Notes on Kite Aerial Photography: Photo Gallery
A
view of Chinon's vineyards as the first day in Chinon came to an end. The right
image includes two of the hot air balloons that occasioned the flight (Canon 24-mm, July 2000)
Although the first day flight from the Chateau of Chinon had occurred
late in the afternoon there was still enough light left for Charlie, Thomas and
myself to do a little scouting for future photographs (ah, the long sweet days
of summer). We drove into the vineyards on the north side of Chinon and came to
quick consensus that the potential photographs were kite worthy. Then out of the
north we heard the distinct sound of the propane burners used on hot air
balloons. Sure enough there were three hot air balloons headed our way. Even
though dinner was waiting we decided to shoot a quick roll.
The fine vineyard topography from around 200 feet aloft (Canon 24-mm, July 2000)
Out again came the Rokkaku and we rigged it in quick, practiced movements. I
remember this moment distinctly because we operated as an efficient team with
the objective of photographing the balloons before they blew past us. They were
bearing down fast. Up with the Rokkaku, soon followed by the kite, altitude
reached, three shots taken, and the balloons disappeared over the Chinon
ridgeline. The sank toward the river with a speed that really surprised me.
The
left hand shot, taken earlier in the afternoon while photographing Chinon, shows
the chateau with vineyards beyond it to the north. On the right is an image taken from
the vineyards looking toward Chinon. You can get a sense of topography in this
photograph as the hill falls way in the upper right to reveal Chinon proper down
at river level (Canon 24-mm, July 2000)
Vineyard
textures (Canon 24-mm, July 2000)
While the camera was aloft
I shot out the remainder of the roll. The low grazing light -- it must have been
after 8 pm -- made a fine texture of the vineyards that is not really captured
in the scans. The owner of the nice little house that ended up being under the
kite came out to grumps at us a bit (his dogs were barking). As is so often the
case with KAP encounters the grumpiness became curiosity followed soon by
genuine interest. He ended up offering us a bottle of wine and a tour of his
aging cellars in Chinon.
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All rights reserved. Revised: Saturday, June 26, 2010
URL: http://kap.ced.berkeley.edu/gallery/gal176.html
