A close encounter...

No, not me - these guys...!

Went to the Southend air show today. The weather unfortunately stayed pretty grey and cloudy all day but the camera still saw plenty of action. I carry a large white face flannel in my bag in these conditions which works well for covering the camera while it's not in use - the 70-200mm lens is, of course, weatherproofed, as is the connection between that and the Teleconverter which I was also using today. The shot to the left is with just that combination - the first time I've used it for Aviation stuff and considering that, and the conditions, I was quite pleased with my results. The reds were due to display at 3pm - but the cloud cover was looking so low we weren't holding out much hope. At around 2.30pm the clouds lifted just a touch and the event organisers seized their chance and the Reds came in early (Early? The RAF? Well fancy that!) - ostensibly to do the flat display that is their "poor weather option" - however what they eventually did was pretty much the full display including the close passes (one of which is seen here) and the Synchro stuff.

Hopefully some more from the show to come over the next few days. I hope to get some more airshow practise later in the year as I am planning on going to Lowestoft and also returning to Eastbourne again.

Robyn