I bow to Randall Johnson

[NIKV69]

IMO Randall has taken over ever since he burst onto the scene. His work is at a level I don't think we have seen and I am proud to have shot with him and had dinner with him many times. He pushes himself, doesn't stay in one spot too long and his reward is shots like this. Did I mention he shoots Nikon? I loved Whitebirds catch of a crosswind touchdown from this spot but I think Randall has outdone everyone with this. WOW!

[threeholerglory]

Randal > Royal

Just IMHO

[Zee71]

Simply awesome!!! This is an inspiration for me to get awesome shots like that.

[NIKV69]

Randal > Royal

Just IMHO

LOL, I agree Royal is great but Randall has owned the homepage for over a year and he does it all with no access. Randall truly is a spotter and a sick photog. He also recently began screening so he gives of himself as well. A good man!

[PhilDernerJr]

I have to say that Randall is easily the best shooter in the United States. It's hands down to me.

[NIKV69]

I know your a fan Phil! He certainly is up there. His work is technically perfect and he is keeps it fresh. In fact I am surprised he was at the viewing area because he loves to explore new spots in Vegas and LAX. Not to mention one cool dude! I take any chance to have dinner or shoot with him and he has given me priceless advice like ditching my 80-400VR for the 300 prime.

[seahawks7757]

I hope to meet him sometime, huge fan of his too.

And agreed threeholeglory!

[gonzalu]

Superb photos... does he do Vulcan Mind Melds any more? I need to pick his brain about my poor shots and how to improve them LOL. Having perfect light like Vegas doesn't hurt :-) In any case, superb work!

BTW, is there a spotting guide for Vegas of the level of NYC guides? Nick, thanks for the advise and tips you gave me the other day when we met. I am just looking for something I can print LOL. As my memory is not as good as it should be :P

[NIKV69]

BTW, is there a spotting guide for Vegas of the level of NYC guides? Nick, thanks for the advise and tips you gave me the other day when we met. I am just looking for something I can print LOL. As my memory is not as good as it should be :P

Phil put together the map here from my memory. Basically the two major spots are the viewing area and rooftop. Though it's a grid and if you have wheels you can seek out spots like Randall does. If you ever have a question just PM me. I have shot many places there.

[gonzalu]

You know, I am an idiot... I never even saw the Las Vegas guide here... DUH!!! Good deal. Thank you sir.

[jerslice]

I have to say that Randall is easily the best shooter in the United States. It's hands down to me.

So, at risk of being flamed, I gotta say that I respectfully disagree.

First though, some disclaimers:
1) Due to a.nets cookie cutter style of shooting and overall encouragement of lackluster creativity it’s entirely possible that I just haven’t seen everything Mr. Johnson has to offer – like if he uploads to flick or other non-crazy sites. So my critique is based solely on his a.net content and nothing else because I don’t know where/if he posts elsewhere.
2) I’ve never met the guy, so I can’t say anything about him on a personal level other than I’ve heard he’s a wicked nice guy.

That being said, I’m not sure that he’s the best one out there period. His quality and technical prowess is certainly top-notch; I imagine that he likely has some of the best Nikon has to offer and definitely has some sick editing skills to boot that make me drool. In this regard he’s one of the best I’ve seen, ever. And he is clearly dedicated to be out there often to get a variety of shots in different conditions in multiple locations around the field. But his composition overall isn’t anything particularly striking to me. And maybe that’s just because I see his a.net stuff, but I don’t see anything that’s really outside the box to me. Photogs like Kevin Scott, Ty Rogoway, Jim Raedar, Ron Stella show not just top notch quality & dedication but also fantastic, out of the box composition coming up with fresh ideas and new perspectives. When I view Randall’s shots I’m floored by the quality, the crispness, the color, the tight shooting, the to die for editing skills. But at most it makes me want to spend $15,000 on the best equipment and spend a week spotting in Vegas and LAX. When I view photos from Kevin/Ty/Jim/Ron I want to get out to the nearest field and start shooting at something (with a camera of course). They consistently come up with fresh angles, new perspectives, and crazy ideas that make me wish I’d’ve thought of that and give me inspiration to try something similar and, more importantly, come up with something new. They push the envelope of how I at least think about, photograph, and even view airplanes. I also have the benefit of knowing where else a few of these guys post so one can really get a feel for the real photographer, and not just what a.net has deemed acceptable, and maybe this is the case with Randall too (in which case I’m happy to eat my words and recant most of what I just said), but on the face of what I see on a.net, I’m just not convinced.

[NIKV69]

Jeremy you need to remember that Randall doesn't have the access the people you listed have and he doesn't really feel the need to have an hook at Nellis. When you can't get close to the aircraft it's not that easy to start doing "outside the box" things. Yet if you look at a lot of Randalls stuff he has ventured to spots (again also outside the fence) that not too many people go to. Also I take insult to your "real photographer" comment as I would think many others here will as well. Just because your Jetwash buddies can camp out on the side of the active at Nellis and shoot different angles that us mortals doesn't make them any more real than the people that upload to anet, JP or what have you. If you want to stop uploading to anet fine, I respect that but to try to deem anyone who does a "cookie cutter" is not only a stretch but pretty much insulting. Like I said we aren't blessed with being able to get access or shoot Boeing Field all the time. From what I have seen from your "pushing the envelope" shooters it's not much different than what I see from the creative guys such as Florian and others on anet.

[threeholerglory]

sorry for the double post but @nick...I think what Jeremy was saying when he referenced "real photographer" is that you're seeing their whole collection of skills since you can see their work through all sites (flickr, photobucket, personal site etc.) and not only what a.net has posted. Airliners (as we've shot this point dead already) has a fairly strict standard for what they want to see in an image based on a number of factors including the technical aspect as well as the composition. To that end, what Jeremy is saying is that it can severely limit the type of shot we will see from that photographer. Perhaps in this case Randall has another site he uploads other shots to that have that more creative edge that Jeremy is looking to exploit in himself but has not found yet.

[jerslice]

Jeremy you need to remember that Randall doesn't have the access the people you listed have and he doesn't really feel the need to have an hook at Nellis.

I don't have a hook at Nellis - I'd love to but all the shots you saw posted came from areas that were either public or similar to the view the public has. I had media access with NYC, which only accomplished carving out a space along the flight line right next to the public. Saved a spot was all it did, but I didn't get any pics the public didn't. The people I mentioned, some of them have access...others don't. A handful of the guys I mentioned don't have access most of the time.

When you can't get close to the aircraft it's not that easy to start doing "outside the box" things. Yet if you look at a lot of Randalls stuff he has ventured to spots (again also outside the fence) that not too many people go to. Also I take insult to your "real photographer" comment as I would think many others here will as well.

Nick, its all about context here. Look back at what I said:

I also have the benefit of knowing where else a few of these guys post so one can really get a feel for the real photographer, and not just what a.net has deemed acceptable, and maybe this is the case with Randall too (in which case I’m happy to eat my words and recant most of what I just said), but on the face of what I see on a.net, I’m just not convinced.

It doesn't take rocket science (or does it?) to see that I'm referring to a photographer as a whole. A synonym for my statement would read: "I also have the benefit of knowing where else a few of these guys post so one can really get a feel for the whole photographer - the entire package that she/he has to offer". I think most people reading this (like threeholer), Nick, will realize I am not in fact insulting photographers as a whole, and instead pointing out the limitations of what a.net can offer.

Just because your Jetwash buddies can camp out on the side of the active at Nellis and shoot different angles that us mortals doesn't make them any more real than the people that upload to anet, JP or what have you.

Thanks Nick, but not all my jetwash buddies camp out on the side of the runway. In fact, I actually only have one jetwash buddy, and most of the time he's right next to me on the fence at Boeing Field getting the same access as "mere mortals" like you, me, and everyone else.

If you want to stop uploading to anet fine, I respect that but to try to deem anyone who does a "cookie cutter" is not only a stretch but pretty much insulting. Like I said we aren't blessed with being able to get access or shoot Boeing Field all the time.

I have no problem with people who shoot "cookie cutter", and I regret that I appear to have come off that way. The conversation revolved around saying Randall was the best photog a.net has to offer. I disagree, I think a.net has better to offer. Nothing wrong with that.

From what I have seen from your "pushing the envelope" shooters it's not much different than what I see from the creative guys such as Florian and others on anet.

Florian has a fantastic portfolio...and an even better selection visible outside of a.net...which basically underscores my point. I picked 4 of the guys I think really kick it up a notch, there's more, but I'm not going to list them all. Florian is certainly one them...so is Mark Garfinkel among others.

[PhilDernerJr]

I just love reading this thread and seeing passion about aviation photography. Kickass.