Javier Ortiz - Tandem Camera Flyer

A D A Y I N T H E L I F E O F

Javier Ortiz - Tandem Camera Flyer

All photos: MARC NORMAN - SKYDIVE DUBAI

A camera flyer isn’t just a regular skydiver. They are professional photographers with the ability to get the best shots, and the flying skills to get into the best positions to take said shots. During a tandem skydive, they exit at the same time as you and ensure every unbelievable second is recorded on video, and that your exit, freefall, parachute opening, and landing are all captured in high-quality images.

Javier Ortiz better known as ‘Buzz’ in Skydive Dubai, is one of the best in the business. He started skydiving while he was still in high-school and has travelled the world with his parachute and lens in hand.

Buzz has been working at Skydive Dubai for a number of years and currently serves as an assistant chief instructor. He holds multiple skydiving instructor ratings and just loves to take amazing pictures on the ground and in the sky.

A camera flyer isn't just a regular skydiver."

This is what Javier has to say about a typical day in his life:

7 am Mornings in Dubai nearly always have good light, so I often get up early to work on some photography project or the other. I live in the Marina area, which gives me plenty of opportunities to shoot buildings, people, daily life, or just try out new lenses. So, after a quick breakfast, I’m out the door for an hour or two.

8.45 am After having a bit of fun with the camera, I come back home, change, and chill with a cup of coffee for a while (I’m a cappuccino man!), before skateboarding to the dropzone for work. One of the many great things about working at Skydive Dubai is that if you work at the Palm you have your mornings free because we start work at 10 am.

9.30 am I like to get to the dropzone early. It gives me a chance to chat and relax with the other instructors and staff before the day really begins. We have a great rapport here between the staff because we are after all working in an amazing industry and live a life that’s pretty special. There are very few people who get to say their office is 13,000ft. in the air!

9.53 am The dropzone opens for customers at 10 am, so a few minutes before that I’ll head inside, check what ‘team’ I’m working with that day, layout my gear and do the first safety check of the day. As you might imagine, we are exceptionally safety conscious. Everything is constantly monitored as part of the daily routine – the equipment, the winds and conditions, the cameras, lenses, aircraft, everything!

10.20 am Once I’ve run through my checks, I start on my cameras. I love photography and have spent many years working on technique and expanding my knowledge of the equipment, functions, features, composition of the shot, etc. My cameras are my babies! I make sure I have empty memory cards and spares if needed and spend a few minutes cleaning the lenses thoroughly. I’ll always take a few snaps on the ground in various lighting and make sure the settings are exactly how I want them for the day.

10.45 am The first load usually takes off about 11 am once the first batch of customers are checked in. At this point, the tandem instructor is briefing the first student of the day, after which I interview them. Everyone has their own interview style, and I feel it’s important to make the student feel comfortable. At this point, they’re in the skydiving harness and about to get onto an aircraft, so it’s good to have a few minutes to see how they’re feeling. During the interview I’ll always ask if they have understood everything the instructor has said just in case they have a question, and of course, if they’re ready to skydive, which usually gets an ‘Oh yeah!’ Everything else depends on the person, some people are really scared, and some are really pumped.

11 am When the plane arrives we get on the buggies which drive us to the loading area at the Palm dropzone. I think this is when it hits some people that they’re about to jump out of a plane, and just chatting and asking people about themselves can ease some of their tension.

11.02 am In the loading area I take some photos of the student and the instructor with the airplane in the background, and then we get on-board and buckle up our seatbelts.

11.05 am The scenery is spectacular, and I still love flying here every day. The runway juts out into the Arabian Gulf, so when we take off it’s all blue water, yachts and boats, and then over the Ain Dubai, which is currently under construction. When we’re a little bit higher, it’s nice to look down on the skyscrapers, and see people going about their daily business while we’re flying!

11.10 am About half way up, I’ll interview the student again in the plane. It’s a shorter interview this time, but it looks great on the video edit afterward, especially when the students are excited, or nervous, or making jokes.

11.15 am As we approach exit altitude, I check all my equipment again and the instructor attaches the student to the tandem parachute system. I make sure all my cameras are on and ready to shoot, and because I’m in front of the instructor and student I make sure all the little things are sorted, like goggles are on properly and the seatbelts are out of the way.

11.17 am Once we get the green light from the pilot, I’ll climb into position outside the door of the aircraft, and the instructor will get into position so we’re looking at each other face to face. The student is usually nervous at this point, so I always try to give them a big smile and thumbs-up. As soon as they smile back, they always look a little more relaxed

There are very few people who get to say their office is 13,000ft. in the air!"

11.18 am The instructor gives the count. Ready, set, and we leave the plane. At first, I’ll try and be a little bit below them, so I can get the faces of both the student and the instructor and the plane in the background always makes for a great exit shot.After a few seconds, I’ll position myself in front of the tandem passenger. Although you can’t hear them in freefall you can always see a ‘Woohoo’ or an ‘Aaaaah!’ Most people start to smile and enjoy the experience at this point.I’ll fly a bit higher to get a good shot with the Palm in the background and do a couple of rotations around them so the video has a nice 360 view of Dubai, the World Islands, and the skyline. Depending on the conditions or time of day I might try and include a few clouds, or a sunset silhouette if possible. They make for some great photos too. When the instructor is ready to deploy the parachute, I pop up a little bit again and keep the Palm in the background. If I’m a little higher the student passes right by me and I can get their reaction on camera. Then I turn and deploy my own parachute. All that takes about 60 seconds.

Javier doing what he does best - capturing!

I turn and deploy my own parachute. All that takes about 60 seconds."

11.21 am Because our parachutes are faster than the tandem parachutes, I land a couple of minutes before them. The instructors here are excellent and always land in a great position in front of me, which really round off the video well. I’ll ask them if they enjoyed it, and if they would do it again. They’re still full of adrenaline after landing so there’s often some great reactions! Then I’ll escort them off the landing area.

11.25 am At this point, I’ve shot all footage needed for the video and the pictures, so I give my memory cards to the video department so they can do their edits, add music and slow motion, and make the video worth watching again and again.

We’re really proud at Skydive Dubai that we not only deliver a great experience, but a great product afterward. The quality here of the photographers and the instructors is outstanding when compared to many other dropzones around the world, so we do work very hard to make sure that the customer goes away with a product that goes well beyond expectations.

11.30 am That’s the first jump of the day done. And for me, it’s time to interview the next tandem student and start the process again. We usually do 7 to 8 skydives a day, and it really is an amazing profession to work with your friends on the dropzone.

5 pm We finish work when the sun begins to set. At the moment, that’s a little after 5 pm. After work, I like to relax. There’s always a lot of mental and physical energy used throughout the day, so I like my downtime in the evening. I throw on some music, take a shower, and cook dinner. If I’m not out working on a new personal photography project, I’ll do some photo or video editing, or meet up with the guys for dinner.

It’s great to have such a bond with your colleagues that you want to meet after work or do something on the weekends. And we’ve such a diverse and driven group of people here that everyone always wants to try something new or do some activity.

10 pm That’s it. Then I’m off to bed to get my beauty sleep for the next day!

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