RAF Cosford Airshow 2015

 

Something of a large update tonight, featuring as it does the RAF Cosford Airshow from last week.  We haven't done an airshow for a while, and this would be our first time with the foster kids, which we knew would limit photography opportunities somewhat.  Actually attending proved difficult enough, as tickets were scarce and we nearly didn't manage to acquire any.  But thanks to a family member searching around the local shops, we were able to do a mass outing.

 

The post is going to be quite long and a bit nerdy, so be warned.

 

 

Arriving early, we had a stroll around the airfield, we got to see a lot of the activities set up in the hangars (the kids having fun climbing in and out of fighter jets and land rovers, life rafts etc).  For me, the most interesting patch (from a photography point of view) being a set-up used to train personnel for active duty, with a large number of mothballed Jaguar aircraft (and the odd Harrier) parked up for the chaps to practise servicing etc.

 

 

A shame the Jaguar isn't flown anymore- I rather like these planes having built model kits of several when I was younger, and having seen what must have been one of the few left in service the year they were retired, flying low in Wales.

 

 

Token arty-shot of the Razorwire.

 

The only shot I managed to get of an aircraft on display on the ground; hard to get many shots with three kids to supervise.

 

 

The display opened with the Red Devils parachute display team, who gave an impressive (as usual) performance.

 

 

First aircraft in was an F-16 of the Belgium Air Force, which gave a slightly insane but very impressive performance.

 

 

 

A number of historic aircraft were used in the opening part of the display, but I didn't manage many nice shots.  I include the shot of the Catalina flying boat just because I've never seen one in person before, and find the planes a rather graceful bit of design.

 

 

The RAF sent one of their Typhoons over for the show, these planes are nice and noisy, and always give a good show.  Obviously wasn't needed over on the East Coast, where they've been much used recently chasing off Russian bombers near Scotland, according to some info at the show.

 

 

 

A poignant 'last', one of the few remaining rescue Sea Kings from RAF Valley.  These helicopters have been a regular sight since childhood, holidays spent in Wales usually produce a sighting of these machines, and the always entertaining vision of looking down into the cockpits of them from the paths, with them operating beneath you when they're practising on Snowdon.  As part of Government budget cuts the helicopters are being withdrawn with rescue work passed to a private company, which is a shame and a bit of an oversight by the ever penny-pinching Government.

 

 

A bit of impressive display work from the Wing Walkers... insanity, particularly when the aircraft whip past each other at high speed.  The kids were fascinated by this merry lot.

 

 

Not the most interesting shot, but included to show that at least for a few minutes there was blue sky...

 

 

The Red Arrows came barrelling in for another impressive show, though they are another part of the RAF rumoured to be facing extinction due to budget cuts...  As a result of this show, the youngest now has a kids-size Red Arrows flight suit, a large number of posters featuring the planes and pilots, and a blow-up Hawk jet in her room...

 

 

The Reds made a flypast with the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight which was nice, operating in formation with two Spitfires and two Hurricanes to commemorate the VE Day anniversary.

 

 

As can be seen above, the weather was deteriorating.  The Reds did their low-level display set, and even then were nipping in and out of the clouds, which can only have added to the stress of an already complex display.

 

 

 

I make absolutely no apologies for putting in a lot of photos of the next plane, the wonderful Vulcan.  This is a truly amazing plane to watch, a veteran of the Cold War and the only one of its kind still flying.

 

The Vulcan is due to be retired this year, as the plane is well over the service-life and operational hours compared to any other Vulcan that's flown, and the companies which maintained the decades-old machinery and complex engines are all being closed down, meaning no engineering support.

 

The Vulcan is a truly awe-inspiring jet and a beautiful bit of design work, and the announcement that it would never fly again after this year has led to the massive leap in ticket sales.  Apparently surveys have been done showing that the appearance of a Vulcan boosts airshow ticket sales, and in terms of aircraft at displays its apparently more popular than the Red Arrows.

 

It was rather poignant seeing the Vulcan on its last show at Cosford, as I was a visitor to the show in the 90's when it flew its last show in RAF service before its first retirement.  I've seen it a few times since it was restored and it never fails to entertain, and I shall be sad to see XH558 go.

 

 

 

The Vulcan was followed by this mad lot, the Blades aerobatics team, performing some frankly breath-taking stunts.

 

Perhaps the best display though for me was the Chinook, another aircraft I really like.  There's no mistaking one of these when they're flying around, the deep basso-rumbling and famous 'whoppa-whoppa' sound of those blades.  The aircrew of this helicopter were throwing their machine around the sky in some decidedly physics-defying manoeuvres which looked as if they should have been impossible for such a big helicopter.

 

By this point the weather had really deteriorated and the rain was starting, sending many people heading for the cars, us included... right at the point the British Army Apache display team roared in, complete with pyro effects.

 

 

Not a great shot from the car park, but the thumps of the explosions going off shook the ground even where we were.

 

 

Probably the closest either of us will get to combat-style photography... at points in our Post-Uni careers the pair of us have looked into RAF Photographer as a job.

 

 

 

Last shot of the day before we went, the menacing Apache gunships cruising through the smoke of the 'missile attacks'.

 

Overall a very good day; shame about the weather, and having the kids there meant less chance for taking photos, but the visit was worth it just to see one of the last flights of the Vulcan, and some nice shots resulted even with the rain and low cloud.  And the kids loved it.

 

Next, probably some shots from a recent trip to Wales.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Back, with one new camera, one dead camera...

 

Another break in blogging, caused as ever mainly by real life, the day job, and a couple of commissions...  We have been doing a fair bit of photography lately though, including a couple of shoots in Wales, a few experimental projects with a new camera, and a visit to the RAF Cosford Airshow, so a lot to post in the next few days.

 

 

Just a few snaps to start with, making the most of the good weather to try out a new compact camera, in the slightly overgrown surroundings of the local parish church.

 

 

The purchase of a new compact was somewhat fortuitous; we saw it cheap and it looked good, so we picked one up mere days before our trusty example we've owned for a few years suffered a catastrophic fault.

 

  These two photos, taken by Amy, were the last shots taken on it.  To an extent it still functions, but the screen at the rear is ruined (it would appear one of the Childs has stood on it) which means reviewing shots, or even changing settings, is impossible.  It has been a useful camera though, and may still see some use in more experimental shoots so has been kept for the 'reserve' with all the other slightly malfunctioning gear we possess.

 

Next up, probably some shots from Wales, and a bit more on this new camera.

Industrial Archeology... the River Worth in Keighley. And a Castle.

 

Some recent photography around the River Worth for this update, a mix of railway and landscape shots, taken between Ingrow and Keighley itself.

 

 

A flashback to the start of the year, and a pic which got published online of the "Sir Berkely" on a special for the Vintage Carriage Trust.  The train was only running between Keighley and Ingrow, and not wanting a pic off the station platform I went to a spot I know between the two locations...

 

...which I returned to a couple of weeks ago for the above shot.  The shunter "Vulcan" is rarely used on service trains, but with the cancellation of the Diesel Gala this year, the railway has been using their locos on more trains so I thought I'd get a picture on the way to work.

 

The return service allowed me another new location, or at least new for me, from the public footpath at the curve which climbs out of Keighley station.  Most gala days this path is filled with photographers, but first thing on a Sunday morning it was deserted.  Not a bad spot, but I prefer places less urban which is one of the reasons I'd never bothered with it before.

 

 

Last Friday the railway were running extra trains in conjunction with the Haworth 1940's weekend, so after lunch I strolled down the road and managed a couple of shots of "Big Jim" in the spring sunshine.

 

Not quite the location I wanted though, my preferred spot is about 20 yards upstream but was being staked-out by another chap with a camera, which does illustrate a problem.  I got sick of taking photos around the classic Oxenhope-Haworth-Oakworth stretch, out in the countryside, because the world and his dog were turning up to get photos and either staking out the best spots all day, or rudely shoving in front of me because it was more important they get their own perfect shot than it was for me. 

So in the last couple of years I've been taking more pictures around the spots near my house, a less salubrious area, or at least it has been.  In recent months I've noticed a growing number of photographers appearing, who fill up the locations and angles I'd previously only had to compete for with local ne'erdowells, violent teenagers, and junkies.  So apparently the area has become gentrified enough for other photographers (though a fellow photographer did remark that if I keep taking shots there and getting them published online, its basically advertising these locations so I shouldn't be surprised other people then turn up).  On a railway only a few miles long, finding new places to take pictures is tricky.

 

This spot, as seen at the top of the post, is pretty much the last place I can guarantee not running into other photographers, so it was back there on the Sunday morning when I had an hour to kill.

 

This is an unusual location; a wooded river corridor which separates a massive council estate and the outer industrial sprawl of Keighley itself, but when you're down there on a quiet morning you could be in the middle of nowhere.

 

For all its tranquillity, there's a lot of nice old reminders of industrial goings-on.  Randomly erupting from the sagging walls are forgotten, rusty pipes, the banks have the abutments of long-gone footbridges and pipelines.  I rather like industrial archaeology as a subject, and its nice spotting these little bits around.

There's a lot of wildlife too, the above was just a purposely arty shot whilst watching the birds flicking around the river.

Of course, it is still Keighley, and some odd splashes of colour from rubbish lobbed into the river.

 

More industrial archaeology, and this path which links the riverside with the council estate up the hill.  Its interesting for its various bridges and cuttings as it climbs the hill.

 

What is interesting about it is the low height of the bridges, and the need to duck along this channel.  It always seemed a bit odd as a path, and this time it was quiet enough to hear running water; under the new-looking concrete path is a culverted stream which I'd never realised was there before, but which makes sense.  The old bridges which once spanned a stream now cross a path built above the old watercourse.  The smooth concrete channel though still appears to act as a floodway, judging by the tidemarks and debris along it.

 

Fascinating as the location is, even at this time on a Sunday there's a slightly oppressive air to the place, and frankly its not somewhere I'd wander around with a camera after about 10 on a day.  Its a long, narrow, straight path with no opportunities to escape it, and even on a Sunday at 9am I ran into a hooded youth who slowed right down to glare at me, watch me, and follow me for a bit before deciding I wasn't worth the effort.

More industrial remains at the top, with the abutments of the old Great Northern Railway route to Queensbury, which hugs this side of the valley all the way up past where we live.  The low height of the remaining abutments again illustrates the converted nature of the waterway.

Heading back down the path, the returning service heading for Oxenhope.  Not the best shot, but then horses refuse to stand in the best composed-locations...

 

Nearly back at the car, and some nice ferns growing out of the massive stone retaining walls.  For now, until it fills up with other photographers, its a useful spot for photos.

 

Whilst I've been wandering around taking pictures by the river, a quick look at one of Amy's projects... not necessarily art, but a big build and approached like we would a project, and thus we have Bingley Castle.  Assisting her father in his garden, its been built as a nice little play area for the foster kids.

   Coming next, we should be able to start posting our look-back at older projects, in a looking back into our archives series.

"Swarm" at Rydal Hall

 

Right, an update after a while, and a bit on a recent exhibition we've been involved with.  Our friend Clare Humphries over in Ambleside, Lake District, is regularly involved, via the Lakes Collective, with organising arts and sculptures events at Rydal Hall.  "Swarm at Rydal Hall" sounds slightly like a concept album from the 70's, but bear with us...

 

 

Last year, just before the kids moved in, Amy contributed a piece to the Sculpture Trail for 2014, and were invited back to enter some work for a big collaborative piece for 2015, on the theme of "Swarm".  So some slightly frantic building work in the early part of the year, a slightly last-minute day off to get it the lakes, and here we are in Rydal.

 

 

Rydal Hall is a very nice stately home, with lovely gardens, woodland, camping, and a great relationship with the arts.

 

A shot from the Sculpture Trail, which not only grows every year, but weathers and blends with the surroundings too, making some nicely subtle artworks to look at and find.

 

 

"Swarm" was set around this rather nice tree on the approach road to the camping area, opposite the paths to the waterfall.

 

 

A few shots of some of the brilliant artworks contributed by a variety of artists and sculptors, school groups and community art schemes...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And so onto our work.  Amy decided to produce a swarm of bees which could be strung up from the branches.

 

 

 

The bees were designed to be simple, slightly abstract shapes, fashioned from baked Fimo and ironed bubble-wrap, hanging from very fine wire.

 

 

 

 

My own take was slightly darker, a test really for a project I've been thinking about for a while, creatures/animals made up of machine parts.  In this case, a spider and flies made up from leftover, upcycled models and toys from previous projects like "The Britannia Model Village".  The spider is mainly made of tanks, helicopters, and railway tracks.

 

Its nice to do something 'art' as opposed to just 'photography' every now again, and the show is running for a little while over at Rydal- the other sculptures (particularly the spider made from fallen bits of tree) are fantastic and well worth a look, as is the sculpture trail in the grounds.  Big thanks due to Clare, Rydal Hall, and the Lakes Collective.  We've been asked to contribute to a show next year as well, but the theme is under wraps for the time being...