In December 2023 a Photographic Nightshoot was arranged at the Museum HAS Site to allow photographers a very rare chance to capture the Museum’s Phantom parked and illuminated outside the HAS in the dark.
December in England is not renowned for its great weather, and it transpired that a long spell of rainfall occurred during the day. However, this created the opportunity for some puddle reflection shots, so all was not lost.
Another more major snag outside of our control happened when the whole airfield and some local villages had a power outage from the previous night which was not rectified until after the photoshoot had taken place. This meant that we had no HAS lighting available, and could not open the HAS doors.
Again, adaptive and flexible thinking and with judicious use of lighting equipment, access to the aircraft inside the HAS was still possible, and the photographers made the best use of the less than ideal circumstances.
Anyone can take good pictures when there is great light and clear skies, but some challenging weather and lighting conditions makes the photographer feel like they have earned their pictures.
The Meteor had its external and cockpit lighting switched on to add to the ambience.
Outside, as the natural light started to fade, the Phantom external lighting was also activated, as well as some blue “taxi-way” lights which added to the realism of the scenes, with the assembled photographers taking full advantage of the opportunities provided.
Cakes and snacks had been provided by the Museum, and after a long and successful day the visiting photographers departed with a good collection of images to sift through.
Thanks to all of you who attended, and to the Museum volunteers who helped out.
