Aviation Photography
From the magazine Schnappschuss No. 53
Felix Gottwald combines his two great passions - aviation and photography - in his "Aviation Photography". He has been documenting his fascination with aviation since his first flight in 1992. From this documentation he developed his passion for photography. In addition to his website, his pictures are published by well-known airlines and in various magazines. by Felix Gottwald
For many people, the dream of flying is the epitome of freedom when they set off to explore new countries and continents. But as a passenger, this freedom is not so great, as you have to share your space around the small windows with many others.
Even as a child, I was fascinated by aviation. Frequent visits to airports to marvel at the big planes were part of every summer vacation program for me. With my first (analog) camera, I tried to capture my love for these powerful machines - with rather moderate success. During my training as a pilot, I began to think more about perspectives and settings and later experimented more and more on the hunt for new motifs.
The cockpit of an airplane is a fascinating place - switches and buttons, displays and lights everywhere. There are an almost endless number of photo opportunities here! Unfortunately, since 2001 this place is no longer accessible to passengers, at most on the ground after landing, when everyone wants to leave quickly and the whole atmosphere and excitement that prevails in such a cockpit during the flight has evaporated. That's exactly why I try to preserve this excitement in my pictures, to give all those who can't see it for themselves the opportunity to enjoy these great impressions. There is hardly anything more beautiful than flying into one of the world's great metropolises at night, when the lights of Hong Kong, Cairo or New York sparkle beneath you. The view of the Andes on approach to Quito or Santiago de Chile is just as spectacular as the lonely peaks of the Himalayas or the endless deserts of Africa, which are surprisingly extremely diverse. And it's only when you've flown for hours over deep blue oceans without seeing a single piece of land or sign of another human being that you understand how enormous our planet is. But it's not so easy to capture my view of things. It's cramped in the cockpit and multiple laminated windows make it difficult to take photos. At an altitude of 12 kilometers, the outside world has a blue cast and the slightest haze or even thin layers of cloud make everything
below you appear in a dull grey haze. Besides, I am on board to work and can therefore only take photos in such a way that my work and safety are not impaired. It often shakes quite a lot in an airplane and everything vibrates during take-off and landing. The only thing that helps is a high ISO and fast shutter speeds, preferably with a higher f-number to get all the details of the cockpit in focus. This is sometimes an almost impossible task.
I hold my Nikon D800 in position in the cockpit with an elaborate suction cup and safety construction and control it partly by remote release. However, I have to plan all the settings carefully in advance, because once I'm strapped in, the camera has to work without any further input! Of course, it doesn't always work the way I want it to, but photography is a learning process and you only learn from your mistakes. There are usually a lot of rejects from the pictures that are taken - vibrations and turbulence cause pictures to blur, we pilots move unfavorably and thus destroy the picture composition or it is cloudier than predicted and you can't see anything of the outside world. But if you do end up with a great picture, it's worth it! My favorite time to take pictures is at night or at dusk. During the day, the light is often harsh and uncomfortable. Only when the sun is on the horizon does it take on a soft, sensitive hue. At night, you can set wonderful accents and play with the contrast between light and dark, between seeing and not seeing. The world often appears much more beautiful, calm and balanced at night. I feel this way not only on airplanes, but also on the ground in the "normal" world.
If you want to try and take a photo of the cockpit, it's best to ask when you get off the plane after a flight whether you can go inside - this is usually not a problem with German airlines! The pilots are usually happy to welcome visitors and are happy to give you a short tour of the
cockpit. If you're not the last one on the plane, you often have time until everyone else has disembarked and can try your hand at a few details - especially the thrust levers and the control horn, but the various switches and displays are also worthwhile subjects. The key to success is to try and, above all, to fly often!
Felix Gottwald
felixgottwald.net
"Schnappschuss" magazine
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