I think the pilot fancied leaving some rubber on that untouched part of the runway.
The really strange thing was there was no wind to speak of yesterday.
Typical. I go away to spot some Cessnas and I miss all the excitement.

Auto white balance will only work properly when there is something white in the frame. Not much of a problem if you shoot RAW but a big one if you shoot JPEG as it can not be corrected afterwards.
I would shoot RAW and either buy a bulk storage device or pick up new cards at Wal-Mart as you need them.

Remember, there is no substitute for thinking your shot through and if that does not work then try something else.

I have tried it but never been truly happy with the results. You have to be careful to minimise clouds as the movement between shots, which produces gives results.
http://www.airplane-pictures.net/image3007.html

I was never happy with the colour renditions of HDR photography, preferring to convert to mono. The colour on some HDR photographs are ghastly.

There is an interesting article on HDR in this months Digital Photo Magazine that may be of some use. Especially with the colour issues.

Time for some more experimentation……

There is a tutorial on nIR photography in this month’s edition of Digital Photo Magazine.
It’s not bad.

In my experience shutter speeds are between 20 secs on a good sunny day to two minutes on a not so good day.

http://www.airplane-pictures.net/image4546.html
http://www.airplane-pictures.net/image2911.html
http://www.airplane-pictures.net/image4536.html

The technique really works well with organic material but falls flat with inorganic aircraft.

I hope this is of use to you.

G-AOHI 19-1-73 BEA Ben More
Remains were airlifted off the hill by helicopter to Glasgow Airport, An estimated 90 bags were required for the operation. The aircraft hit a snow covered mountain in a blizzard whilst on a test flight from Glasgow where work had been carried out on the aerolons. Probable destination for the remains is RAE Farnborough.

http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19730119-2

Date: 19 JAN 1973
Time: 14:31 UTC
Type: Vickers 802 Viscount
Operator: British European Airways – BEA
Msn / C/n: 158
Year built: 1957
Crew: 2 fatalities / 2 on board
Passengers: 2 fatalities / 2 on board
Total: 4 fatalities / 4 on board
Location: 56 km (35 mls) N of Glasgow (United Kingdom)
Nature: Test
Departure airport: Glasgow International Airport (GLA)
Destination airport: Glasgow International Airport (GLA)
Narrative:Viscount G-AOHI departed Glasgow at 14:22 GMT on a test flight which was to last about 15 minutes. The crew intended to carry out the flight in visual conditions. Weather conditions however, were marginal: rain and snow with 6km visibility, 8/8 clouds at 4000 feet and strong winds (50-60 knots) at 2000 feet.The plane had climbed to an altitude of 4000 feet when it crashed near the peak of Ben More mountain, 35 miles north of Glasgow.PROBABLE CAUSE: “The pilot did not maintain a safe altitude and gave insufficient attention to navigation when flying VFR into an area of snow covered high ground in marginal weather conditions.”
http://homepages.which.net/~alan.marshall/newcount/news/ICspr05.txt
Another two of our late colleagues who have been in the news recently are Wally Durward and Stan Kemp who died, together with two ground engineers, when Viscount G-AOHI crashed on Ben More in the Highlands in January 1973 during an air test. I well remember the event, having been posted to the Viscount at Glasgow as a new command about a month earlier! David Whittick, engineer Bob Elrick and Wally‘s son Mike organised, and held, a service at, Crianlarach Church on January 19th 2005 to dedicate an inscribed cairn, which has been installed in the churchyard in memory of the crew. The service was attended by more than seventy ex-colleagues and family members, who subsequently retired to the local village hall to exchange some memories and to enjoy some Scottish largesse.