Seattle – An Adventure in Awesome

The Story Behind an Image, Part 10

Ever since 2004, I’ve had a passionate love affair with photography. And come to discover that I have a fondness for photos that come with a story. Over the years, I have shot a few of them. Here’s the next installment in “The Story Behind an Image” series.

Part 10: The Space Needle

After my two epic helicopter flights over LAX, I was hooked and wanted to do one over Seattle. I had envisioned a shot of the Space Needle with the Seattle skyline in the background from high above. The flight was booked via Seattle helicopter tours and was what they called an “Instagram Photo flight”. Which was an hour-long sightseeing flight with my choice of subjects. I scheduled mine for 5pm so I could take advantage of the afternoon light. I arrived in Seattle at about 2pm, giving me plenty of time to get my rental car and do some sightseeing downtown.

I remember being excited about once again navigating through a city that I had never been to before. And I jumped right in, heading straight to Pike Place Market for some street photography, which I came to thoroughly enjoy. I then made my way to my hotel and had a late lunch before heading to Auburn Municipal Airport for my flight. It’s a good time to mention that I live in Michigan where we are 3 hours ahead. And after a long travel day, I could feel the fatigue slowly creeping in.

I arrived 30 minutes early to meet up with Craig, the pilot of my flight. After a safety briefing and a brief description of our flight path, we started our photo flight in a Robison R22 with the doors off for better visibility. Our flight was to take us north to Seattle to orbit the major landmarks, including the T-Mobile Park, the headquarters of Starbucks, and the Space Needle. Then we were to head over to Union Lake and Gas Work Park, Husky stadium followed by Snoqualmie Falls then back to Auburn Municipal Airport to complete the flight.

As we made our way to Seattle, we flew over Blue Origin headquarters and Boeing field which was littered with various brand-new aircraft. As we got closer to the downtown area, we were informed that a Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) was about to go into effect over the downtown area due to a Mariners baseball game. Meaning, that once the TFR goes into effect, we cannot enter the affected area which includes the T-Mobile Park and the Space Needle. Fortunately for us, we were allowed to enter the area before the TFR took effect, but we were told to hurry up though. With little time over the downtown area, my priority was to try to capture the envisioned shot that sparked this whole photo mission, the Space Needle with the Seattle skyline. Not being a sports fan, I wasn’t really interested in seeing the stadium. But we did do one quick orbit of the stadium then hauled ass over to the Space Needle.

With the TFR about to start, we made it to the Space Needle just in time. We managed to do two super close and energetic orbits. To put into perspective how close we were, I was using my 18-135mm lens and at 18mm was just barely wide enough to show the whole needle from its base to the top. With the shutter blasting away at its maximum frame rate, I was caught up in the excitement of photographing from a helicopter with the doors off, the brisk pace of the orbits, along with being tired from the time difference, I felt that I had missed my shot I had envisioned. The rest of the flight was incredible but still felt unsure about my results and bummed about the rushed timing above the Space Needle. And I wasn’t going to review my photos in flight and miss any photo opportunities because I was chimping. Safely back at Auburn Municipal, Craig and I talked for a bit, thanking him for the photo flight before I left.

It wasn’t until I was back in my hotel looking at my photos, that I did indeed capture the shot I was after. I was so intensely focused on the Space Needle and trying to squeeze it into the frame that I never saw the Seattle skyline in the background. Man, talk about target fixation!

Gear used:

Canon 90D

EF-S 18-135mm F/3.5-5.6 IS ST

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< The Story behind an Image part 9

Adventurous Images: My Photographic Journey through 2023

From the numerous years I’ve been relentlessly capturing images, I’ve never had such an elevated level of anticipation for sharing a collection of photos like the ones from this year. Browsing through them, each of them instantly takes me back to the precious moment when I captured them. Rekindling my abundance of childish excitement along with my unique sense of aesthetics. This year’s adventures started with a twofold trip back home to Virginia. Finally got to spend time with my loved ones since the beginning of the pandemic. Along with getting back into Aviation photography after a lengthy 5-year hiatus. Next, I visited Miami for the first time and added another well-lit airshow to my seasoned inventory. From there I headed out to LA where I had my first flight in a helicopter. And did two incredible photo missions over LAX. I then had the rare opportunity to photograph a flying MiG-23 at Thunder over Michigan. Unfortunately, it was at that event that it suffered an in-flight emergency, forcing the crew to eject and destroying the rare MiG in the crash. Amazingly, both pilots along with no one on the ground were injured. Following that, I had my third helicopter photo flight. This time I got to orbit the Space Needle in Seattle, along with photographing a handful of major attractions in and around the surrounding area. And let’s not forget about the intense Seaplane spotting adventure on Union Lake. Also while there, I overcame my gripping fears of street photography in Pike Place Market and produced some of my most captivating photos to date. And then there was my unforgettable adventure down in Texas trying to capture the annual solar eclipse. Finally, I attended an all-helicopter event in the Los Angeles area with the instructor pilot from my first helicopter flight over LAX and one of his potential students. Throughout 2023 I’ve managed to get reunited with or stumbled upon a bunch of genuinely kind, passionate, and like-minded individuals. My foremost takeaway from 2023 is that if one wants to have a unique and memorable experience, one must spend money to make it happen. And I foresee myself in 2024 spending a shit ton to will some to fruition.

Links to Post

Air Power Over Hampton Roads

Weekend in Miami

Miami Air & Sea Show

Over the Runways: Part one and two

Return to Thunder

Seattle Adventures: Parts one, two and three

Texas Solar Eclipse

Wings over Houston

American Heroes Airshow

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Gear used:

Canon EOS 90D DSLR

Canon EOS 5DSR DSLR

Canon EOS 7D II DSLR

Canon EF-S 18-135mm F/3.5-5.6 IS STM

Canon EF 24-70mm F/2.8L II USM

Canon EF 70-200mm F/2.8L USM

Canon EF 100-400mm F/4.5-5.6L IS II USM

Canon EF 500mm F/4.5L USM

Sony ZV-1

iPhone 11 Pro Max

Until next post,

Steven

If you like what you see, consider hitting the “Like” button or maybe start to follow my little blog!

Seattle Seaplanes

For my next adventure, I headed to Seattle, Washington for a long weekend. And due to my wide variety of activities, I’m going to split it up into three posts.

Part Three: Seattle Seaplanes

During my adventure in Seattle, I wanted to do some seaplane spotting. I knew that there were many seaplane services in the area, but I felt finding a good location was going to be problematic. “Which Sea base would be most spotter-friendly? Along with how are the lighting conditions? And if I manage to find a location, would I have enough focal length to capture the action?” My first attempt was less than desirable. I googled “Seaplane spotting in Seattle” and got a bunch of locations to spot at SEA. Which is the airport code for Seattle-Tacoma Airport. I did come across Seattle Seaplanes on the east side of Union Lake, but they are a smaller operation with few arrivals and departures. Plus, the location was limiting photographically. But on Sunday, I was determined to find some seaplane action. After a brief trip down the rabbit hole, I came across Kenmore Air on the south side of Union Lake. I don’t know why I didn’t find them sooner, being one of the larger operations with tons of arrivals and departures. I managed to find a wonderful location, Goose Beach on the shore next to their sea base. And with my 90D and the 100-400mm Mk2, I had plenty of focal length to capture the aquatic aviation action. From there, I was able to catch the last few moments of landing, then taxiing to the Sea base along with the unloading and loading of passengers. For departing aircraft, the location provided a unique viewpoint to photograph the pushing away from the pier, start-up, and taxiing out for takeoff. Was there about half an hour before noon and the Sun was overhead but was behind me which lit up not only the props of approaching Seaplanes but water splashing from under the pontoons. I vigorously shot there for about 2 hours and took more pictures than the previous two days in Seattle. The time I spent there surpassed my expectations and it would be an understatement to say that I had a blast.

Thanks for looking,

Steven

Click on Thumbnails to view larger images.

Gear used:

Canon EOS 90D DSLR

Canon EF 100-400mm F/4.5-5.6L IS II USM

If you like what you see, consider hitting the “Like” button or maybe start to follow my little blog!

Check out Part One, Photo Mission: Seattle

Don’t forget about Part Two: Street Photography Around Seattle

Seattle Adventures Pt.2

For my next adventure, I headed to Seattle, Washington for a long weekend. And due to my wide variety of activities, I’m going to split it up into three posts.

Part Two: Street Photography Around Seattle

I’ve always admired street photographers and their ability to capture life in the moment. Their creative play of light, a recognizable sense of location, and an honest glance of emotion have always intrigued me. And if have followed me for any amount of time, you would see that I normally don’t photograph people. Upon arriving at Pikes Place Market, I quickly found myself overwhelmed by the excitement. The sites of people eagerly moving through the packed market, the unchecked volume of lively chatter, and the endless smells of ripe fruit, fresh vegetables, and locally caught seafood. But I had to leap out of my comfort zone, test my skills and try some Street photography. I’m not going to lie, my first few shots, I was scared as hell. “What if they see me taking a picture?” What do I say to them if they ask what I’m doing?” While briskly wandering through this amazingly photogenic place, my bullshit started to multiply my fears. From one store front to another, I happen to notice an irresistible scene. And without thinking about it and caring about the outcome, I aimed my palm-sized Sony, quickly composed the shot, took the photo, and moved on like nothing ever happened. It was exciting and liberating at the same time. My subject either didn’t care or didn’t see me. Heck, the reality is I’m not the first person to walk through this market or anywhere with people interacting socially, get excited about seeing something visually interesting, and start taking pictures. But once I got over my groundless fears, the bustling activities of the market were quickly transformed into a “Target-Rich Environment”. And I had so much fun photographing people. So much so, that I went back for a second day. I’m no expert by any stretch of the imagination but from my brief venture into Street photography, I found I had to be constantly on the lookout for the next shot along with having a healthy dose of patience. Letting the scene unfold without interfering, shooting discreetly and creating natural-looking images and not ones that feel orchestrated. I’m so excited to share this set of images and hope you all enjoy them as well. I feel they tell a compelling story. Which one is your favorite and why? Leave your answers in the comments section below.

Thanks for stopping by,

Steven

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