Blackbird and Bomber

Today I was fortunate enough to be able to again visit the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum's Udvar-Hazy Center, located in Chantilly, Virginia (near Dulles International Airport). Due to it being a weekend (and very busy due the site playing host to a family-themed "Be a Pilot" event) I was not able to use my tripod for any shots. I unfortunately forgot to pack my Gorillapod, but I was able to procure the last Gorillapod SLR-Zoom (and BH1 ball head) from the Penn Camera location in Tyson's Corner, Virginia. Using this I was able to wrap the Gorillapod around various railings at the Udvar-Hazy Center allowing me to keep my camera steady to create the bracketed shots that were required to create todays photos.

The first shot is a view from behind the SR-71 Blackbird. Due to the central location of the Blackbird I had to wait about 15 minutes for enough of a clearing to ensure no one would walk through the shot during the 15 seconds required to take all three bracketed shots. I think it was well worth it, as this is a pretty interesting view (and you can even see the upside down plane hanging above visitors as they first enter the complex!).

Behind the Blackbird

The second shot focused solely on the front of the B-29 "Enola Gay". I was intrigued by this shot when I noticed that I could capture the names of the entire crew in one shot, but also was able to get an interesting angle of the cockpit as well as a tradition on most aircraft, the "No Smoking within 100ft" warning. This shot was looking up from the lowest level of the museum, so I did not have to wait for individuals walking by to not block the shot, it was just a matter of securing the Gorillapod and camera, focusing, and capturing the required bracketed shots.

Enola Gay cockpit

Please feel free to leave comments and/or feedback below. Also remember that clicking on the photo lets you view the image in various sizes as well as taking you to my online gallery hosted over at smugmug. Thanks for stopping by!