A day of a Private Pilot
Creating a narrative through photography can be challenging. But I wanted to design a narrative, one that was close to my heart but also something only a few know about. I have grown up with this notion that flying in an airplane is a fun hobby and treat, while others only fly in commercial planes for travel. I’ve been able to take the yoke and fly the plane with my grandpa since I can remember.
Last year, for a photography project, I decided to create a story of the private pilot. My grandpa, Ralph, has had a private pilot’s license since the 80s when he was in the Air Force, so since before I was alive. But flying with him has been a treat since I was a kid. Not many people know about it, so I wanted to share this story from beginning to end. From the time we arrived at the hangar to when we wiped the airplane down with a rag, it was a unique experience that could teach people more about small planes and private pilots.
I wanted to show the ins and outs of how pilots get planes ready for flights, how they control the plane, and how they can be so elegant in the sky.
This ended up being one of my favorite projects to work on. I haven’t flown with my grandpa in a few years due to covid, so it was fun to get up in the air again. Getting to document something that my grandpa loves doing and being able to share this experience with him is something that will never go away.
