Growing up, it was really common to see fighter jets in the sky, some breaking the sound barrier, because we lived about 20 minutes from a Military Base and a major (Munich/Munchen) airport in Germany.
I was always fascinated by jets and airplanes...even though I hate the feeling of my stomach dropping when the airplane hits an air pocket, I love to fly.
The sound, sight and feeling of a jet zooming by makes me get goosebumps and tear up. It's like watching a ballet but with F-18's moving at around 300 meters/second or close to 700 mph.
Labor Day weekend is my favorite weekend of the year solely because of the Air Show. I've never been inside the airport during the air show, but I'm looking forward to doing that next year when the Thunderbirds do the demonstrations.
The dark blue skies (and pitch black skies) were achieved not by Photoshop but by using a filter which screws on the front of the camera lens called the polarizer. Much like sunglasses, it gets rid of reflections and makes for really interesting effects...depending on the time of day, the position of the subject and the direction of the sun.
Enjoy the Photos...
2008 Cleveland Air Show Photoblog