Getting set to ramp up 2015

​1st half of 2015 events list. All events tentative except SnF and Megacon

February 7 Boggy Bottom Auto Fest
February 17 Mr Big concert
February 21 Planes Trains and Automobiles

March 1 Kennedy Space Center and VAC
March 8 St Pete Festivals of Speed
March 15 TICO Warbird Airshow
March 21 Melbourne Air and Space show.
March 22 St Pete Grand Prix

April 3 Fast 7
April 10-12 MegaCon
April 22 and 26 Sun N Fun

May 8 VE Day 70th in DC (If in any way possible)
May 24 Omni Con

June 7 Star Wars Weekends

July 25-26 Fanboy Expo

August 1-2 Tampa Bay Comic Con

Doing some modeling

As most of you know, I'm an avid modeller, and have gotten to the point where I've gotten almost everything I want for my collection built or in my stash.

Two VERY noticeable exceptions to this rule are my Unicorns, things I would LOVE to own that would round off my extensive collection quite nicely.

The first is a truly historic aircraft that is near and dear to my heart, and would round off my Golden Age, Milestones in Flight, and Pioneers collections quite well.  She is a 1/72 Junkers W33 to represent the Bremen, the first aircraft to fly the Atlantic nonstop East to West.  There was only ever one made, by RT Models, and she is extremely rare to find these days.  A pic of this kit box is below.

The other, also in 1/72 scale, and which used to be on eBay quite a bit 5-7 years ago (and I didn't pick one up then, dammit), is one of the iconic TV aircraft of my youth, the highly modified Bell 222 known as Airwolf.  This was a limited-run kit made, I believe, in Korea (if anyone knows what language is on the box and can tell me the name of the company, I'd be obliged) but it's listed in some places as made by Union/MPC.  I have the Blue Thunder by the same company already, and getting Airwolf would finish off my Hollywoodland collection quite well.

If anyone knows of someone who has these kits, or is someone, I'd be greatly appreciative of being put in touch with them so I can get my hands on these last couple of models for my collection.

 Here is one of my most recent builds, a kitbash of the Revell B-17F and the Academy B-17F Flying Fortress.  By combining the two kits, I was able to come up with a historically accurate version of the Memphis Belle, an aircraft I had the honor of visiting at the National Museum of the United States Air Force in Dayton, Ohio, and of which I met the pilot, Colonel Robert Morgan, at an airshow in Tampa the year before he passed.

COOOOOOOOOONNNNNNN!!!!! (In a Shatner voice)

As many of you are already aware, this weekend I attended the Fanboy Expo Tampa here at the Hilton downtown.  UNLIKE my usual attendance to these events, though, I wasn't working in any capacity whatsoever, whether as crowd control, photography, or as companion/gopher to the Celebrity guests, but this time just went as a fan.  And, since a few of the people I've been lucky enough to meet through Cons in the past few years are amongst the best in Cosplay, I thought I'd try my hand at it.

Since Jewel Staite and Sean Maher were the featured guests, I decided to go as Jayne Cobb, the Hero of Canton.  As you will see below....I wasn't the only one! (Although I was the tallest)

Shiny.  Let's be bad guys.  Anyone remember the grenades??

There were quite a few of us in Firefly gear, and an improptu group Browncoats shot was arranged:

 Loved this group shot so much I'm posting it from both photographers I met at Fanboy Expo, Travis Kirk and Justin Rentz.  Which reminds me......Gents, I need to order 11x17s of these from each of you!!!!

 

The "Official" photo with Sean and Jewel

 

The rest of these from Fanboy Expo are from MY camera ;)

I always seem to find a Shindig Kaylee whenever Jewel is around....takes some talent to make that frilly "Layer cake" dress!!

Got to meet another of the amazing Cosplayers on the circuit, and tell me that this Wonder Woman isn't pretty much perfect!

At one point in the afternoon, Jewel and Sean went out to goof off with a couple of the R2 units at the convention.  I fired off three or four quick shots as they started to get mobbed by photographers, and of those, I loved this shot the best, and, apparently they did too, since it showed up on both of their twitter and instagrams!!

I hope you all enjoy the pictures half as much as I did the event itself!!!

Also, if you could take a minute out of your day, one of our Con family needs help. See below:

Find Fundraiser Ideas that Work

Sun N Fun 2014

As you know if you read this at all, I basically had a "back stage pass" to Sun n Fun this year.

So, I arrived early and took advantage of that.  Enjoy

The Blue Sky Yakrobatics' Aero L-39, Roman 86...shh...she hasn't woken up yet!!

She's awake now!!  And apparently on the run from some T-6 Texans

Speaking of Texans, here's the B-17G "Texas Raiders", a name I know Hetzel appreciates.

Rivets, morning dew, and flags.  Kind of a neat little shot.

Two legends, one photo.

This little Cessna has landed on both the North AND South poles.  Look up the Polar Pumpkin.

The world's only airworthy Helldiver

A Viper showed up to check out the birds.

Turboprop powered DC-3C-TP

One of the original Pan Am Fairchild 71s

Ah, yes, the Storch.

Fokker D.VII 80% replica

The famed Ford Trimotor.  I'll post pics from my flight on her eventually.

Is this an airshow or a car show??  Ford GT heads past the DC-3s

Not one, not two, but THREE F7F Tigercats were on hand!!!

Under the belly of a Grumman TBM-3E Avenger

Your Heritage Flight is brought to you by two Air Superiority Fighters and a video game.....

Said Video Game with weapons bays open

Hey Hey Hey, It's FAT ALBERT!!!!

The amazing P-38F Glacier Girl taxis out.  This is the Lightning that was trapped in the Greenland ice.  Discovery did a show about her retrieval, there are books about it, but...damn, she's a sexy beast.

Here we get into a couple of my Pre-public opening shots.  I liked the lighting this early in the morning, and tried to get a bit artsy with it.  Top, Blue Angel 1, bottom, a Lend-Lease painted B-25J.

S.E.5a replica

The Warbird Ramp just after sunrise

The USAF brought a Thunderbird replica to their recruiting booth.

Raptor awaiting time to play.

Side Shot of Glacier Girl

And Swamp Fox makes for the runway

This is a Piaggio P-180 Avanti.....or an alien species.  You choose.

In Proffessor Farnsworth's voice....Good News, Everyone!!

For those of you that enjoy my photography, I just got notified that I am part of the official PHOTOGRAPHER POOL for SNF 2014!!!!!! No fighting with the yokels for views this year!!  And, my new 75-300mm lens is on the way, so......

Keep your eyes open.  Now if only I can get my persuasive skills to work on a certain someone and get them to come with me ;P

Depressing news today, AKA a photographic love letter to my favorite place

I got an email this morning from +Fantasy of Flight, my absolute favorite place in Florida, my "Me" place, that they are closing their doors on April 6th.

If you know me at all, you know how depressed this news makes me.

I'd been worried about the attraction for a while, because they had been talking for years about plans for new hangars and a seaplane base out on Lake Agnes, but no construction on either was ever started. 

That, and the owner and founder, Kermit Weeks, had been getting......further and further out there in his speeches for the "future of the attraction", moving it away from the amazing Living Aviation Museum I loved and further towards the Disneyism of many "theme parks" that I have always hated. He even added characters to the environment. I remarked to friends that I would take there that I thought those kind of ideas spelled trouble. Any time you try to change what you are to become something you're not, trouble tends to follow.
Fantasy of flight, one of the WORLD CLASS Aviation destinations, started to try and become a theme park, and that was the start of the end. So, in memorium of my absolute favorite place in Florida, please enjoy a few of my fave shots taken over the last 12 years.

 I'm going to go mourn the loss of a place I truly loved.