Critique Welcomed McClellan-Palomar Airport

[Chris Dodkin]

I seem to be spending a lot of time around airports at the moment!

This is the 'new' McClellan-Palomar Airport, with buildings designed by Gensler, and completed during 2007-2009.

It's my local small airport, about 4 miles down the road from me, and is the 4th busiest single runway airport in the US.

I shot the same location last year, and got stopped by security - this year, I shot with the Blad, and no one came over to see what nefarious tasks I was perpetrating.

All shots are approx 30 sec manually timed exposures at f/16 - with Fujifilm Velvia 50

Terminal

Departure Lounge

The Real Thing

 

[Brian Moore]

Interesting to see that green against the purple sky, Chris. Very cool.

 

[Paul Lange]

The colour contrast in the first is nice isn't it. I presume that the light isn't actually green. Did you get the colour cast by adjusting the white balance is it actually this colour Chris?

 

[Hamish Gill]

It looks almost ominous in green ... Especially with the lack of people ...

 

[Paul Lange]

That's it! It's aliens I tell you!!

I knew Chris was trying to tell us something but they are no doubt watching him so he had to get cryptic.

 

[Chris Dodkin]

The building lighting is some sort of fluorescent illumination, and when you shoot that with daylight slide film it comes out green. (Because it really does have more green light in it, but you're brain has a good auto WB adjuster in it)

It's far more obvious on film that digital, because when using a digital camera the auto WB usually kicks in and 'fixes' it.

You could correct the green cast on a film camera using an FL-D filter.

You loose some light, but get a more natural look to the lighting

I quite like the non filter look in this case - especially in contrast to the purple tones in the sunset.

However an alternative would be to use a WB fix in post processing - Photoshop has a white balance correction feature, where you select an area and it will then correct that color cast to white.

Of course it changes the light on the building, and the light in the sky at the same time - so you'd have to do some more post processing if you wanted to just change the man made lighting, but keep the sky natural.

 

[Paul Lange]

Out of the two I prefer the green as the corrected just doesn't have the same colour contrast. Thanks for the comprehensive post explaining it all Chris.

 

[Beth Carter]

so what type of airport was this? and what sort of spaceships, i mean planes, fly in?

i like the green & purple shots. especially the first and second.

 

[Chris Dodkin]

Out of the two I prefer the green as the corrected just doesn't have the same colour contrast.

Thanks Paul - Me too

- - - Updated - - -

so what type of airport was this? and what sort of spaceships, i mean planes, fly in?

i like the green & purple shots. especially the first and second.

Thanks Beth - It does look very Sci-Fi - a bit tech for our little airport, which used to be a tin hut in the corner of a field!

 

[Darren Bradley]

Probably just because I'm an arch. photographer, but I do prefer the corrected WB version!