Dylan van Graan
My name is Dylan van Graan and I’m an amateur photographer based
in sunny South Africa. I dabble in a few areas of photography, mainly
macro, landscape and action/sport. In the latter category my main
interest is centered around aviation photography.
Having no formal training in photography apart from some short
courses once I took up the hobby seriously I am mainly self taught
and in the case of aviation photography completely so.
Aircraft have always been one of my favorite modes of transportation
and I fondly remember the whine of a Goblin engine during a Vampire
display as a kid and spending my teenage years watching prospective
air force pilots perform aerobatic exams in AT-6 Texans (Harvard) from
the roof of our house after school. South Africa used this type as a
trainer well into the 80s and it was later replaced in the training role by
the Pilatus PC7, just making the point to say that I’m not that old!
I’m a Canon shooter and have been for some time, currently using an
“aged” 70D and Canon EF 100-400mm (push/pull) next to the flight-line.
It gets the job done and I use Fujifilm for my other photographic pursuits
such as landscape, milky-way and food photography. I have tested the
X-T2 and the Fuji 100-400mm on occasion and found the setup usable
if not ideal.
Considering my experience with Fujifilm I tend to find myself on the
other side of the photographic fence when it comes to the tools of the
trade. I shoot RAW which is generally standard for many photographers
but once uploaded to my laptop my weapons of choice for getting the
images that I want/like becomes less mainstream. For RAW conversion
I use Capture One and to get rid of the occasional tower that makes a
perfectly sharp aircraft on take off look like a “sosatie” (South African
delicacy roasted over hot coals) I reach for Affinity Photo. I sometimes
can’t resist sending the occasional image over to Silver Efex Pro to
convert to black and white.
I’ve been a member of the ISAP on and off over the past few years
and the very generous folks responsible for ISnAP have even on
occasion allowed me to submit articles for inclusion in this very
publication as well as helped me successfully apply for press
accreditation to some major events here in South Africa. Quite frankly
I think it’s cool to be associated with such a group of like-minded
people in this organization and I look forward to one day complete the
pilgrimage to the yearly symposium, if only I can get my employer to
schedule a meeting in the US at the same time!
At some point in my life I managed to get a piece of paper stating that I
was now a qualified trainer and I must admit that showing a newcomer
the ropes is one of my guilty pleasures. Standing on the flight line and
seeing the look on someone’s face after capturing decent prop-blur
whilst keeping the airframe sharp in a pan is for the lack of a better
word, fun. Of course there’s missing the shot of a fast jet as a result
of not setting the correct shutter speeds after capturing the belter of
a Tiger Moth in the last display, the agony of the shared experience is
just as rewarding.If I can give one tip it would be to have an air show program at hand
and be prepared to adjust for the aircraft on display.Maybe one more.Look around you and be aware of your surroundings, often aircraft
come screaming into the display area over the back of the crowd line.
Mustang Sally (Menno Parsons - owner/pilot) loves doing this and by
the time he pulls into the barrel roll it’s too late.OK, last one!Have more cards than you need, don’t chimp. I’ve had a Rooi Valk attack
helicopter drop flares right in front of me while staring at the back of an
LCD trying to free up some space.See you on the flight-line and good hunting.MEET OUR MEMBER