1983 - 1990 Scans from Negatives

[capercaillie]

Testing the slide/negative scanner on some negatives from the early years of my airshows. Hoping they look OK, but any constructive feedback would be good.
1988 Staverton
Shackleton AEW2
img257 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Hawk T1
img256 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

1989 Cottesmore
G91T pair
img318 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

img319 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

1989 Fairford IAT
KC-135A Stratotanker
img245 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Hunter FGA9
Hunter FGA9 XE601 A&AEE Boscombe Down by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Basset CC1
Basset CC1 XS743 ETPS Boscombe Down by Paul Downes, on Flickr

A-7H Corsair II
img248 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Meteor D16
Meteor D16 WH453/L RAE Llanbedr by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Meteor D16 WH453/L RAE Llanbedr by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Victor K2
img261 (3) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

SR-71A Blackbird
img276 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Tornado GR1
Tornado GR1 ZA326 RAE Bedford by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Lynx AH7
Lynx AH7 ZD560 ETPS Boscombe Down by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Phantom FG1
img334 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Mildenhall 1990
Phantom FG1 Black Mike
img324 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

[rebel14]

Look good to me Paul , vibrant colour and sharp, great subjects as well. Out of interest what scanner are you using?

[Ant.H]

Great pics and some great subjects, some unusual paint schemes too. Very nice!

[Spiny Norman]

They look pretty decent to me, especially the last two.

[capercaillie]

Look good to me Paul , vibrant colour and sharp, great subjects as well. Out of interest what scanner are you using?

Cheers Mark, colours look better on my laptop than on my work monitor, have a slight greenish tint there, so I never know which is more accurate. Scanner is an Epson 4870 Perfection flatbed scanner. It can scan up to 8 slides or four film strips on each scan. Its been quite therapeutic this year.

[bigcrow]

Look good to me Paul. Happy Days mate

[capercaillie]

They look pretty decent to me, especially the last two.

Cheers Norman, have to admit XV574 was my favourite scheme post camo RAF Phantom, only saw her at IAT 1989 and as she arrived we had a B-52 parked in front of us hence the 3/4 front landing shot.

[Spiny Norman]

They look pretty decent to me, especially the last two.

Cheers Norman, have to admit XV574 was my favourite scheme post camo RAF Phantom, only saw her at IAT 1989 and as she arrived we had a B-52 parked in front of us hence the 3/4 front landing shot.

Loved that scheme. For some reason lost to the mists of time, took black and white film to the Leuchars show when it was flying. Ah the follies of youth.

[capercaillie]

A few more
Valley 1985 - last Canadian F-104 I saw
CF-104 Starfighter 104747 Canadian Forces Germany by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Meteor pair from Llanbedr, as a 14 year old I foolishly ignored the silver Navy Canberra tug, that was actually Llanbedr's WH734
Meteor D16 WH453/L RAE Llanbedr by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Meteor T7 WA662 RAE Llanbedr by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Brawdy 1987
2 squadron 70 years Mirage 5BA
img431 by Paul Downes, on Flickr

German Tranny display
img427 by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Lightning F6
img429 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

[Wrexham Mackem]

Looking good, and great to look at.

When I've had cause to scan negs, they've always been more of a handful than slides. Grainier for a start. These look really good Mr C.

...as a 14 year old I foolishly ignored the....

I can't tell you how many things I didn't shoot, due to not knowing the significance at the time. Film wasn't cheap, we had to prioritise, but being young and inexperienced didn't help. Just think of what you did capture though.

[Blackbird]

Great thread Paul.

Nigel - you're so right.

Andy

[GeeRam]

I can't tell you how many things I didn't shoot, due to not knowing the significance at the time. Film wasn't cheap, we had to prioritise, but being young and inexperienced didn't help.

Indeed.

In the mid 80's a 36 exposure Kodachrome film with pre-paid processing was about £6 or so from memory, and I'd be making do with 2 films for the whole day if I was lucky.

How I miss those halcyon late 70's/early 80's era airshow days

[Spiny Norman]

I can't tell you how many things I didn't shoot, due to not knowing the significance at the time. Film wasn't cheap, we had to prioritise, but being young and inexperienced didn't help.

Indeed.

In the mid 80's a 36 exposure Kodachrome film with pre-paid processing was about £6 or so from memory, and I'd be making do with 2 films for the whole day if I was lucky.

How I miss those halcyon late 70's/early 80's era airshow days

I think the most I had was 10 films for Greenham or a Fairford. You were warned never to buy at the show as it was so expensive.

In the aluminium case there'd be a 400ASA for later on or if it got dark early. Later on I'd take a 25ASA Ektar, or a 50 Velvia, for the static then onto the 100 or 200 for the flying. Happy days!

[Wrexham Mackem]

a quick google tells me that £6 of 1985 is £18.60 in today's money. For 36 frames. Kind of puts it into context for today's machine gunners. Kodachrome had very little exposure latitude either, and meters were very easily fooled by skies. Its no wonder we learned to 'read' the light.

It does really make you appreciate modern gear, it really is brilliant.

[Blackbird]

I agree entirely! And you change the ISO as and when you want to without being committed to 36 shots of it too.

[capercaillie]

I remember my first IAT in 1985. One roll of 36 shots for what was almost all new stuff and I picked mostly the wrong things to shoot and when it was cloudy rather than waiting till the sun came out later in the day. Back to foolish 14 year old self..........

I look back now and think of the Italian Dak, Danish F-104s, MoD fleet 125 in old scheme, Viscount, Canberra D14, Keflavik Phantoms, Jetstar, none of which I have but wasted it on a KC-10, German Canberra (well it was orange), B-52 and even the Blackbird behind the awful citadel fence, all which I could and did get again. The agony.

On the processing, the slides are relatively easy to scan, and are generally clean give or take a few microscopic dust bits and tiny hairs which can be removed quite readily. The negatives look like they've been through armageddon when first scanned, scratches and spots galore. Take ages to do each one and the the colour rendition on the sky is never quite right, maybe I need better photo software than I have. I will say though shots that were wildly over exposed by the processors when I first had the pics seem to have come back very readily, as Nigel says you don't get that much flexibility with slide without it looking wrong.

[GeeRam]

I can't tell you how many things I didn't shoot, due to not knowing the significance at the time. Film wasn't cheap, we had to prioritise, but being young and inexperienced didn't help.

Indeed.

In the mid 80's a 36 exposure Kodachrome film with pre-paid processing was about £6 or so from memory, and I'd be making do with 2 films for the whole day if I was lucky.

How I miss those halcyon late 70's/early 80's era airshow days

I think the most I had was 10 films for Greenham or a Fairford. You were warned never to buy at the show as it was so expensive.

In the aluminium case there'd be a 400ASA for later on or if it got dark early. Later on I'd take a 25ASA Ektar, or a 50 Velvia, for the static then onto the 100 or 200 for the flying. Happy days!

I used a lot of Agfa back then, and consequently they have not faired that well, 35 years on, now I've taken to unpacking them with a view to spending my current Covid induced unemployment to start scanning them. The Kodachrome stuff has lasted well, but the Agfa stuff has faded quite a lot.....

[orion2]

I can't tell you how many things I didn't shoot, due to not knowing the significance at the time. Film wasn't cheap, we had to prioritise, but being young and inexperienced didn't help. Just think of what you did capture though.
[/quote]

How right you are...I'm still shaking my head for not photographing a 401 TFW F-4D on the static of the 1980 Ramstein airshow...."Come on...another boooring USAF Phantom...let's use our precious films on something more interesting.."

Aaaargh..

MB

[orion2]

A few more
Valley 1985 - last Canadian F-104 I saw

Very nice...brings back a lot of good memories..thank you for posting these

MB

[capercaillie]

A few more from the negatives stash
Another from IAT 1989, RAE Bedford's 125 series 1B XW930, scrapped not too long after and replaced by an ex British Aerospace demonstrator in the Blue Vixen trials
img458 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Some Boscombe Down TVS Airshow (ahem an IAT in all but name) arrivals
Black Mike's arrival
img444 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

img443 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

The UAE making their debut, which is why they weren't counted as debutants in 2012 (so it is an IAT)
img449 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

US Coast Guard HU-25A Guardian, not been back since
img451 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Mather based T-43A wearing a new scheme
img455 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

First one from Middle Wallop 1984, the poor old Argosy that had a landing mishap at West Freugh and was eventually scrapped there - who parked that Harvard in the way?
img463 by Paul Downes, on Flickr

A couple of the helicopters, looks like I only had a 12 shot roll allowance at this one
Italian Army A109, very fresh
img465 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Canadian Kiowa, a regular participant at European shows back then
img466 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

IAT 1987, first Air Tattoo where I attended arrivals
Belgian 1sqn special Mirage 5
img461 (3) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

[CJS]

These are all just Fab Paul. I was 8 in 1987 and I think my dad took me to a show at Duxford that year or in '88, but my God I wish now I had got him to drag me over to Fairford instead! Nowadays it's me dragging him!

[Spiny Norman]

Black Mikes - best ones I've seen of it in the air.

[capercaillie]

Cheers guys for the kind comments.

A few more from 1987 arrivals. Only attended Friday arrivals and Sunday show IIRC, the Friday was mostly cloudy and frustrating and of course we were shooting arrivals from out on the road back then as the P&V wasn't big enough to hold more than a medium sized ant colony. Sunday was very very very wet. Shame most of these are on Agfa which hasn't worn as well as the Kodak or Fuji films.
WTD61 Starfighter
img485 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

freshly engined KC-135R still wearing glossy grey coat
US Air Force KC-135R Stratotanker 63-8008 19ARW Robins AFB by Paul Downes, on Flickr

French Atlantic
img494 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

my favourite type
img477 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Some brief sun on the RAFG Tornado
img488 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

Sembach based EC-130H
img487 (2) by Paul Downes, on Flickr

A Sunday static of a camo NF-5A, love how big the underside roundel is on the u/c doors
img505 by Paul Downes, on Flickr

[Blackbird]

Another great selection Paul - many thanks!

Andy

[CJS]

What's the nationality of the F-5 in the last one?
And the German Starfighter - you can practically hear it, it's a great shot