# Yesterday at Van Nuys



## evangilder (Nov 27, 2008)

I was hoping to get up and fly a bit yesterday at Van Nuys, but it was not in the cards. Mother nature was not cooperative. The skies above Van Nuys were not bad, but 2 of the guys were going to be bringing their planes over from Whiteman, which was socked in.

Disappointed? A bit, but I made the best of it by experimenting with lights and shadows.


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## DerAdlerIstGelandet (Nov 27, 2008)

Great pics man!


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## Gnomey (Nov 27, 2008)

Excellent Eric!

With the weather here rarely being bluebird I love experimenting with the light (and clouds) to see what effects I can get. Some of best pictures have come from doing this.


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## FLYBOYJ (Nov 27, 2008)

The ole Condor Squadron - very cool!


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## evangilder (Nov 27, 2008)

Kind of the opposite for me, Gnomey. We don't get that kind of cloud cover often, so I got to play around with that. I love the contrasts you can get from the differing clouds.

Joe, I have been in communication with the current president of the Condors, who is interested in making me more active with the group. You know me, I am always up to fly and snap some shots.


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## FLYBOYJ (Nov 27, 2008)

evangilder said:


> Joe, I have been in communication with the current president of the Condors, who is interested in making me more active with the group. You know me, I am always up to fly and snap some shots.


Very cool - you need to hook up with them when they do their Dec. 7th flybys at Mojave.


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## syscom3 (Nov 27, 2008)

Excellent Pics!


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## wilbur1 (Nov 27, 2008)

Great shots eric very nice


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## Gnomey (Nov 27, 2008)

evangilder said:


> Kind of the opposite for me, Gnomey. We don't get that kind of cloud cover often, so I got to play around with that. I love the contrasts you can get from the differing clouds.



Yep I do as well except I do it more often than you . You can also get some interesting effects playing around with the in Photoshop (particularly if you only adjust the levels in the clouds). Cloudy sunsets I particularly enjoy photographing as you can get some very interesting reflections from the clouds (and from any water in the area).


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## Thorlifter (Nov 27, 2008)

Kinda cool how they painted that one to look like a Fw-190. Or, at least, that's what it looks like to me. Maybe it's just the spinner that reminds me of a 190.


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## evangilder (Nov 27, 2008)

They have 2 groups that are represented with the Condor Squadron. The USAAF 31st FG for the Americans and JG-54 of the Luftwaffe. They fly mock dogfights and attacks throughout the year, as well as memorial flyovers and a host of other events.

They did the Dec 7th from last year in April this year because the weather was crap in Mojave. They have also moved the venue this year because of some FAA regs and some other things. I won't make it up for the one this year because it's a heck of a schlep for me, and they don't have any back seats open. The "bombers" are in the back for the event in a week.


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## Doubl3Ac3 (Nov 27, 2008)

wow man you got some amazing pics there. i've always liked the simple black and white pics the most though


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## Njaco (Nov 27, 2008)

That first B/W pic looks like it was taken on the set of "The Great Escape"! Great stuff!


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## thewritingwriter89 (Nov 27, 2008)

Gorgeous pics, evanglider, especially that one with the T-6 facing the thunderstorm.


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## Wildcat (Nov 27, 2008)

Great pics mate!


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## Airframes (Nov 27, 2008)

Some dramatic stuff there Eric! I particularly liked numbers 3 and 4.


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## pbfoot (Nov 28, 2008)

I've read a book (dangerous thing) about Harvards and T6's and am confused are those T6's and if they are do they have the rear seat that is rotatable . I'm trying to learn how to tell the difference in the 2 birds


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## Wayne Little (Nov 28, 2008)

Excellent pics Eric!


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## evangilder (Nov 28, 2008)

Thanks guys. The T-6/Harvards had quite a number of variants. There are some T-6/SNJ models that have a rear seat that swivels. That was for training rear gunners in TBM and other aircraft. If they have the swivel seat, the rear canopy folds up inside the cockpit between the seats and you have an unobstructed view out the back. While not used for gunnery training anymore, they make excellent photo platforms.

Not all of these have the swivel seat. It should be noted that most of the time, the stick is removed in the rear cockpit with swivel seats because you can jam the stick with the seat once you swivel it, and that is not recoverable.


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## timshatz (Nov 28, 2008)

Cool shots. Great perspectives!


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## Heinz (Nov 30, 2008)

Great shots man


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## Micdrow (Nov 30, 2008)

Sweet, great shots as always Eric.


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## aflyer (Jan 6, 2009)

Not great shots like those taken by Eric, but I thought it might interest some people to see these pics of a T-6/SNJ with the swivel back seat, a dummy machine gun and dummy underwing ordinance. (*aside - the Canadians wouldn't allow it to go to the Abbotsford Airshow a couple of years ago with the dummy weapons installed! I love Canada, but really...?)

The airplane belongs to one of the principals of the Heritage Flight Museum in Bellingham WA (where I am a volunteer) Click the link to see more pics and info. 

He does not claim that it is restored completely original, and he has the markings the way they are because he is (or was) a pilot with the Idaho National Guard (IDA NG) and when he was in the regular Air Force he flew the A-10.The motto on the nose cowl says "Hog Wild Gunner".

Cheers
Kerry


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## evangilder (Jan 7, 2009)

The swivel seat models make awesome photo platforms. I was in one in December and having the ability to swivel the seat backwards made it a lot easier to shoot.


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## Geedee (Jan 13, 2009)

Great shots guys, thanks for posting


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