Still Traveling – Almost There

After flying for nearly 18 hours, I finally arrived in Johannesburg, South Africa.  In the beginning of the flight, I thought I had really scored big time by landing a seat in the exit row with nearly five feet of foot room.  What I soon learned was that the exit row seats were somewhat smaller than normal (width wise) and had a special air bag thing embedded in the waste belt.  Together, I had to wedge myself into the seat.  I guess I need to shed a few more pounds before the return trip.  Overnighted at the InterContinental next to the airport in JB.  This am, I am off the Windhoek, Namibia where I will do some exploration of the city and try to link up with a friend of mine that I served with in Iraq.  The one day layover in Namibia is a safety stop to ensure that our bags reach us before me move on into the outback of Namibia.  The following morning, I board a charter flight for the Skeleton Coast. I can hardly wait to start shooting.  Here is a larger map of the area.

The photo below demonstrates what happens when you shoot through the polarized plastic window of the aircraft with a polarizer on the lens of the camera.  Only in very special conditions can these two polarizers work together.  As you can see in the photograph, they are not working together.  This is largely due to the distance between the camera lens and the window as well as the differing types of material.  In special cases, where two polarizers are sandwiched together (machined glass to work together), they will work as a variable density filter (VND).  VNDs are often used by landscape photographers to slow the shutter speeds down.  The most common use of slower shutter speeds using VND is to  create motion in water falls or wave action while still being able to manage your exposure.

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What I like about this shot is the reflection of the wing art .

Till the next internet connection……..

Randy