Price: $19.95 USD + postage
Soft cover 175 pages / 8″X7″ / 300+ All Colour images
Welcome to the exciting world of air-to-air commercial airline photography. Perhaps you’ve wondered with amazement how those incredible in flight photos were taken of your favourite airliner. You’ve seen those great shots of the latest airliners taken aloft above the clouds in your favourite airline magazine, or perhaps you’ve marvelled at those glorious shots of classic jets or propliners from yesteryear on the cover of an old airline timetable, postcard or inflight magazine. The amazing art of air-to-air airline photography as we know it today has evolved little over the decades since the birth of air transport as a mass market phenomenon just after World War II.
Through the decades a very small fraternity of specialist aviation photographers have contributed their efforts to the realm, and for the most part, these amazing photographers are unsung heroes whose work is worthy of praise and recognition. The efforts of these artists have contributed greatly to the preservation of aviation history for future generations. This book is primarily a celebration of their work, as well as a time capsule snapshot of the airline and commercial aircraft industries as they evolved during the second half of the twentieth century.
Every photo always has a fascinating story behind it, and rarely do the captions tell the full story from the photographic perspective. In the vast majority of aviation magazines and books, there is almost never any explanation as to how the photographer took the air-to-air image, how the air-to-air sortie was arranged, what chase plane was used and so on. Air-to-air photos used by the airlines and manufacturers for promotional purposes almost never reveal the photographer’s name, let alone all the other interesting information we’d like to know. There is a certain mystique surrounding this art form and how it is done, which is now dispelled on the pages that follow.
This book’s purpose is to not only provide the interesting historical information relevant to each shot, but when possible, to also explain how the shot was taken, what chase plane was used, and sometimes detail the trials and tribulations of the photographers.
Air-to-air photography requires a lot of planning and skill for pilots and photographers alike, and this book will provide a basic understanding of what is involved in the staging of a successful air-to-air sortie. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the photos. Or study, plan, and then embark on your own air-to-air dreams. The opportunities above the clouds are truly limitless.
Like no other book ever printed in the history of commercial aviation, this unique and beautifully presented all colour volume features some 200 eyeball-popping air-to-air images of classic propliners and classic jetliners taken aloft by the great air-to-air photo masters of the late 20th century, including Stephen Piercey, Paul Duffy, Bob Shane, Ron Kosys, Chris Mak, Henry Tenby, Chuck Stewart Jr. and many others.
This book is loaded with air-to-air beauties of the following aircraft: Boeing 707, Boeing 727, Boeing 720, Boeing 737, Boeing 747 Classic, 747SP, DC-3, DC-4, DC-6, DC-7, DC-8, DC-9, DC-10, Britt-Norman Islander, De Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver, DHC-3 Otter, DHC-6 Twin Otter, Beech 18, Beech 99, Fokker F-27, F-28, F-50, Grumman Goose, Lockheed Hercules, PBY-5A Catalina, Convair CV-580, CV-640, Curtiss C-46, Hawker Siddeley HS-748, Lockheed Electra, Lockheed Constellation, Vickers Viscount, Vickers Vanguard, Martin 404, De Havilland Comet, Sud Aviation Se-210 Caravelle, Junkers Ju-52, Bristol Freighter, ATL98 Carvair, Dassault Mercure, Bristol Britannia, Armstrong Whitworth Argosy, De Havilland Trident, NAMC YS-11, Canadair CL-44, KC-97, Antonov An-2, An-26, An-124, Ilyushin IL-18, IL-14, Shorts Belfast, B-17G, C-117, and Shorts Sunderland Flying Boats with images taken in the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s.
Besides the mainline equipment from the Sixties through the Nineties, (this book features) classics including the Curtiss C-46 Commando, Douglas DC-3, DC-4, DC-6, DC-7, Lockheed Constellation and Electra plus the L-100 Hercules, Martin 404, Convair-Liner (in various forms), Bristol Britannia, Vickers Viscount and Vanguard, and a variety of ‘bush’ types. Captions are extensive and informative, often including details of the photography session such as location and crew names, chase plane, as well as revealing how the shot was captured. For a very modest price, here is a treasure trove of excellent and unusual colour photography of airliners from around the world.
– John Wegg, Editor, Airways, A Global Review of Commercial Flight
Henry Tenby has put together a book far greater than the limitations of its compact landscape format would imply. It provides 171 air-to-air studies of post-war classic propliners and jet airliners with fascinating captions relating why, how, and where the image was taken. Read assiduously, the content is worthy of close scrutiny wherein lie many lessons for erstwhile aspirants to the magic arts of real photography.
– David Baker, Editor, Aviation News Magazine
Picked up a nice little book today at the Aviation MegaStore near Amsterdam IAP, “Air-to-Air” by Henry Tenby. The book opens with a dedication to Stephen Piercey, a good start, and a clue for the content: a massive amount of propliners and OldJets. Besides loads of photographs, the captions are very informative and bring back memories to airlines and thier hardware plus we get to know some ace air-to-air photographers as well. With a modest price, you cannot go wrong with this one in my opinion.
Just to make sure, as a disclaimer, I have no financial interest in the book nor the author.
– Ruud Leeuw
