|
 |
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
| . | |||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rangefinder
Magazine Profile: Paul Bowen by Peter Skinner
All in a day’s work? Perhaps. But while the climactic moment came and went in a 200-mile-per-hour blur, getting to that point was the result of decades of experience, exhaustive preparation, planning and pre-flight briefings complemented by extraordinary skill and professionalism from everyone involved. When aircraft fly in close formation at great rates of speed, room for error is small. The decisive moment is fleeting and the difference between a good shot and a great one can often be measured in fractions of a second. And throughout his career, Bowen and his team have made countless great images. But in getting those great photographs, they have adhered to a cardinal rule: “Get the shot, and get home safely.”
Undoubtedly, most readers of this and other magazines will have seen Paul Bowen’s stunning air-to-air images even if oblivious to the identity of the Wichita, Kansas-based photographer who is regarded universally as the doyen of contemporary aerial photographers. Bowen, who discovered his calling in a roundabout way some 30 years ago, is today as much a part of aviation as the planes and pilots. He has immersed himself in the entire gamut of the industry, devoting his energies and focusing his specialized vision on that unique and rarified environment in which pilots and planes are most at home. And if ever a comprehensive history of aerial photography were written, rest assured that Bowen and his vast array of unforgettable photographs would be featured prominently. To many people, if not most, he is the aerial photographer of our time.
In fact, while the principal subjects in Bowen’s photographs are airplanes of all eras and purposes, he is unstinting in his praise of the people who make them, who fly them and who keep them flying. “I get plenty of compliments on my photography, and I appreciate that. But anyone who has been on a photo shoot will agree the real credit goes to the entire team: the ad agencies and their art directors, the magazines, the manufacturers’ advertising department and mostly the pilots,” says Bowen. Many of these people are featured in Bowen’s photography and writing, which are showcased in the three books he has produced to date. They are aptly titled Air To Air, Volume I and Volume II, and Air To Air Warbirds. A fourth on vintage airplanes is in the works. Bowen is also quick to praise the small team of people who help run his business, including his wife, Gail, assistant photographer Tom Jenkins, studio manager Deana Torgerson, who runs the business operations of Air To Air publishing and is also responsible for graphic design and numerous other facets of the operation, and photographer/designer Lindsey Filby.
In many respects, the people whose lives revolve around aviation constitute a family, albeit a very large family whose members are far-flung and international. But through such things as air shows—large and small—and other industry events, the common bond of aviation invariably brings them together. And Paul Bowen knows most everyone. At least it seems that way when reading his books. Intertwined in the anecdotes about specific shoots, adventures, and professional and personal mileposts are insights into the people who have contributed to the Paul Bowen legacy. Name a personality in aviation and the chances are good that character will be mentioned or featured in Bowen’s vast portfolio of images and printed media—and probably will be a friend of his! Bowen’s entry to aviation goes back to when he first moved to Wichita from California after receiving a B.S. in Zoology from U.C. Santa Barbara. Through his involvement in church-sponsored street ministries in Hollywood in the late ’60s, he accepted a position to direct a halfway house/crash pad in Wichita. While there he met, and became close friends with, families associated with Cessna who encouraged him to stay in Kansas. One of those people, Pat Rowley, whose agency produced Cessna product brochures, introduced Bowen to the photographer who shot for Cessna. Initially, Bowen worked as an assistant to that photographer; six months later he was on his own, freelancing. His first aerial assignment was memorable—he learned how disorienting air-to-air shooting can be as you maneuver in formation while looking through a lens. Bowen got the shot, but he also got airsick (for the first and last time, it should be noted). He was, however, hooked on aviation photography as a career and was undeterred by the discomfort of such things as ear pounding engine noise, cramped working conditions (ask any B-25 rear gunner how much room they had), and the numbing cold while working at high altitude.
Today, the list of Bowen’s subjects includes the top names in aviation: Cessna Citation, Raytheon Beech-craft, Bombardier Learjet, Gulfstream, Falcon Jet, Mooney and Sikorsky—and so it goes. And the portraits of these aircraft against backdrops that range from swirling fog, golden clouds and sunsets to snowcapped mountains, red rock canyons, cityscapes and expansive oceans comprise a magnificent portfolio indeed. After perusing any of these images, the viewer is led to ask the most obvious question: how did he get these shots? The answer is both simple and complex. The simple one is: by being in the right place at the right time with the right equipment. The more complex, and complete, answer requires explanation of the planning and teamwork involved in air-to-air shooting from initial concept of the image and its primary use—is it for an advertising campaign, a brochure, an editorial feature, or a magazine cover? Will it be used as a horizontal or as a vertical? Is there a specific angle or view that the client wants? These are the artistic elements and objectives Bowen will go over during a pre-sortie briefing. “I explain to the pilots what I am hoping to achieve for the client,” says Bowen. “Safety is the most important factor and the pilots I work with know that no photograph is worth risking lives for. While we often fly in very tight formation, these professionals work well within the boundaries of safe flying.”
The tail of the World War II B-25 bomber—where the rear gunner used to be perched—is the aerial shooting platform of choice for Bowen, and he will opt to use one of these craft when budgets permit. (At about $2500 an hour for the plane and additional costs for the crew, the B-25 is not cheap.) To date he’s shot from 14 different B-25s. Other choices include the Beech Baron with a hole cut in its floor to facilitate shooting down and to the rear, helicopters and numerous other fixed-wing aircraft. When aloft, Bowen uses a headset and microphone to give instructions to his pilot who relays the directions to the target plane. While he could talk with the target plane’s pilot, Bowen doesn’t for one simple safety reason: he is facing astern and can’t see what’s ahead, the pilot in the camera plane can. However, often the target plane is close enough Bowen can use hand signals to fine-tune directions.
Bowen concedes that while he has numerous favored locations and backdrops, those at the top of his list are the Lake Powell area in Utah; the red rock cathedrals of northern Arizona; Jackson Hole, Wyoming; and California’s Santa Barbara Channel Islands—a great place for capturing his signature vortices images. He first saw the effect while photographing a Learjet 31A off the California coast in 1989. And he created what is his signature vortex image in 1991 while photographing a Citation VII over Lake Tahoe, Calif. Thick fog covered the ground, and Bowen had the Citation pilot make a low pass over the fog and then climb up towards the camera plane. The vortices from the wingtips made the fog swirl and spiral and in that instant, Paul Bowen’s signature shot was indelibly etched in aviation photography. The image has been used in numerous ad campaigns and the poster has been a best seller. He has created numerous other vortex shots since then and a section of his book Air To Air Volume II has a section devoted to these stunning photographs. The technical aspects of air-to-air photography are exacting. Shutter speeds have to be slow enough so propeller blades are not stopped (ob-viously this is not a problem when photographing jets) and at 1/250 and slower, camera movement is a potential problem, so slower shutter speeds are avoided. As a user of Canon gear (in 1995 he was selected to join the elite Explorers of Light team of Canon photographers) Bowen welcomed the advent of Canon’s range of image stabilizing lenses that remove the vibration inherent in an airplane.
As any successful photographer knows, making images is one thing; running a profitable business is an-other. Paul Bowen Photography, Inc. is a very successful business. Encompassed within its efficient operations are the Air To Air publishing branch of the business with its series of books, posters, note cards and a calendar. Advertising campaigns for major manufacturers are a major source of revenue.
During his career, Paul Bowen’s work has taken him to many other countries, and his work is now recog-nized worldwide. The college graduate who worked with troubled youth before making the transition to aviation photography has climbed to remarkable heights in his chosen career. And if there is one special attribute that Bowen can claim—and it’s one that he encourages his children to use in their own careers—it’s passion. “I tell my four children, ‘Whatever you end up doing for a profession, do it with passion.’ I am incredibly fortunate to get paid for doing ‘my passion.’ When I started shooting airplanes in the early ’70s, I had no idea what an adventurous life lay ahead,” he says. And what an adventure it continues to be! To see the range of Paul Bowen’s images visit www.airtoair.net. Freelance writer/photographer and author Peter Skinner,
who has recently relocated to his native Australia, has more than 22
years experience
in the photo industry in public relations, media liaison, corporate
communications and workshop production and coordination. His magazine
articles and photography
have been published internationally and he has co-authored or edited
numerous publications and books including the 5th and 6th editions
of the authoritative ASMP Professional Business Practices in Photography
(Allworth Press). He can be reached at by email at: prsskinner@bigpond.com/. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Crouched
in the tail of the B-25 with nothing between him and the sleek jet aircraft
slightly below and astern, the photographer
ignored the bitter, debilitating cold and focused all his attention on
the target plane, on the setting sun’s golden rays skimming across
the layers of fog below, and on the swirling, spiraling vortex created
on the fog’s surface by turbulence from the jet’s wingtips.
At the precise moment when instinct, experience and an uncanny sense
of timing told him the image was right—that all the elements were
combined as planned—aerial master photographer Paul Bowen fired
the shutter. In a matter of seconds it was over: Paul Bowen had completed
another of his acclaimed air-to-air shoots, the perfect image was captured
and the result was destined for publication to a potential worldwide
audience.
Following that rule has paid off; the thousands of award-winning
photographs that have graced more than 650 magazine covers, countless
brochures, advertisements, posters and the pages of the impressive three
volume Air To Air series of books (three volumes to date; more are planned)
are proof of that.
Since deciding to specialize in aerial
photography in the early 1970s, Paul Bowen has won international recognition
not only from his peers
and clients but also—and probably more importantly—from
the people he regards as the true heroes in his chosen line of work—the
pilots. He goes out of his way to praise these airmen for their contribution
to the success of his photography, particularly the amazing air-to-air
shooting that comprises the majority of his commercial work. Where close-formation
flying is integral to great images, teamwork and communication—relying
on people and their skills—are essential to consistent results.
Prior to the briefing, the pilots have
already obtained weather reports from the area in which the shoot will
take place. This information and
other key aspects such as altitude, distance of separation between planes,
angles being sought, lines of communication and radio frequencies will
be discussed by the aircrew. The pre-sortie briefings, about 30 minutes
each, are similar to the military version and often take place early
in the morning, long before the sun rises. Even though Bowen and the
aircrews have been through the procedure innumerable times, it is standard
routine. 
Even
though the air-to-air assignments are planned with military pre-cision,
sudden changes in weather can alter the team’s plans in a hurry.
Problem solving on the wing—literally—at 200mph is all part
of the program. And given the subject matter and the shooting platform,
switching locations at short notice usually is not a problem. Bad weather
over a desert landscape can immediately result in a detour to another
favorite location such as the fog-shrouded Santa Barbara Channel Islands.
And then there are
stock sales—direct from Bowen and also through
his agent, Getty Images—from what is probably the best collection
of aviation photography in the country. One of the keys to this success
is retention of copyrights, an invaluable asset in any photographer’s
portfolio, and Paul Bowen has wisely retained all his copyrights. Also,
it should be noted that while air-to-air assignments are Bowen’s
hallmark, the company’s commercial work encompasses other facets
of aviation including airplane interiors and other related subjects.