Farnborough Air Science Trust pics

Thanks guys for the valueable info. Great stuff.

I also try to avoid the sharpness fix as it is noticeable. But I will try to shoot in HQ and slowly reduce the picture size, rather than short with a smaller picture size.

I have been using the Minolta 7i Dimage..Pictures seem excellent upclose and macro but lose quite a bit if you shot for a distance..still I will continue to experiment.

BC

BC,

I shot these on a Canon D60 (6.3 mega pixel) with 28-105 lens. The files were set to max jpeg resolution which usually gives you a hefty pic of about 2.5 to 4.0 megabytes depending on detail. I also use a canon EOS300 for film which I scan in to give a similar size picture. I then use Photoshop Limited Edition 5.0 as supplied with the D60 & also the scanner.

I have experimented with various ways of reducing the files to an acceptable size whilst maintaining quality. It would appear that to retain sharpness you need to reduce the size of the picture by fractions that are easy for the software to “extrapolate” or divide up the pixels. e.g reduce it to a 1/4 or 1/8.
So a 1280x 800 picure would be reduced by 1/4 to 320×200, therefore the software has a nice integer of 4 to divide everything by. I think that is how it works & it would appear to work most of the time.
You can also play around with the dpi of the image as well.
I then use the jpeg compression to further reduce the picture size. You can use the sharpen tool to get the sharpness back, but I do not like using this as it looks too false, though I did use it on the one of the unit badge under the cockpit.
Once saved, I do not close in the software package as it retains (& should in most other photo packages) the original compressed image unless you reopen the image from the directory. Check the file size in windows explorer. If the file is less than say the 100k for this forum, you can resave it at a lower compression (higher quality). Repeat this process until you get the file size you want, i.e. just under 100k. Only then close the photo you are editing.

One thing to note is that the amount of detail in the shot complicates the issue. The photos of the Danish Hunter were not to bad to reduce with the basic colour, the photo of the underside of the t-bird was a bit more of a challenge, that is why it is slightly smaller than some of the others.

HOWEVER, remember you can not uncompress a Jpeg. To avoid mistakes I have a master directory with all the originals, then have a working directory to store copies of the photos in for size manipulation etc.

Basically you need a methodical approach to experimenting with each of the variables to see how they effect quality. It is still a bit trial & error at times. Don’t give up though.

One thing, we are lucky on this forum, I go to a motorsport one that limits the size of the photos to 640×400.

Originally posted by Mark V
Hi BC,
. I still find the physical size of my pics is very large (see ‘Grasshopper’) so any help would be appreciated.

I use Photoshop Elements, it has a resize facility which if posting I set at 8″ or 10″ width. This usually fits OK. I can also set the jpeg compression so that it gets below 100K
mmitch.

Th Farnborough museum is open all weekends 10-4 at the moment, don’t know how long it will be for though. I visited the opening weekend and am due for another one when I get a weekend with no airshows.
Was supprised that the museum opening was not featured in this months Flypast. Good news is though that the Lightning T5 featured in the mag will be coming here at some point. Just a shame that they are not kept undercover in the nearby black shed.

Hi BC,

I shot my Oshkosh pics on a higher resolution and then used a photo software product (MGI Photosuite) to make them smaller. I ‘saved as’ and selected a reduced jpeg quality in the save as box. This does not seem to affect the quality of the image that much but gets it below the 100k image. I still find the physical size of my pics is very large (see ‘Grasshopper’) so any help would be appreciated.

Photography Inquiry

Shorty,

Your pictures look great. I have been trying to get good quality
images in the under 100k range but I find it quite the challenge.
I use a 5megapix Dig camera and it can produce a 100k picture but it suffers in the quality. It produces great high resolution stuff but I have to shot in economy mode and small picture size 640 x 480 to get something in the 100k area.. and it tends to produce less than great results..any hints as to producing some files with good quality..

Shorty the hunter is ex Danish Airforce

Where is it come from ? Looks to be in good condition.

Originally posted by Shorty01
Is the Rectangular window for a camera or merely inspection ?

Actually not a window at all – it’s the pilot’s step and also the point where the access ladder is hooked on. It should be covered by a spring-loaded door but that seems to be missing in this case.

Still not sure about whether I like cockpit sections thought. It’s a bit like having stuffed animal heads on the wall.

Infinitely preferable to no aircraft at all though surely? If an airframe is going to be scrapped then why not save the cockpit section?

Thanks for the pics 🙂

Finally, one for the aeromodellers.

Lovely “Rasperry Ripple” schemed T-Bird Hunter

Thanks Ant. I was able to access the site with no difficulty during the week.

Is the Rectangular window for a camera or merely inspection ?

Swiss colours, am I correct ?

Thanks for those Shorty,nice pics.At the moment, FAST is only open on selected weekends,although the long term plan is to have quite a substantial museum open 7 days a week.I’ve got a brother who lives in Farnham just down the road from there,so I’ve passed the place a few times,but never been in.
Here’s the link to thier website,although I can’t seem to get it to work at the moment…

www.fasta.freeserve.co.uk/

P.S.Was the Swiss markings comment about the Hunter?She’s an F.51 (the Swiss ones were 58’s)painted in the Danish colours she served in.She used to be in storage at Kemble and then displayed at Bournemouth for a while before ending up with FAST.

The business end

So, how do I fit multiple photo’s on one page ?

One of two complete hunters on site.

Slightly battered Bloodhound in the background.

Unfortunately the place didn’t appear open. See Flypast Jan 2003 for a write up on the place.

& another