INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM FOR AVIATION PHOTOGRAPHY
FORUM 2010 LAS VEGAS, NEVADA
SPONSORED BY: AIRCRAFT OWNERS & PILOTS ASSOCIATION • BOEING • CANON USA • DELKIN DEVICES • LOCKHEED MARTIN AERONAUTICS COMPANY NIKON USA • NORTHROP GRUMMAN • SIGMA CORPORATION • THINK TANK PHOTO
ISAP 2010
I N T E R N AT I O N A L S Y M P O S I U M F O R A V I A T I O N P H O T O G R A P H Y
Introduction
Eric Curry
Eric Schulzinger
Carolyn Russo
Moose Peterson
Frans Dely
Welcome! It’s a pleasure to welcome you to this, the Ninth Annual… INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM for AVIATION PHOTOGRAPHY! Our mission is to provide a major international forum for the art and science of aviation photography; to provide a means for the exchange of aviation photography ideas, technique, philosophy, and equipment; and perhaps most importantly, to provide a mechanism for communication, education, and friendship among those who have a professional stake in, interest in, or simple love of aviation photography. We’re very pleased you could join us. We have a terrific schedule lined up and the slate of speakers and special guests is truly world class. On the following pages you will find a day-by-day, hour-by-hour program covering each of the next three days. We hope you will find many things of interest!
Cover: photos courtesy of AOPA
Paul Bowen
ISAP 2010
I N T E R N AT I O N A L S Y M P O S I U M F O R A V I A T I O N P H O T O G R A P H Y
Agenda
Opening Reception: WEDNESDAY, March 3, 2010 •6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.: Please join us for wine & hors d’oeuvres in the Southwest Events Center (northwest corner of the Hampton Inn Tropicana property). Courtesy of the Hampton Inn Tropicana
Session 1: THURSDAY, March 4, 2010
for Pocket Wizard radio remotes. Pocket Wizards have long been a staple of sports photographers, who used them to wirelessly trigger cameras squeezed into spaces too dangerous or too inaccessible for live operators. Aviation photographers quickly followed, strapping cameras and strobes onto aircraft for views never before possible. Today, Pocket Wizard has a new line of transmitters and receivers that offer possibilities thought impossible even five years ago. Lorenzo will review their differences, explore their capabilities, and challenge us all to make photographs never seen before. Bring him your questions!
• 12 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.: • 6:45 a.m. to 7:45 a.m.:
Lunch courtesy of Canon USA.
Registration confirmation and badge pickup at the Southwest Events Center.
• 1:00 p.m. to 2:15 p.m.:
• 7:45 a.m. to 8:00 a.m.: Welcome and updates by JAY MILLER and CHAD SLATTERY.
• 8:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.: ERIC SCHULZINGER -- is a founding member of ISAP, a member of our Board of Directors, and famous along with ISAP’s Denny Lombard for their legendary photographs of iconic stealth aircraft from Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works. At ISAP I in 2001 he showed us images of the F-117 made at Tonopah under strict secrecy prior to its public unveiling. Today Eric returns to ISAP IX as Lockheed Martin’s Director of Multimedia Communications. While he continues to make occasional stills (reflecting a mastery of theatrical lighting), he now focuses on directing the company’s commercials. With “adapt or die” as his mantra, Eric strongly advocates that still photographers begin learning how to make videos. Today’s presentation will center on his experiences with the new generation of videocapable still cameras, and how he made the transition to directing.
CAROLYN RUSSO -- has worked at the National Air and Space Museum since 1988 as a staff photographer and curator, developing so much expertise along the way that she was recently designated as a specialist in NASM’s Aeronautics Division. She’s published three outstanding collections of photography: In Plane View, Artifacts of Flight, and Women and Flight: Portraits of Contemporary Women Pilots. This year she’s deep into her newest project, a photographic survey of airport towers from around the globe. There’s not a photographer alive who doesn’t dream of doing a book; Carolyn is going to share her path to publishing with us and maybe help us all edge a little closer to that goal.
• 2:15 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.:
Break
MAX HAYNES – takes the slot this year that ISAP traditionally reserves to spotlight the work of a particularly talented member. A generalist working out of Minnesota, Max’s portfolio includes everything from ground shots at Oshkosh to aerials of Santa Claus flying a T-6. His aviation clients include Warbird Digest, Classic Wings, Air & Space/Smithsonian, Motorbooks, and Midwest Flyer. He has photographed on the Nimitz, out of Trimotors, and way too close to pyrotechnic demonstrations. Join us for Max’s wide-ranging look at aviation.
• 9:45 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.:
• 3:30 p.m. to 3:45 p.m.
FRANS DELY – Frans has journeyed here from South Africa to make good our claim to being an International Society. He is a third generation photographer, and in 1995 became the first in South Africa to go digital. In the late 1990’s he began concentrating on South Africa’s aviation subjects. Since then he has gone on assignment for Airbus, South African Airways, Pilatus, Beechcraft, Cessna, BAe, SAAB, and Gripen. He has been widely published around the world. In 2004 he produced Soaring with Eagles, a richly illustrated history of the South African Air Force. Recently he took up the challenge of magazine publishing, as photography editor of Global Aviator magazine, and began yet another career, as an aviation videographer. Today Frans will share the challenges and rewards of photographing aircraft in Africa’s southernmost country.
Break
• 9:30 a.m. to 9:45 a.m.:
• 11 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.: LORENZO GASPARINI – is a passionate photographer and innovative marketing representative in our industry. Long identified with Mamiya, Lorenzo has turned his considerable marketing and technology talents towards evangelizing fulltime
• 3:45 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.: BUSINESS MEETING – Never a sleeper, our annual meeting lets members air their gripes, sing the praises of ISAP’s hard working Board, make suggestions for future topics, nominate speakers, and help us figure out where next year’s Symposium ought to be held. If you’ve got ideas, complaints, predictions, or insights, we’re all ears. We expect everyone to participate in this democratic process, and help ISAP’s Board of Directors help you!
• 5:15 p.m. to 5:45 p.m.: Portfolio reviews by ISAP editors. Get some constructive feedback and valuable critiques, by seasoned professionals. To accommodate as many 15-minute sessions as possible, bring no more than fifteen images…as prints (no larger than 11x14, please) or digital images on your laptop.
End of First Session.
Agenda
Session 2:
• 3:00 p.m.:
FRIDAY, March 5, 2010
Stop at Aggressor Squadron for photos; Maj. Jan Stahl, 65th AS F-15 pilot
Begin loading the buses (courtesy of Lockheed Martin) in front of the hotel for the start of the field trip.
• 7:00 a.m.: Buses depart promptly for our jam-packed, thrill-a-minute orientation tour of Nellis Air Force Base. PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING: (1) You will need to carry i.d. with you at all times (driver’s licenses for US citizens and passports for foreign nationals). (2) Do not be late! We will not wait for you; we are on a tight schedule! (3) Please respect, unequivocally, the requests of our escorts. Security and safety are critical issues—and are taken very seriously. (4) Bring and use sunglasses, sunscreen, over-the-ear hearing protection, and water. Since lunch isn’t until 1:30 p.m., tuck an energy bar or two into your camera case.
• 7:30 a.m.: Buses arrive at Nellis AFB front gate for check-in.
• 7:45 a.m. to 8:15 a.m.: Threat Training Facility tour and photos with tour guide
• 8:15 a.m. – 8:40 a.m.: Public Affairs photography brief: how to help the Air Force help you.
• 8:45 a.m. – 9:45 a.m.: Brief on the literally top secret Red Eagles program, which flew and evaluated Soviet fighter jets; brief by Mr. Gail Peck, Weapons School F-15/F-22 SME.
• 9:45 a.m.: Depart for flight line.
• 9:50 a.m.: Set up for Red Flag launches: Group 1 between runways, and Group 2 near end of runway.
• 1:00 p.m.: Depart flight line for lunch at Freedom Park static displays.
• 1:30 p.m. – 2:45 p.m. Lunch for ISAP and PAO at Freedom Park
• 2:45 p.m.: Load buses for return to flight line.
• 3:30 p.m.: Stop at Thunderbirds demonstration team for facility tour and brief
• 4:30 p.m.: Return to buses for return trip to the Hampton Inn Tropicana.
• 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.: OPEN FORUM in the Southwest Events Center main meeting room. We’ll have slide and video projectors available but you’ll need to bring your own laptop for the latter.
End of Second Session.
Session 3: Saturday, March 6, 2010 • 7:30 a.m. to 7:45 a.m.: Welcome and updates by JAY MILLER and CHAD SLATTERY.
• 7:45 a.m. to 9:15 a.m.: JIM SUGAR – is a world-famous photographer with a long string of National Geographic credits to his name. He will discuss a life spent in photography, with special emphasis on aviation photography--both in the air and on the ground. Jim has long had unique access to Burt Rutan at Scaled Composites; his genius for light and Burt’s genius for aerodynamics combined to give us airplane photography of a quality seldom seen and never exceeded. As photography technology progressed from film to digital and from studio lights to smart on-camera strobes, Jim changed his own workflow to incorporate digital cameras and computers, with special emphasis on Photoshop and Lightroom software. He’ll discuss that evolution, share some lighting techniques, and talk about his move into video. Not to be missed!
• 9:15 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.: THOMAS BUNCE – amazed us with the ultra-detailed, gigantic prints he brought to ISAP VIII, then flabbergasted us by revealing they were made with an amateur digital camera. Tom is an aerospace engineer who wondered if he could produce 300 megapixel images without buying a $50,000 camera. His secret? You’ll need to be there, but here’s a hint: think stitching.
Jim Sugar
• 6:30 a.m.:
ISAP 2010
I N T E R N AT I O N A L S Y M P O S I U M F O R A V I A T I O N P H O T O G R A P H Y
Agenda
• 10 a.m. to 10:15 a.m.: Break
• 10:15 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.: CANON USA – is a long and venerable sponsor of ISAP Symposia, and we welcome them back for a look at the new cameras, lenses, and goodies that were introduced since the last ISAP in 2008—and we’ll resist the urge to say those are light years in camera time. Visit their table in the foyer for a hands-on look at the all-new EOS-1D Mark IV, EOS 7D, and EOS 5D Mark II.
• 11 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.: ERIC CURRY – joins us fresh off his first Air & Space/Smithsonian cover, with a presentation that offers insights into his superb paint-with-light technique. Eric is promising a show that incorporates 400 images and dozens of anecdotal stories on a wild ride into some very cutting edge aviation photography.
Gregory Heisler
• 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.: Lunch courtesy of Canon USA.
• 1:00 p.m. to 2:15 p.m.: MOOSE PETERSON – is presented courtesy of Nikon USA. We all know Moose as THE premier wildlife photographer, but it turns out he has a secret passion for aircraft, and has given a lot of thought on how to photograph them. He’s a gifted teacher, a 23-book author, a renowned lecturer, and a Nikon Legend Behind the Lens…with those credentials, you know Moose has a lot to teach those of us whose favorite critters are what he calls “silver gas hawks.” He’ll discuss lenses, settings, techniques, and DSLR video with one goal in mind: moving beyond the technical and into the romance of aviation photography.
• 2:15 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.: NIKON USA -- is also a long-standing and outstanding supporter of ISAP. Bill Pekala will return to share a nice selection of Nikon’s newest products, from the hot new D3S to the D300s, and lenses including the 16-35mm G ED VR and 24mm f/1.4 (nope, not a typo…). There’ll be enough long, fast telephoto lenses to tempt your credit cards. Catch up on the latest and greatest at their table, then grab some catalogues to mark up and leave opened on the kitchen table just before your birthday. Nikon is fond of springing surprises on us, so don’t miss this.
• 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.: GREGORY HEISLER – is, bar none, the most innovative portrait photographer of our time. He has 70 Time magazine covers to his credit, and countless magazine features and ad campaigns, yet never repeats himself. A Canon Explorer of Light, Greg continually reinvents himself and his techniques. He uses formats from half-frame 35mm film to 20x24 inch Polaroid, and every type of light imaginable: studio strobes, mixed fluorescents, HMI’s, stuff from Home Depot, and, on occasion, automobile headlamps. He calls this approach
“The Appropriate Response,” a disciplined use of technique to explore the subject, rather than impose a photographic style. Loaded with intelligence, blessed with the sharpest wit in the business, renowned for his irreverence, and a master of lighting, Greg will help you be able to photograph not just airplanes, but airplane people.
• 6:00 p.m: OPEN BAR – Two cash bars will be available adjacent to our meeting room at the Southwest Center while the room is reconfigured for our Banquet.
• 6:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.: Dinner courtesy of Nikon USA. Our special banquet guest and presentation is by one of the most accomplished (and undersung) aeronautical engineers of the past 25 years, Dr. Paul Bevilaqua, Director of Advanced Design at Lockheed Martin Advanced Development Projects— better known as the Skunk Works. Paul was working there in 1986 when DARPA issued a contract to develop a stealthy supersonic aircraft that could launch and land vertically. Nobody believed it was possible--including Paul. But four weeks before the project’s deadline he conceived a design that would use a turbine for power, a shaft to transfer that power, and a fan to convert the power into lift. His lift-fan propulsion system formed the conceptual basis for the X-35B and its siblings, which evolved into the F-35 and is guaranteed to keep Lockheed Martin in clover for many years to come. He and his Skunk Works team have won many awards. Tonight he’ll share his experiences with us.
Agenda/Closing
by these fragile flying machines and their lucky talented builders!
ISAP AUCTION
GEORGE HALL LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD Paul Bowen was accorded this honor, our industry’s highest, in 2008, but was unable to attend due to a major assignment. If Paul doesn’t show this year, we may have to auction off his trophy just to pay the storage charges…
The auction items being offered during ISAP-IX are as spectacular as ever. The always suave, thoroughly knowledgeable Jeff Rhodes will serve as auctioneer, presenting rare and very pricey desk models provided by Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and the especially generous Northrop Grumman. Special goodies always get thrown into the pot at the last minute, from autographed models to original art to signed books. Everything will be displayed prior to the auction—so take a look and get that checkbook ready. Remember, it’s all tax deductible – and it all goes for a very good cause: ISAP!
NIKON GPAC Once again it’s time for the amazing, heartbreaking, and sometime just goofy annual Nikon-sponsored Great Paper Airplane Contest (GPAC!). As ever, prizes will be awarded in direct proportion to the engineering talent manifest in the lift-over-drag figures achieved
Don’t lose your Little Red Ticket!!!! An unusual number of terrific door prizes are on the roster this year, including Delkin 32GB flash cards and Sigma lenses.
VERY SPECIAL THANKS TO THE FOLLOWING INDIVIDUALS AND CORPORATE SPONSORS FOR THEIR SUPPORT, HELP, AND ENCOURAGEMENT: Aircraft Owners & Pilots Association (AOPA) Boeing Aerospace Company Canon USA, Inc. David Carlson of Canon USA, Inc. Lauren Davis of the Hampton Inn Tropicana Delkin Devices, Inc. Bill Fortney of Nikon USA, Inc. Eric Hehs of Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company ISAP Board Members: Paul Bowen, David Carlson, Larry Grace, Bonnie Kratz, Denny Lombard (ex officio), Jay Miller, Russell Munson, Michele Peterson, Albert Ross, Eric Schulzinger, Caroline Sheen, Chad Slattery, and Katsuhiko Tokunaga Mike Kline of the Aircraft Owners & Pilots Association (AOPA) Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company Denny Lombard of the Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company
David Metz Susan Miller Nikon USA, Inc. Bill Pekala of Nikon USA, Inc. Kurt Rogers and Think Tank Photo Lewis Shaw and the entire staff of the Hampton Inn Tropicana Sigma Corporation Erik Simonsen of Boeing Donna Lee Slattery Tom Twomey and the Northrop Grumman Corporation Richard VanderMeulen Martin Wood of Delkin Devices, Inc. Program design: Chris Rose, courtesy of the Aircraft Owners & Pilots Association
MANY THANKS TO ALL OF YOU! See you next year! Jay Miller & Chad Slattery
In Memorium Howard Levy 1922 - 2010 ISAP Lifetime Achievement Award 2003
www.aviationphotographers.org