Just an Experiment

I rarely have my camera with me at all times due to the nature of my workplace as well as commuting to work via public transportation instead of my car. But, I drove to work earlier this week to take care of some things after and threw my camera in the trunk just in case. There weren’t any just-in-case moments, but I figured since I had my camera, I might as well park myself somewhere for a few minutes and shoot.

Copyright (C) 2009 Mary Weiland

Being that I love “painting with light” and knew lights from airplanes would make nice streaks across the evening sky, I ended up at Gravelly Point Park – just at the bottom of the runway at National Airport. It’s a great place to watch planes take off or land, as they are literally right on top of you. Picture the scene from Wayne’s World. I always thought it would be fun to shoot there, so I gave it a try.

Copyright (C) 2009 Mary Weiland

I didn’t have my long lens with me, so these were shot using an f/2.8 17-50mm lens and then enlarged. I played around with the settings, but had a rough time. The faster shutter speed freezes the motion better, but the slower shutter speed is what allows for the streaking…which in turn blurs the movement of the planes. It produces an almost dizzying effect. Needless to say, this was just an experiment and these are not the most exciting shots. I need to figure out the best combo and try again with my long lens, but this is what I have for now. My one observation while looking at the pictures - I think it’s interesting that the wings of the planes look skeletal. I also found a spec on each shot and will need to figure out if it’s in the camera or the lens. Grrrr.