Submitter's name:	Manuel Viet
Title:	Zeppelin NT
Gear used:	OM-1MD + Zuiko 135/3.5 + Komura Telemore95 II
Diaphragm:	?
Shutter speed:	1/250
Film used:	Ilford FP4+
Technical information:	I was seated halfway out of the window, trying to steady the zepplin in the center while contortionnating my back & neck toward the sky. Taking a picture of this thing is difficult : it appears in silence, the time to rush to setup the gear it's already almost gone (that's why right hand corner is blackened by the roof over my head), and it moves faster than it seems. Not my best picture ever, but fits nicely in the subject.
Subject information:	In a nutshell : this baloon has been hovering for a couple of days over paris between mid and end of june ; this picture was taken on the 21st of that month. As things turns out, it's not a nice seesight device nor a peaceful attraction. It's actually a prototype able to grab snapshots of speeding cars ID for police enforcement purposes :-( Had I known it, I wouldn't have photographed it with the same pleasure ! More details...
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Comment left by: Piers Hemy (no e-mail specified)

I can undestand the dififculty in getting it in centre frame - they move much more than you think is possible. Impressive metering (or have I forgotten how much latitude FP4 gives?). But I *would* have cropped off the top right corner.

Comment left by: me (no e-mail specified)

FP4+ has latitude, I was off by 1 or 2 stops, and had a hell of a time in the lab to get it right (and a bit more in the Gimp afterward to tame the scanner and have it match the paper print). But worst of all, I can't help blushing at the thought that I was in underwears while taking the shot (the day was awfully hot), and the damn thing had bigger cameras than mine !

Comment left by: Chris Barker (no e-mail specified)

Well done.

Comment left by: Wayne Harridge (no e-mail specified)

Interesting to see one of these, I don't see any airships around here ! I might have cropped it as a "panorama" though. ...Wayne

Comment left by: me (no e-mail specified)

As it seems to be recuring, just an explanation (not an excuse !) for the choice of the format : originaly, the picture was supposed to have a black frame (made in the lab, not in the gimp) and a white border, and was posted this way for submission ; somehow, Olaf cropped it for publishing. I personaly think that it looks more weird now, but I admit that the framing wasn't good from the beginning (I absolutely don't blame Olaf for his choice). I should have done it myself, and maybe I would have chosen a panorama, but at the time I thought the black frame gave that "dangerous" feeling about that flying device you can feel when you notice it over your head without warning. Well, it's all a matter of personal taste, I guess.

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