Blue Angels with 70-200 2.8L

[KenPapai]

<a href="http://www.photo.net/photodb/photo?

photo_id=3783860&size=lg">

<img src="http://www.kenpapai.com/images/blueAngel2935z.jpg">

100% crop from</a> 70-200 2.8L at 200mm f/6.7.

They are buzzing the city at noon today and flying over the bay

practicing for the big weekend. I found the white bazooka easy to

handle with these jets using manual focus, 1/1500 second mostly.

<p>

A know-it-all close to me said it would have been better shooting

with the 100-400L. ;)

[ericpetersonphoto]

Ken! I live in Oakland, Its time for me to whip out my 70-300 DO and post some photos and stop all the haters. Ken do you know of a web site with the Schedule? Cool shot!

[KenPapai]

The official performance is over SF Bay on Oct. 8-9. Today, as expected they started exactly at noon practicing. They've been buzzing the city for a cool four hours now.<p>

http://www.blueangels.navy.mil/geninfo/2005show_schedule.html<div></div>

[ericpetersonphoto]

I have to be at the MLK Berkeley POW WOW sat, but maybe I can catch the Sunday show. That second Pic is pretty cool, are you up high to get that angle or are they really low?

[patrick p.]

I'll be out on the Ft Mason docks on Friday. I don't want to deal with the crowds that come Saturday and Sunday. The weather should be perfect.

[jonglass]

I hate to but in here, but:

<<That second Pic is pretty cool, are you up high to get that angle or are they really low?>>

 

I can't speak for what he saw, but this past August, the Blues were practicing in our town of Pensacola (their home base, in fact) and I got this photo with my lowly D30 and Sigma lens. I don't dare try a 100% crop from that, but I hope you can get an idea, at least, of how low the Blue Angels fly during their programs.<div></div>

[KenPapai]

My camera lens was about 10 ft. above sea level on all the shots.

Here you can see one buzzing the Coast Guard spotter ship. They (pilots) triangulate of this ship and the south tower of the GG Bridge.<div></div>

[patrick p.]

I used to live on Russian Hill and those jets fly lower than the hills when they do a fly-by over the water. They do a very nice *sneak up* on the crowds by coming over the top of Russian Hill and then right over Ghiredelli Square. When you're down on the water you can't really hear them coming from the other side of the hill ... and the ROAR of the jet as he passes makes the crowds jump.

 

It's a great show over the bay because they come from around the natural obstacles such as Alcatraz, Russian Hill, and the bay side of SF. In shows in flat areas you can see them forming up for the next stunt. In SF they must come out of nowhere and knock your socks off with some great stuff.

[KenPapai]

Here they do a fly-by, from yesterday, with the Ferry Building Tower in the foreground.<p>

<img src="http://www.kenpapai.com/images/jets2971PN.jpg" border="2">

<br>

<i>10D with 200mm 1/1500 at f/8 manual focus</i>

<p>

Here's to photo.net getting its backups installed safely and well!

[patrick p.]

Today was nice over the bay but a bit hazy out toward the Golden Gate.<div></div>

[patrick p.]

Sorry about the huge attachment. Let's see if I can get it right this time.

[patrick p.]

If this picture doesn't show up, I quit for tonight.<div></div>