Reaching for the sky

We join military aircraft photographer Mark Lynham at the first Royal International Air Tattoo since 2019

Today I'm on my way to meet the professional aircraft photographer Mark Lynham at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire for the first Royal International Air Tattoo since 2019.

The world's largest display of military aircraft, it attracts around 150,000 people over the course of the weekend. Arriving at the airbase around 11am, I am permitted entry after a quick frisk by some military personnel.

The first thing that hits me is the incredible noise level - I've never been this close to a fast jet fighter before, and the power from the engines as a Typhoon flies by is quite something to behold. After camping here the night before, Mark is already on site and comes across to meet me just inside the gates.

We speak for a short period - it's good to hear him so excited to be back at this event, not only to photograph some incredible aircraft, but also to catch up with friends he hasn't seen for a while.

There's a great community vibe from the start, with many groups of schoolchildren taking on tasks and interactive games-set up around the area. The sun is shining and it's warm and my ears are ringing already!

I can't speak to Mark very easily while the jets are flying by, but we come up with a plan to get as close to the display area as possible. After seeing a few aircraft take off, Mark now has his eye in. He explains to me that shooting propeller aircraft and jets is a different challenge. For propeller planes or helicopters, Mark tries to shoot at as low a shutter speed as possible; sometimes, even going as low as 1/40 sec on such a long lens is a skill in itself.

However, it's obvious that Mark's true passion lies in shooting jet fighters. He turns and says to me, "People think I love aircraft photography, but I don't - I just love photography full-stop... and I just so happen to also love fighter jets!