of flying and getting a sense of timing for shots in the air when action happens in 100ths of seconds and then its gone. And to have done that all at the last light of day handheld at I think 1/125th of a second. Just does not get any better.

Nominate for so many reasons. NAS Glynco 1968-70 stuffing cases of steaks in the tiny galley of Hurricane Hunter Constellations for long flights. Great Image!

[axelm7]

I see very few nominations for what is an obvious contender to win this contest! Photography, among other things, is about getting that once-in-a-lifetime shot and this is one of those shots. The amount of trouble you went through to get the picture (and holding a medium format camera on top of the difficulty of controlling an airplane) must have produced an incredible reaction from you when developing. On top of that the colors are very pleasing and what's going on in the shot itself, not to mention the background, is simply astonishing. Great job mate, here's a well-deserved nomination.

[Chris Buhlmann]

One clarification. The S-3 Viking was a four seat jet. When I shot this I was in the copilot seat not flying the airplane at that time. Having said that the pilot is looking through me to keep formation on the the jet I was photographing not easy. The flare release was handled by the mission commander in the back seat of the jet being photographed. So he can not see us. the shot is great example as well of crew coordination that was a foundation of naval aviation flight training.

[Clicker]

I nominate this photo, "no pilots or air crafts were hurt"

[s15cuz]

nominate this pciture for the great moment