Reno air races 2010

Ah yes, the famous Reno Air Races, what an experience.  I attended for the first time in 2009 and was blown away.  It was non stop action.  My attempts to get good shots were unsucessful due to my inexperience and equipment.  I was blessed to have been given a opportunity to cover brothers from Billings Montana who crew for a pilot who flew two planes.  I was granted a media pass to accomplish this.  I arrived Tuesday evening to get my credentials and a quick brief.  I was able to see and shot a couple of planes, jets etc. do time trials.  During this time I meet three individuls who later help me capture some really awesome shots.  We later became friends and keep in touch.  They are Andy Martin from Britan, Doug Moulin from New Zeland, and John Jenkins from Saratoga CA.  I was there for 5 full days from 0600 to 1700 hrs or 5 PM.  I was packing two cameras, one was mine, one rented with a 100-400 lens.  I had purchased a Cotton carrier that made my life much easier for carrying the two cameras.  The first two days at the pylons were frustrating and had a little success but with my friends giving tips on how to correct, Saturday and Sunday were more sucessful.  When shooting these types of events, your panning skills need to be honed.  I would seriously suggest going to a rod and gun club and borrow a shot gun and shoot skeet for a few days.  This will be very close to what you will be trying to shoot at the pylons.  Each day had its challenges, lighting, overcast, wind, dust, you name it.  Be prepared to stop and clean your lens when you have the opportunity.  Be sure to have extra batteries and memory cards.  Caution should be used when changing lens, batteries and memory cards.  The environment is extremely dusty.  Monitor closely the memory left and battery charge.  If you are close to filling a card or the battery is getting low, change it before the next race.  Use a ISO setting of 100 and shutter speed of 1/320 sec or less.  For the jets kick the shutter speed up to 1/1000sec and bump up your ISO as well.  Know your camera and at what setting will start to give you noise issues on your image.    During my time there I shot over 5000 images and maybe kept 150 of them.  I wouldn't trade this experience for anything, if you get the opportunity to do this, jump on it and have the time of your life.  The Reno Air Racing Association is a great host and will take excellent care of you.

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