A blue and yellow Blue Angels jet banks steeply against a clear blue sky, with white condensation sweeping across its wings and trailing from its wingtips.

The Air Revealed

MG-0393

2024-07-30

About this piece

Mike Gedj captures a Blue Angels jet in a steep bank, its blue and yellow surfaces outlined by white condensation. Against an uninterrupted sky, the aircraft’s angular geometry contrasts with the soft, fleeting traces of airflow.

The story

I followed the aircraft through the viewfinder as its wings tilted toward the vertical. For a moment, the blue fuselage nearly belonged to the sky; yellow edges and white vapor held its shape apart. What drew me was the air becoming visible, gathering over the wings and unwinding behind their tips. I pressed the shutter to hold that brief meeting of precise machinery and something too fluid to keep.

More from Open Skies

View all →

A dark flying-wing stealth bomber seen from below against a clear blue sky, sunlight tracing its angular edges. — An Edge of Light

A B-2 stealth bomber and a B-52 bomber seen from below against a clear blue sky. — Two Geometries Of Flight

The Statue of Liberty rises from a stone pedestal beneath a blue sky with streaked white clouds. — A Flame Held Still

Two white jets with red and blue markings pass in opposite directions against a blue sky, trailing smoke. — An Instant Between

Four white jets with red and blue markings fly in close formation against a blue sky and pale clouds. — The Shape Of Unison

Two red, white and blue U.S. Air Force jets fly in parallel against blue sky, the upper aircraft inverted. — A Balance Of Wings