RobAntIf you think that Duxford isn’t the right place for this idea, is there anywhere you would suggest instead?
Thanks.
RobAntIf anyone knows of any good cash (or debit card) deals going, then let me know.
RobAntSo what has changed since Waddington then ? How come she suddenly has a ticket to fly?
Her ticket to fly was granted the day before the RNAS Yeovilton airshow. She transitted there, but was unable to display due to poor weather and a minor technical delay.
RobAntI appreciate and agree that Duxfords staff do a great job, and acknowledge that such improvements may require outside investment.
I personally do not like grandstands and also feel they compromise the view for others who may have paid less BUT are still paying customers.
I do addres this issue, by suggesting that the stands should be a little way back from the crowdline, leaving a space suitable for standing or sitting.
I have no issue whatsoever with people bringing their own seats, as standing up all day is certainly not something I would want to do. But I agree that tying them to the line is taking the biscuit. Do remember though, that we all need to take a leak once in a while, and some more than others.
I haven’t been to Duxford myself for a couple of years now, and if you think that Duxford isn’t the right place for this idea, is there anywhere you would suggest instead? Could another site be established with such permanent facilities? Somewhere that can have more flexibility with, maybe motor & horse racing, and any manner of other types of events. A sort of modernised, more flexible, Brooklands?
PS/ I hate football with a passion. I wouldn’t go to a match if they paid me £1,000,000 and tied a rope round me and dragged me there behind an armoured vehicle.
RobAntRob, first and foremost, it’s an airfield. On a handful of days each year it’s an event venue. I’ll leave it up to you to do the maths for constructing permanent facilities which are used so seldom.
Please feel free to send your costings and century-long payback projections to the site management.
I’m putting forward a suggestion. If you want to knock the idea, fine. But how about coming up with a constructive alternative?
If I had the money, I’d be looking at doing something like it myself, and such facilities could be put to other uses.
RobAntFor a few years at Culdrose they had a grandstand on the crowdline. It was very cheap, and your GS ticket allowed re-entry, and the transformation was great as far as I was concerned.
Now they put it round the showground, which is too far away from the crowdline, really. I think they’re missing a trick.
RobAntPricing is obviously going to be an issue. But there are ways round it.
Corporate space is already set aside, and that need not be disturbed. They rarely have grandstands, even so. What they do, though, is up to them.
It’s along the standard crowd line I’m thinking about. They could be, say, 2 metres behind the crowdline – for the diehards who don’t mind standing, and about 15 or 20 seats high – at one seat width, that would represent a great deal of room from which everyone can get a good view.
I’d also campaign for such stands to be permanent, so that they can be paid for over time, reducing customer cost – and included in the entrance fee as standard.
The tank bank is, as you all say, a particular problem that needs addressing, and they should charge extra for it anyway, as it’s too much of a free-for-all there. Stands would make it irrelevant overnight, though.
I just think that average punters deserve a better deal than they get at any airshow at the moment, and permanent facilities are long overdue, considering their frequency during the spring, summer & autumn (especially summer & autumn).
I’m thinking that these stands should take up a great deal of the crowd line currently set aside for ordinary punts, and the price included in the ticket. I mean, it’s not as if tickets are cheap at Duxford anyway, but you get very little in terms of creature comforts. What is it now, £30 just to stand on the crowdline? Thats a lot. I’m not into ripping people off, just providing a true centre of excellence for airshows. Something no airfield provides at the moment.
The first one that truly invests in the future, is the one that is going to reap the benefits.
Here we are, 100 years of flight, and still nowhere that truly welcomes punters (in terms of comfort) to see the shows.
RobAntIf I may just add my opinion then can I say take a look at Sony Alpha.I have the A350 and it’s fantastic,I was using a bridge camera(Lumix FZ-50) but i could not believe the jump in quality when I switched to the Alpha.They use Minolta fit lenses so there’s lot of lenses out there and not too expensive.Of course Canon and Nikon have a larger range of accesories but anyting you can get for thse you can get for the Sony.And also Sony have just launched a new range so the older models could be picked up a little cheaper( and i think they look better too,also much nicer to hold) Whatever you choose I think will be good enough,in this day and age and for your budget there isnt really a ‘Bad’ choice just what you feel the most comfortable using is the best.
The Alphas have been top of my list for some time because of their Minolta lens compatibility, and some of the results I’ve seen have been excellent. But I worried about the age of Minolta lenses – I had one that had developed some serious growth or corrosion on the inside of the lens when I pulled it out recently. I had bought it back in the days of film, probably in the early ’90s.
RobAntSo the Permit To Fly certification has moved to the end of the year when she isn’t flying for display purposes and gives them 5-6 months to get ready.
I guess she wouldn’t need a PTF during the winter until test flights begin.
So I guess they can apply and be ready for certification in April, giving 2 months to addres any issues the CAA may have.
RobAntWith DSLRs the minimum and maximum aperture sizes are determined by the lens, not by the camera body.
Ahhh so how can I determine the minimum aperture size for any given lens?
If, for example, F5.6 is the maximum, what’s the minimum going (likely) to be?
Due to cost, I may be limited to a camera and twin lens kit with, hopefully, a 300mm zoom. So long as it includes some sort of image stability or anti-shake, I won’t mind where it is, as I won’t be adding to it for several years after that.
What would be within my price range, given a complete maximum outlay of, say, £600 (and even that may be stretching it a bit).
I’m happy to go the manufacturers refurbished route, that’s how I got my current Fuji S6500fd bridge – it was a lot cheaper.
RobAntThanks guys, I think my queries have been answered.
Knowing that F5.6 is the maximum is quite a relief, as that’s adequate for relatively low light conditions and I just need to find a camera which will stop down to f16 or lower.
Thanks again.
RobAntPardon my french 😀 Rafael for Rafale.
RobAntWhy schedule it to fly near the end of the progamme knowing it is a complex aircraft which might need time for a quick fix after engine start and knowing the weather forecast for the day?
Then, seeing huge gaps in the programme appearing because of other cancellations, why was it not brought forward by the organisers, also in the knowledge the weather was forecast to deteriorate further towards evening?
By the way, the Rafale didn’t just fly, it gave a stunning display in what was probably the worst period of weather of the day, putting the Navy’s efforts for the entire day to shame.
Agree with much of what you say, especially re the Rafael. Put the RAF’s Typhoon to shame too.
They had attempted to start up the Vulcan quite some time before her display slot (at least 2 and a half hours) hoping to be ready to fill in any gap that might occur. It wasn’t a last minute affair. The hydraulics leaked, which needed a fix, but you must remember that the show was eventually brought forward by a whole hour or more because of the bad weather. The Navy “destroy the castle” affair wasn’t due to start until about 5pm, but actually started by about 4pm.
The Vulcan was ready to fly by about it’s due slot time of 3.30ish, but the weather was already too bad.
The Rafael didn’t fly in Yellow state conditions, the ceiling was about 1200ft at that time, and all her really good stuff was performed at the right hand side of the display line (which was much brighter) – those amazingly tight turns, for example – otherwise it was simply fast (very fast) passes.
The Navy choppers (why aren’t they in Afghanistan, they had plenty around) could fly in the lower cloudbase – between 500-1000ft.
RobAntWas that supposed to prove a point? If it was, I kinda missed it!
Paul
Ahhh, I see.
RobAntIn saying you can’t simply set an aspect ratio and then size around it, you’re saying you can’t use a set aspect ratio. You already have a set aspect ratio and that will be either 3:2 or 4:3; the aspect ratio your camera naturally produces, and again, if you’re wanting to get your aviation work to a standard acceptable by photo sites you have to use one of these two, which is what I assumed XPboy was wanting to ultimately do.
In that case we’ll go out shooting, I’ll give you my Canon 30D and nice L series lens and I’ll shoot with your Fuji, and we‘ll see what the results are like. If you think equipment means everything your really won’t ever get anywhere. Equipment is far less important than ability.
What limitations? Look through my images on Flickr, I break every compositional and technical rule in the book because I know how to and I’ve worked damned hard to know how to. I really don’t know what your problem is but it seems you’re the one who can’t see beyond your own limits, no-one else.
Paul
You’re all missing the real point. Which is that it isn’t about the “ability” or otherwise of any particular individual. It is about the limitations that surround those that don’t want to stick to the norm.
I certainly have little use for photographs in a 4:3 format, and I suspect many others do to.
Indeed, the sensor on many digital cameras doesn’t even fit photo papers for a printer. You have to alter the AR, or end up with distorted or under/over printing, but it’s pointless doing that until you’ve sorted out everything else first.
But that’s exactly my point twisted about. I don’t have trouble working with any AR, from your responses it seems you consider that AR is the be all and end all of photography.
Nuff said. :rolleyes:
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