Hitching a Ride on History

One of Lufthansa’s side projects is restoring vintage airframes and showing them off at airshows and museums. One of the airframes is a Junkers Ju-52 that saw service in Germany and Norway before being sold to Ecuador. An American bought the aircraft after that and in 1984 Lufthansa bought her back, restored her and now flies her on sightseeing trips. A while back I wrote about my desire to ride on this plane and during the summer I did just that.

Ju-52

Deutsche Lufthansa Berlin Stiftung offers sightseeing flights and an option for point to point flights. The point to point flights take you from one airport in Germany to another, giving you a chance to explore some of the smaller airfields in the country. I decided to buy a ticket and a seat on one of the point to point offerings. Choosing the flight ended up being the challenge. Some of the airfields are merely grass strips with no nearby German rail stations, leaving passengers relying on taxis or family/friends to pick them up. The other issue is that a lot of the flying is done on weekdays. I needed to be in Germany on a Friday and back in New York City by Monday afternoon, again, limiting my choices on which flights I could take.

I found a flight from Köln to Egelsach, a small airfield south of Frankfurt, on a Sunday and booked it. I decided to fly Newark to Stuttgart since there was decent upgrade space available then take a train to Munich to visit friends, then take another train to drop my stuff at the Frankfurt airport and continue on to Köln on Sunday.

On arrival to Köln I did a little planespotting. They have a great visitor deck with three tiers of viewing space. Visitors get a great view of two of the runways, the passenger terminal area and tarmac and a perfect view of the cargo area. There were a number of families visiting and a ton of spotters (around 30-40).

The Ju-52 was actually doing a few sightseeing flights over Köln and it taxied out while I was on the viewing terrace. Everyone was in awe and the noise of camera shutters filled the air.

Boarding the Ju-52

Eventually I walked over to the meeting place for the flight, the general aviation terminal, and collected my boarding pass. Soon all of the passengers were gathered and led through a quick security check before heading for the aircraft in vans. The pilots, flight engineer, and flight attendant were waiting for us and the passengers made their way around the plane for a quick set of pictures in the beautiful weather. The crew was trying to gather everyone and I was unable to take any good shots in Köln (more on this later).

The pilots gave an introduction, in German, of the plane and their experience, they are all Lufthansa pilots who do this for fun. Our crew today consisted of a 747 pilot and an A330 pilot. I did not catch what aircraft the flight engineer operated. My German is so-so and I have trouble following some conversations and when we boarded they started giving some very detailed descriptions of the safety procedures and I wasn’t able to follow all of it. I asked the flight attendant if she could give some of it in English. She apologized profusely and explained they don’t get a lot of non-German passengers on these flights. My hat is off to her for taking a few extra minutes to point out the finer details of what should be done in an emergency in English.

Ju-52 Briefing

We taxied out and were off. The pilot took us on a bit of a scenic tour of the Rhine and overflew a small airfield on our way to Egelsbach, then he doubled back and gave a low pass to a large number of glider pilots and bystanders (all of whom seemed to have their cameras out). We continued on to Egelsbach and on the way the flight engineer left the cockpit and we were told we could visit the flight deck. I made my way forward and pilots handed me a headset and said they understood I spoke English. I asked a few questions and they pointed out the window that the weather was starting to deteriorate and that I should make my way back to my seat.

The entire flight experience was, put simply, incredible. The roar of the radial engines was drowned out a little bit by the modern insulation in the plane, but the noise was still fantastic. As we flew through light turbulence you could feel the plane react as the pilots compensated. Making wide turns you could feel the pilots working the pedals to make sure the turn was coordinated. It was classic stick and rudder flying and I think I was smiling the entire time.

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The ceiling kept dropping and dropping. My understanding is that they can fly the aircraft purely on instruments but like to stay out of the clouds for the passenger experience (the entire flight we never really climbed higher than 1,500 feet). Eventually we flew by Mainz and Wiesbaden and made a wide sweeping turn to Egelsbach before making a pretty cool landing.

Junkers Ju-52 Landing at Egelsbach from Stephan Segraves on Vimeo.

The weather was terrible when we landed and I got some raindrops on the lens while trying to grab some photos of the Ju-52. None of the shots really came out the way I wanted and I am still kicking myself for not grabbing more photos while in Köln. If you have a love of aviation and aviation history I highly recommend you find a way to take a ride on this plane. From the cabin to the sound of the engines to the enthusiasm of the crew, the whole experience was fantastic. You can learn more about the rides and the aircraft itself by visiting the Deutsche Lufthansa Berlin Stiftung website.

I have shared some pictures below and will be uploading more as I have time. If you’d like, you can see the entire set by visiting it here, on Flickr. I should note, if you take this trip, don’t bring a backpack. There is very little room onboard, especially near your feet. You are much better served just bringing a camera.

Egelsbach Airport
Egelsbach Airport

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Ju-52 Interior

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Ju-52 Cockpit

Junkers Ju-52
Ju-52 Parked At Egelsbach

Instagram and Video

Yesterday I uploaded my first Instagram video. Besides the quirky and funny videos that are out there, I have to wonder what, if any purpose the video functionality actually offers. Instagram has been a place to quickly share art. Some people share the photography off of their high-end cameras but a lot focus on what they capture with their iPhone or Android device. This “share what you see now” mentality is what I enjoy about Instagram. Sure, there are a lot of food and self-portraits, but there is also a huge amount of very well composed and thought out shots as well.

But how does video fit into this realm? When Instagram was announcing video the initial reaction was that the feature would be a Vine killer. However, that type of video does not really seem to fit into the same realm of what I love about Instagram. In fact, I would say my first video does not fit into that style. I did find some examples of Instagram videos that do seem to fit the idea of well composed and thought out art and are moments of “what I see now”. User squarerootof9 has some great videos. They are more moving art than they are videos. I am going to try composing Instagram video this way and see if changes my mind on the feature.

Change is always received negatively at first but I think a little time might make the Instagram video grow on me.

United’s 787 – First Revenue Flight

On Sunday I had the privilege of being a part of United’s first revenue service of their newly delivered Boeing 787. The flight was scheduled between the Houston and Chicago hubs. Work conflicts prevented me from buying a ticket in advance for the flight but I was granted access to the plane before the first flight and to the tarmac for the plane’s first revenue taxi and take-off.

The time that the media had on the plane was fairly short. We were granted 10-15 minutes to walk the aircraft, get pictures, and talk to the crew. With people with video cameras, still cameras, etc. walking around aircraft becomes a challenge, but everyone tried to make it work as best as they could.

United 787 Forward BusinessFirst Cabin

United has opted to go with a galley at the main entrance to the aircraft. Some flyers have complained that the airline did not choose something like a bar or open space in this area but I do not see the point of that when the added benefit of a mid-cabin galley is faster service for passengers while in-flight. After making a right turn when boarding you enter the 2nd of the two BusinessFirst cabins. The aisles feel a bit taller due to the way the overhead bins are laid out and it creates the illusion that the cabin is bigger than it is. The BusinessFirst seats are the same ones that Continental installed on the Boeing 757-200s and the Boeing 777-200s before the merger and in the 787 they are laid out in a 2-2-2 configuration.

Walking into the Economy Plus and Economy cabin the seating configuration changes to 3-3-3 with Economy Plus having extra seat pitch (legroom). The bulkhead seats (row 16) seem to be the best if you’re wanting a little extra legroom with the added benefit of no one reclining into you. One thing I noticed is that all seats in coach have a power port, which matches United’s description of the cabin, but not its seat map.

The in-flight entertainment is of the new Panasonic variety and features a slightly updated interface and a new in-flight map. There is also a USB port available for you to use to charge your USB devices.

United 787 Economy Seat

You will also notice something missing in the above photo… A window shade. The 787 is outfitted with electrochromic windows or “smart glass”. As you use the button below the window, an electric charge is applied to the glass, changing its opacity, eventually becoming a still see-through, but darkened window shade. Since the flight I have read a few posts that say the windows do not get dark enough and sun still significantly comes through the shading. You can see what the smart glass looks like on Dan Frommer’s report from the JAL 787.

United 787 Economy Cabin

Some people are probably interested in the exit row on the 787 and whether or not it is worth sitting in. I took a photo of the exit row and as expected, it has a ton of legroom. The window seat does have the emergency slide slightly in front of it but it does not protrude too far into the space of that passenger. The one downside is the proximity to the lavatory. I assume this area will be used as a congregation space for people waiting to use the restroom. Not great when wanting to get some sleep.

United 787 Emergency Exit

Before leaving the aircraft I paid a visit to the rear galley, the cockpit, and the pilot rest area (I hope to post all of these images soon). The cockpit is impressive, especially when you notice that it lacks a lot of the analog displays (altimeter, attitude, airspeed, etc.) that we have grown accustomed to seeing. The heads-up displays were not pulled down but the idea of a commercial pilot being able to keep his focus forward while monitoring instruments, much like a fighter pilot, is comforting. With the 787 the pilot environment has become more about situation awareness and less about removing focus to check instruments.

United 787 Cockpit

After touring the aircraft, Jeff Smisek gave a brief speech about not only being the world’s largest airline but striving to be the world’s best and how he sees the 787 helping to bring that to fruition. He and the flight crew that would be operating the first revenue flight then cut a ceremonial ribbon and the flight began boarding.

United's Jeff Smisek Talking about the 787

At this point, a few of us were given tarmac access to photograph the 787 as it pushed back from the gate, taxied, and took-off. My heart always beats a little faster when I am on the tarmac. There is a lot going on around you and a whole lot of big jets being prepared for their journey. All of that plus the smell of aviation fuel equals an excited me.

The 787 was loaded up, the doors were closed, and the plane was pushed back from the gate right on schedule. I noticed something intriguing and delightful as the engines were started; The sound. Instead of the slightly higher pitch whine that is common with jet engines, the 787 had more of a low pitched hum, making it much quieter than I expected. I knew that Boeing had made strides in making the engine exhaust quieter, but I didn’t expect it to be that significant. I am guessing this is noticeable inside the aircraft as well. The 787 then performed a short taxi to runway 9 at IAH, took off, and made a graceful left turn to head to north to Chicago. Again, the sound during the engine run-up and take-off was much quieter than what I was expecting.

The United 787 Ready to Taxi

All in all it was a very fun experience and I look forward to having my first ride aboard the 787 sometime in the near future. United is currently running the aircraft between Houston, Chicago, and Los Angeles. As the other 787s are delivered, I would expect to see service to Newark as well. If you have flown the 787 I would love to hear what you thought of the flight, if you noticed any impact from the humidified and 6k foot pressurized cabin, or any other thoughts about your trip.

Dresden – A Gem Out of Rubble

Dresden Frauenkirche

We were halfway through our meal before the flight attendant serving us became talkative. The Lufthansa flight attendants on long haul flights are always a little reserved until they know the customer is alright with conversation and even then, they are focused on their jobs. She asked whether or not Frankfurt was our final destination. When I said “no” and explained we were going to Dresden, I got received a puzzled look. “Christmas Market”, I said. Then she understood.

Between the nights of February 13 and February 15 1945, four raids were flown against the city of Dresden by British and American air crews. 3,900 tons of high explosives and incendiary devices led to a firestorm that engulfed the entire city center, leaving an estimated 25,000 people dead and reducing much of Dresden to rubble. To this day the justification of the indiscriminate bombing of the city is still called into question (by this time in the war, the USAAF had focused on strategic bombing of specific military targets).

Dresden

At first glance, Dresden does not look like much. A simple Altstadt (old town) on one side of the Elbe River and a more modern and in some cases, Soviet looking, new[ish] town on the other side. Lining the river are a myriad of historic buildings, most rebuilt using the rubble from the 1945 bombings. The city is not well known to Americans, except for those who happen to use the stop to stretch their legs while taking the train from Prague to Berlin or maybe to visit the transparent Volkswagen factory. But once you dig into Dresden a little, you find a very kind people very happy to have visitors gracing their city.

Our trip took us to Dresden in mid-December, when the Christmas Markets are in full swing. Europeans flock to Germany to visit the country’s plethora of markets, but Dresden gets special attention being the largest and oldest of the markets. Having first opened in 1434 and known as the Striezelmarkt, entering the market is a little overwhelming. The smell of sausage, Glühwein, and Lebkuchen fill the air while people mill about with their children and extended family. From time to time a group of carolers starts singing and all of the people around join in the chorus. Buy a cup of Glühwein and a few slices Christstollen, a bread with dried fruit that melts in your mouth, and just enjoy the market. A special treat is the parade, known as Bergparade, put on by miners from the surrounding mountain communities. The miners chant and sing while walking around the Altstadt. Seeing all of the different mining “companies” was our first experience in Dresden on the night we arrived and it was a great introduction to the spirit of the city and of the Christmas Markets in general.

Sausage, Sauerkraut, and Bread

Other attractions in Dresden? We listened to an organ concert in the rebuilt Frauenkirche, visited the “Hygiene” museum, and enjoyed a few cafes and people watching around the city. Dresden is very walkable and the tram system is great for those further jaunts around town. There are a number of good brewpubs/beer halls, including Brauhaus Am Waldschlösschen and Feldschlößchen-Stammhaus. Needless to say, a few days in Dresden are well worth it, especially before Christmas.

Dresden has had a turbulent history, but the city and the people have weathered it well. If you are ever in eastern Germany, a visit to this fine Florence on the Elbe is worth it.

Dip That Wing at Intercontinental Airport

I had the chance to head to George Bush Intercontinental Airport during some really strong winds this past weekend. With wind speeds around 17-19mph and gusts to 35mph the landings were interesting. On this particular one, I decided to take a short video. It came out a little shaky since I was on top of one of the parking garages and feeling the effects of the wind myself. There is music, because I figured people didn’t want to hear wind blowing over the mic.

Around the 17 second mark is when the fun occurs. The pilot dips the right wing and kicks the left rudder to counteract the effects of the crosswind and keep the 757-300 on the center line.

United Boeing 757-300 Landing from Stephan Segraves on Vimeo.

I also grabbed a few pictures of landings, one of which is this Bombardier Q400 doing the same as the 757-300 above, dipping the wing and throwing in the left rudder to keep it straight.

Crosswind Landing - Q400

You can view the entire set of shots from Saturday here.

A Glimpse From the Pilot’s Seat

I love airline/airplane videos so when I came across these HD videos on NYC Aviation I couldn’t help but re-post them here. Both videos are great because they give a glimpse into an area that passengers rarely see. We take for granted that there is a workload being handled by the pilots behind that cockpit door.

In the videos you see how turbulence effects landings, other traffic in the area while cruising (notice the A380 in the one video?), and how the autopilot is adjusted during flight.

The first video is of an Airbus aircraft operated by Avianca, the flag carrier of Colombia.

The second video is a Boeing 737 operated by what appears to be Ryanair, the low-cost airline based in Dublin, Ireland.

If you the videos do not appear for you, you can watch the Ryanair video here and the Avianca one here. Both links lead directly to YouTube.

On Image Use, Abuse, and Where We’re Headed

I think we have all done it, at least once, I know I have. Use an image on a website, blog, etc. without the permission or consent of the photographer. A quick search through this site shows an instance or two where I have done exactly that (they’re noted and will be dealt with). In my own experience it’s been about speed and ease of finding the images on search engines that make this such an attractive method of putting images on my blog. But, it’s wrong.

I’ve mulled over this post for the past few weeks and have actually rewritten it a number of times. My perspective is two-fold, as an (amateur) photographer I take pride in my photographs and want to see them well represented, but as a blogger I want an easy route to getting perfect images for my site. After a recent case of unauthorized image use, I thought it was appropriate to speak up on what I am beginning to see trend into a bigger and bigger issue.

Around January 19, 2011 I noticed this tweet by Twitter user Kyle Nielsen. I follow Kyle for his quick hits of Houston news and info and this particular tweet caught my eye because it involved Hubcap Grill, a local place I frequent. When I looked at the image, I immediately realized that it was the picture of Hubcap owner Ricky Craig that I had taken for a Loop Scoop article. At first, I was a little dumbfounded. The image had clearly been edited, as the original on The Loop Scoop has a green border. I contacted Paul at The Loop Scoop to ask if he knew anything about it, to which he replied that he did not. CultureMap had taken the picture without my consent or Paul’s.

My Image on CultureMap's Website

Maybe my immediate response on Twitter was a little over the top. I let loose, asking others why CultureMap would do such a thing. They have a team of photographers, writers, and editors, why would they need to take an image from another website? The responses I received were from a few people who had similar experiences with CultureMap. Some were more vocal than others. As the night drew on, I decided that per my friend Patrick’s advice, the next morning would see me drafting a DMCA takedown notice.

While I was sleeping I received a couple of messages from CultureMap. One asking if I wanted the image removed and another saying the image had been removed from the article. I also had an e-mail in my inbox from Clifford Pugh, Editor-in-Chief of CultureMap. It read as follows:

Dear Mr. Segraves,

Your Twitter thread from last night was forwarded to me, so I wanted to reply to you. I was a bit taken aback by the tone of the comments and hope if this ever happens in the future — which I sincerely hope it doesn’t — we can have a civil discussion on the subject.
Since CultureMap launched in 2009, we have posted 50,000 photos and I can honestly recall only two or three times  that a photographer asked us to remove a photo. So the comment that this happens all the time just isn’t true.
I’m proud of the fact that we make every effort to give credit where credit is due. We will continue to do our best to make sure we give credit and if we mess up, we will immediately address the situation.
Your photo was very nice. I wish you the best in your future photography endeavors.

Clifford Pugh
Editor-in-Chief

Since they had removed the photograph I decided to not send a DMCA take-down notice and just go about my day, but I could not help but dwell on the above e-mail. Mr. Pugh seems to think that my comments on Twitter were uncivil. I am sorry he feels that way, I thought my photograph  being used without my consent was uncivil and reacted accordingly. The two other paragraphs in his e-mail are very important as well. The second, stating that CultureMap has 50,000 photos and has only been asked to remove a photo a few times, is completely misleading. “Having” something means it’s yours. And the fact that only a few people have asked to have their photos removed could also mean a lot of people have no clue their photographs are on your website. The third paragraph is also unsettling. “We will continue to do our best to make sure we give credit …”, great, I am glad you are crediting photographers but what if the photo was sold to the original person using it? What if it was licensed (take a look around their website, there seem to be a lot of AP/Reuters images)? More than credit is necessary in those cases. As well as credit, is CultureMap paying the photographer for their work? Did they even ask if they could use an image? Had I not seen a tweet about the image, I would have never seen that CultureMap had used it. How many other photographers have not noticed their work being used on sites that had not requested permission?

The core problem in this entire situation is that it is implied that it’s the onus of the photographer to protect their work. That notion is utterly ridiculous. Sure, some responsibility of ownership does fall on the photographer but if every photographer completely protected their work then all you would see on the internet is pictures with giant watermarks through the middle of them. The key is for websites, bloggers, etc. to use images that they have either created themselves or those that they have permission to use. That allows photographers to focus on the image thieves.

Had CultureMap taken a few minutes to send a note to The Loop Scoop to ask who took the photograph and for that person’s e-mail, I could have denied permission and they could have moved on. Instead, they searched Google, got an image they liked, edited it, and used it. What this takes is honest people doing honest work. If we are going to stand up against things like SOPA and PIPA then we need to be willing to look at our own websites and say, “everything on here is what I’ve created or asked for permission to use”.

Just like I am sure CultureMap does not want their words used by someone else on a different publication, I do not want my images used places I have not explicitly given permission. Certain things do not fall under Fair Use, images is one. Looking at my tweets and thinking about my response, maybe it was not over the top what I did. Something was stolen from me. Sure, credit was given (though to the website I took the photo for), but I surely was not compensated and I’m guessing CultureMap makes money from the ads they serve on their website. My photograph had a cost associated to it. It took coordination with Ricky, time to take multiple shots and  more time to edit the photographs that would be used. CultureMap bypassed that. The work was already done for them.

Bottom line, let’s get back to creating and publishing our own content and then we can work together to take-out the spammers and image thieves that bottom feed. I should not have to worry about my work being used on a legitimate and well-staffed website, I should be able to focus on the places that are selling my images illegally and other shenanigans.

What’s your take?

I would like to thank Patrick O’Keefe and Jonathan Bailey for helping me during this fiasco. Their understanding of the DMCA, plagiarism, and Fair Use was a tremendous help.

[Addendum]

There have been some Tweets put out by the CultureMap team but these two caught my eye:

@jaylee @groovehouse @sensestorm @mikerastiello @reiswigphoto We apologize for any mistakes we’ve made in the past. We’re learning! – link to tweet

And then this gem:

@MikeRastiello @jaylee @groovehouse @sensestorm @reiswigphoto For some photogs, credit is enough. Clearly not for all. #lessonlearned – link to tweet

The notion that CultureMap is “learning” and that’s why these mistakes were made is a poor excuse. Even if they have only been “asked a few times to remove photographs” then that to me would be a red flag that maybe I should consult with an attorney and figure out what the correct way of going forward is.

Jay Lee, who takes some amazing photographs has a great commentary going on Twitter and he gave me permission to repost the tweets here. They are posted in reverse chronological order and each one is linked to the tweet itself.

It’s important to note that entities like @culturemap are businesses out to make money. When they profit from our labor, it’s offensive.

It should also be noted that more and more photographers are waking up to the realization that their work has value.

To be fair to @culturemap, they do credit the photogs on many or most occasions. But they are not licensing the photos. That is the issue

Photographers unite! Occupy @culturemap! We are the 99%! Sadly, @culturemap’s not the only offender. But they are a big player in Htown

@donjuanc I don’t want to live in an Internet filled with watermaked images. But it may be the only way.

@culturemap Your learning at OUR expense.

I recently used one of my own photos in a blog post on the @houstonchron. And yes, I asked myself for permission first.

Saying you’ll remove a photo after you have used it is like asking the tow truck driver to unhook your car after you have parked illegally

@culturemap @groovehouse @sensestorm @mikerastiello @reiswigphoto Removal is not the remedy. You have benefitted from our work commericially

Obviously this is my fault for taking so many pictures of Houston and Houstonians.

@Bitspitter @wynkoutloud Is there such a thing as a class action invoice? Or an invoice flash mob?

@wynkoutloud Your house wasn’t locked so I invited myself in. And I made a sandwhich and drank the last of your milk.

Providing a photo credit to the photographer is not the same thing as being granted license to use copyrighted material cc @culturemap

It seems that @culturemap makes an editorial habit of using photos without permission. I have found no less than 3 posts using my photos.