Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 15

Thread: Aerial photos - 457th Bombardment Group - WW2

  1. #1

    Default Aerial photos - 457th Bombardment Group - WW2

    Talk about a dream job for mappers - I'm so damn lucky. Just today someone brought me 65 aerial photographs taken by the bombers of the 457th Bombardment Group, over Normandy just prior to the D Day invasion (softening coastal targets), over France and Germany.

    I have to scan them at 600 ppi, print them to scale to be shipped to Germany, for a purchase from EBay for these photos. I will print these for resale, then burn them to CD, plus he has more photos to bring me - about 80 more! These are the actual photos taken by the US Army Air Corps 1944.

    The first photo below is the Normandy Coast taken on June 2, 1944 - four days before D Day. You can clearly see Omaha Beach in this photo - before the landing!

    The second photo is the bombing of Plaven Bridge (I think this is France, but am not sure) many of these photos are hand labeled to include the date, bombing site, the plane that took the photo, and the 457th Bombardment Group listed.

    If I find anymore, really cool photos of this set, I'll post them up here, but lots of the same kind of photos to scan yet. I might be able to post higher res images, since the biggest ones are only 9" x 10".

    I thought these are awesome cool!

    GP

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	457th-normandy.jpg 
Views:	1341 
Size:	175.5 KB 
ID:	21559Click image for larger version. 

Name:	457th-plaven-bridge.jpg 
Views:	1142 
Size:	461.2 KB 
ID:	21560
    Last edited by Gamerprinter; 01-29-2010 at 04:53 PM.
    Gamer Printshop Publishing, Starfinder RPG modules and supplements, Map Products, Map Symbol Sets and Map Making Tutorial Guide
    DrivethruRPG store

    Artstation Gallery - Maps and 3D illustrations

  2. #2

    Default

    Are the picture scans being sold individually or will a collected CD be available?


    Sigurd


    Dollhouse Syndrome = The temptation to turn a map into a picture, obscuring the goal of the image with the appeal of cute, or simply available, parts. Maps have clarity through simplification.

    --- Sigurd

  3. #3

    Default Both...

    For this set of 65 photos the actual photos are being shipped to Germany as they've been purchased online on EBay already, however, I am scanning them for print and for CD prior to the actuals being shipped. He plans to sell individual photos prints, but may have the full CD available as purchased collection. I will see what he plans to do that route, even convince him to make them available as a collection - since I know interested parties!

    You can bet I'll keep a CD of this collection myself!

    GP
    Gamer Printshop Publishing, Starfinder RPG modules and supplements, Map Products, Map Symbol Sets and Map Making Tutorial Guide
    DrivethruRPG store

    Artstation Gallery - Maps and 3D illustrations

  4. #4
    Administrator waldronate's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    The High Desert
    Posts
    3,549

    Default

    Be sure to scan them at 48bpp if you can or at least at a high enough resolution to capture the film grain. I have some old BW photos that I scanned at 24bpp and I still regret not getting enough dynamic range to do any useful image processing (the originals are destroyed now, unfortunately). 24bpp (8 bpp grayscale) isn't enough dynamic range to handle really subtle shades of colors like you get on some film.

  5. #5

    Default

    I'll see what I can do, otherwise for sure I can scan these at 1200 ppi, though the client won't need those.

    GP
    Gamer Printshop Publishing, Starfinder RPG modules and supplements, Map Products, Map Symbol Sets and Map Making Tutorial Guide
    DrivethruRPG store

    Artstation Gallery - Maps and 3D illustrations

  6. #6
    Community Leader Facebook Connected Ascension's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2008
    Location
    St. Charles, Missouri, United States
    Posts
    8,392

    Default

    Way cool stuff, man. I might play around and color these for my own self.
    If the radiance of a thousand suns was to burst at once into the sky, that would be like the splendor of the Mighty One...I am become Death, the Shatterer of worlds.
    -J. Robert Oppenheimer (father of the atom bomb) alluding to The Bhagavad Gita (Chapter 11, Verse 32)


    My Maps ~ My Brushes ~ My Tutorials ~ My Challenge Maps

  7. #7

    Default

    Maybe I can get the client to let me sell the CD from my website, for a small cut in the profit (don't know what he'd charge) to make them available for those who are interested in these photos. I'm sure WW2 afficianados, members of the 457th Bombardment Group and most cartographers here would take an interest!

    I'll find out next Tuesday!

    GP
    Gamer Printshop Publishing, Starfinder RPG modules and supplements, Map Products, Map Symbol Sets and Map Making Tutorial Guide
    DrivethruRPG store

    Artstation Gallery - Maps and 3D illustrations

  8. #8
    Community Leader Jaxilon's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2009
    Location
    A beach in Ecuador
    Posts
    5,548

    Default

    Interesting. I found myself sort of humming the sound of an old bomber as I looked at those....I know, I live in my own little world but it's a pretty fun place most of the time

    Not that I want to bomb anyone, I was just imagining what the crew must have been hearing as they flew over and took these.
    Last edited by Jaxilon; 01-30-2010 at 02:13 AM. Reason: clarification on bombing cuz I'm not into hurting folks.
    “When it’s over and you look in the mirror, did you do the best that you were capable of? If so, the score does not matter. But if you find that you did your best you were capable of, you will find it to your liking.” -John Wooden

    * Rivengard * My Finished Maps * My Challenge Maps * My deviantArt

  9. #9

    Default

    Reflecting your comment, Jaxillion, a further weird fact regarding these photos. After I finish the job next week, these photos are being shipped to Germany, apparently one of the photos shows Berlin just prior to a bombing raid, matched by dates, the guy in Germany who purchased this set of photos clearly shows his father's house (a tiny speck, no doubt). Apparently his father's house was bombed that day - no one killed, but surely remembered by this guy's father. His Dad's birthday is in 3 weeks and these photos are a gift to remember the day his house was bombed!!

    GP
    Gamer Printshop Publishing, Starfinder RPG modules and supplements, Map Products, Map Symbol Sets and Map Making Tutorial Guide
    DrivethruRPG store

    Artstation Gallery - Maps and 3D illustrations

  10. #10

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •