Smoke On Go

Gallery: Justin de Reuck

“Sometimes I do get to places just when God’s ready to have somebody click the shutter.”

Ansel Adams

A lifelong passion for aviation

Justin de Reuck

Aviation photographer Justin de Reuck has had a passion for aviation for as long as he can remember. His love for photography took hold some 25 years ago. He says: “I got my Private Pilot’s License when I was 18 years old, did my national service in the SAAF and then worked as a professional photographer from 1991 – 1995.”

Needing something more solid in his life he studed Electrical Engineering. Photography became a hobby, but his passion for it was never far from the surface.

Traditional vs digital photography

“A few years down the line, I couldn’t resist the call of the lens any longer, and once gain flicked the switch of my professional photographic career.” Since he started out in photography everything has changed, my darkroom has been replaced by a PC and he still reminisces about the good ol’ days of film, how exposure and darkroom techniques were so hard-core and unforgiving. “The truth is… they were… but I much prefer the digital age. I will never regret those days in the darkroom as it taught me more about photography and light than digital ever will,” says Justin.

A focus on aviation

After doing some wedding and corporate photography for a while, in 2006 he decided that aviation photography was something he really wanted to pursue. Aviation photography was a huge learning curve and for the first time he was forced to use shutter speeds that he would never have dreamt of doing handheld.

Justin’s breakthrough

But after hours and hours spent on the sides of runways practising, it all started coming together. “Forums and online galleries became my outlet for my photos until an editor of a local magazine called me up one day looking for me to go and cover and shoot a story in Cape Town. The rest just started to fall into place after that. Make no mistake, I still need to go and make things happen, stories and photoshoots don’t normally just fall in your lap. Being a fine art wedding photographer didn’t really help me much in the beginning as far as aviation went but now I’m able to blend the creativity of that genre with my aviation work.

My first flight was in an Airbus A300 in 1980.
My favourite aircraft is an F-18 Super Hornet.
It’s my dream to fly in a Cheetah.
My most exciting flight was my first flight in a PC-7 with the Silver Falcons.
My most terrifying flight was one where the entire electrical system died.
My aviation hero is Chuck Yeager.
My favourite camera is the Canon 1Dx mklll.
My plans for this year are to get as many air-to-air shoots in as possible.

A gallery of Justin’s work

The Flying Lions over Hartebeespoort in their Pitts Specials.
Ellis Levin waterskis a Harvard on Klipdrift Dam.
Warbirds – Patrick and Stu Davidson in their P-51 Mustang and Hawker Sea Fury along the Port Elizabeth coastline.
The Silver Falcons in Vic formation over Table Bay.
Ghost Squadron – The Flying Lions in between sponsors keep the aircraft flying and constantly refine their skills.
The Flying Lions in a stacked up echelon above the clouds.
Team Xtreme’s Mark Hensman and Mark Sampson keep it tight over Table Bay.
Trustco’s Pilatus PC12NG over the Namibian desert at Sossusvlei.
The full complement of Team Xtreme’s highly skilled pilots.
An SAAF Lockheed C130 dispersing flares during a night demonstration.
Duncan Gillespie’s amazing Shock Cub along the False Bay coast.
The Silver Falcons and a Mango Boeing 737-800 form up over the Atlantic West Coast for an airshow run in.
Red Bull pilot Patrick Davidson shows off his newly acquired Gamebird over the Atlantis Dunes.
The Flying Lions putting together a new element to their display with Extra 300s.
Jason Beamish flies the Absolute Aviation sponsored Extra 300 above the clouds.

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