The picture above shows the Japan Air Force Boeing 747-400 (B744) leaving Quebec City after the G7 2018 summit.
Below is a video of the training made by the pilots to get accustomed to the Quebec Jean-Lesage international airport.The runways at the CYQB airport are only 150 feet wide.
Click on the link for other aviation pictures on my blog.
Soon after the conclusion of the G7 in La Malbaie, Quebec, the White House’s principal adviser to trade, Peter Navarro, declared during a televised interview in United States that « there is a special place in hell for the Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau ».
Justin Trudeau has nothing to fear since, after some verification, it appears that there is no more places available in hell. Indeed, the few remaining places have already been booked for the American politicians who refuse to take action to prevent the annual murder of tens of students due to a lack of gun control.
The American President Donald Trump likes to raise doubts and use inexact facts to try to gain advantages. His last invention is to say that the steel and aluminum coming from Canada could endanger the national security of the United States.
Donald Trump knows very well that the United States cannot actually produce all the steel and the aluminum required for the country’s growth. Instead of making irrelevant links between the United States, the national security, steel and Canada, I suggest that Mr Trump concentrate on the United States, national security, steel and the September 11th 2001 attacks.
It seems in fact that the american buildings are quite fragile and would benefit from a lot more steel during their construction. If not, how should we understand the fall of Building 7, known as WTC-7, a 47 floor tower that crashed on itself without having even been touched by a plane during the September 11th 2001 attacks. Medias have barely raised the subject, as they were asked to be « patriots ».
Donald Trump can also diminish the time alloted to his tweets and take more time to understand what happened with the New-York Twin Towers, known as WTC-1 and WTC-2, during the September 11th 2001 attacks. The best steel in the world would not have been able to stand against the nano-thermite that was found in the remnants of the towers.
Not understanding how two planes can destroy three towers, and also questioning the free fall of the towers, some Danish physicists analyzed a few pieces of the World Trade Center’s debris under microscope. They discovered nano-thermite. Nano-thermite liquifies steel (molten steel). The discovery was announced in the Open Physics Journal. Take a few minutes to understand what it is all about (the video quality is good, except for the first five seconds) :
The American President can also request from his associates, before they get fired, to find some pictures of the remains of the Boeing 757 that is said to have hit the Pentagon. Because 17 years later, there are still no credible photos available. Even some high ranking military questioned this lack of proof.
The way steel is used can also have negative consequences on the national security of the United States. There is more than 450 million guns used in the USA. I do not know how many more crazy shooters will show up in american schools before the politicians take their responsability.
Instead of acting on serious internal matters, it is easier to invent new threats coming from outside of the United States.
Click on the link for other controversial subjects on my blog.
(Stationnement disponible = Parking available)
(Défense de stationner = No parking allowed)
(Remorquage à vos frais = Towing at your own expenses)
Street photography is also about noticing anomalies in commercial signs. In the picture above, the commercial establishment offers parking space, but if you use the parking you will be towed because it is forbidden to park.
On the store’s door, you can see that many credit cards are accepted. So, if we follow the same reasoning, you will have problems if you use those cards. It is better to pay with Diner’s Club or American Express. The washrooms are also available for whoever does not need to go. The bankrupted establishment is also open except when it is closed.
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The picture above was taken at the parc Jeanne d’Arc in Quebec City in May 2018. In the background, you can see the Hotel Le Concorde, the only hotel with a revolving restaurant in Quebec City.
The picture was taken with a Canon 5DSR full format camera equipped with a Canon 14mm 2.8L fixed lens.
For other photos from the province of Quebec or of Quebec City, click on the following links from my blog :
Here are a few quotes drawn from the book “The Aviation Art of Keith Ferris”.
“I was told to draw, and keep drawing until I could master complete accuracy. I was not to be in such a rush to paint and render. Once drawing was under control there would be plenty of time to paint“.
“I was reminded that the aviation world was populated with people as well as airplanes and that I must learn anatomy and figure drawing and painting. For this I would have to go to school“.
“Never take employment in a job that will not in some way increase your knowledge of the graphic arts field“.
“The artist who expects his work to be reproduced should be familiar with the entire sequence of events of which art is only a part“.
“Pay close attention to the work of other artists and learn from the way they work. One quickly learns to recognize the difference between art that is good and art that is not“.
Title: The aviation art of Keith Ferris
Author: Keith Ferris
©1978
Edition: Peacock Press / Bantam Book edited by Ian Ballantine
ISBN: 0-553-01196-0
« We had no television in those days, so my evenings were spent reading history or drawing, mostly airplanes”.
“[Lieutenant Commander Beaumont] influenced my life as an artist. […] He participated in Operation Deep Freeze in Antarctica. Where others saw only white and blue in this frigid area, Beaumont found wonderful color and conveyed same in his art. He added alcohol to his paints to prevent them from freezing as he worked in sub-zero temperatures for 30 minute intervals, retreating to a warmer area before going out again”.
“It was Beaumont who taught me composition, color balance, and how to look at a subject and translate the visual image to paper or canvas”.
“Beaumont emphasized it wasn’t necessary to reproduce an exact replica of a scene as long as the end result achieved dramatic impact”.
“Bob Poole taught me […] how to grey down vivid colors. He also taught me that by blending colors, I could add motion to aircrafts and add subtlety to harsh lines”.
“Understanding light and its effects is obviously critical to an artist […]. For instance, as the descending sun caught the side of a rusty tanker, it created a starkly bright copper tone. We learned that if we didn’t try to emulate that color on paper within 30 minutes, the light would be lost, and the rich copper tone would quickly change to a dingy, lifeless brown”.
“Aspiring artists want to know how to draw and paint, but very few want to take the time to learn”.
“Refrain from ever being satisfied with your work. Never stop rehearsing you craft. Every painting is another step in an endless learning curve. Achievement comes from hard work, discipline, and a constant program of practice and learning”.
“Accuracy requires study and thorough knowledge of your subject. […] Generally, more than 50 percent of the time invested in a painting went into research”.
“As to planning a picture, my approach usually entailed making several sketches of ideas for the scene I wanted to create before deciding on the final composition”.
“Create the background first, knowing beforehand where you intend to place the aircraft, which should be the last phase of your painting”.
“My criticism of much of aviation art today is that many artists feel they must paint every rivet on an aircraft, or every line on a ship. It often appears as though some artists cut their aircraft from a photograph and paste it on the background”.
“[…] the eye and the brain do most of the work, connecting the dots and lines. In other words, you don’t have to include every detail, just a suggestion of detail”.
“Study the works of artists you admire, or whose style you want to emulate”.
“Some artists only see an airplane as a mechanical object. As a result, their depiction of them is mechanical, stilted portraits of aircraft rather than a picture with character, motion, or some measure of dramatic quality”.
“I’m not a complicated man and it has never taken much in the way of material things to make me happy. Most of my pleasures have come from my family, my career, my hobby, my books, and my friends. The wonderful experiences and opportunities that came my way were frosting on the cake”.
Title: The Man and His Art. R.G. Smith / an Autobiography (with Rosario “Zip” Rausa)
Author: R.G. Smith with Rosario “Zip” Rausa
Copyright: 1999 by R.G. Smith
Edition: Schiffer Publishing Limited
ISBN: 0-7643-0755-X
Street photography sometimes means having to take risks. But this time, it was not me who was at risk. During the Quebec Carnival 2018, I saw this young tourist who had found an original way of keeping her feet warm. With this method, it is never necessary to bother warming up your feet a second time!
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Well, that is it! The first glider just arrived at the Fane Parish airport in Papua New Guinea…
Before it is officially offered as a tourist attraction for the region, some attempts at taking-off and landing must be done. The first trial attracts a few people!
The descent along the twelve degree sloped runway is a bit rough for the glider’s low wings, as there are some bushes that will have to be trimmed!
The weather is nice and very warm. The only potential problem is the mountain ahead.
Finally, the pilot cuts the link. He is free to go!
The glider flies silently over the lush area of Papua New Guinea.
Using the rising warm air currents, the glider gains altitude.
Why not a pass over Fane?
Here is another isolated village alongside a mountain.
A last steep turn in order to realign for the approach at Fane Parish.
The airbrakes are out and the speed reasonable. The sloped runway is just ahead, on top of the mountain to the right.
Keeping just enough altitude on the approach to be safe.
Now that the landing is a sure thing, it is time to use the airbrakes again to slow down as much as possible.
Keeping in mind that this mountain airfield as a good slope, it is better to have a bit of extra speed. Nobody likes to stall a few feet over a runway!
What an experience it was! But I’ll need some help to pull the glider up the slope!
The virtual flight was great, the view was worth every penny, and I think that this could become a new touristic attraction for the region and the more wealthy visitors…
Click on the link for other challenging virtual flights on my blog.
Proceeding step by step, Donald Trump is setting the table for a political system transition in the United States.
As he often impulsively says what he really thinks ( his numerous tweets are proof ), his recent visit to China convinced him that it is possible to change the american political system.
He said that it would not be a bad idea to think of a way that would allow more than two successive political terms, something that is actually forbidden by the Constitution of the United States. In order to do that, he proceeds in a similar pattern as Mussolini did and changes the American system step by step.
Not only does he attack the institutions representing the legal system, like the FBI, but he also attacks the media that do not think like he does. We could eventually see the creation of a Trump owned media that would become the official communication channel of the President.
Trump creates fictive foes by selecting several countries whose citizens are denied an entry in United States. All statistics show that crimes and attacks are in the vast majority committed by people that are already American citizens.
Donald Trump wants to become, for his supporters, the only object of their confidence and trust. He wants to be seen as the only shield that can protect them from the imaginary foes that have been created. He invents the idea of a wall that would supposedly be paid by Mexico, a ridiculous proposition that shoud have made everyone laugh from the very beginning but which nonetheless convinced the American voters. That says it all!
The vast majority of his supporters do not have the interest, or the ability, to analyze his empty rethoric and lies, his transformation of reality. Ignorance is what creates the fear of others. He counts on the cowardice of several elected Republicans who stopped asking questions about the actions of the President in order to concentrate only on a necessary reelection.
Those who consider Donald Trump lightly risk a lot. How many had even realized that, in order to prepare his political campaign, Cambridge Analytica was already at work?
Click on the link for other articles on geopolitics on my blog.