Come Fly with Me

COME FLY WITH ME
Telluride, Colorado, USA – 2023

The most jaw dropping airports in the world also tend to host challenging runways, a bittersweet experience for both passengers
and pilots. St Barts in the French Caribbean would be one example and then in the San Juan mountains of America, Telluride Airport proudly sits 9000 feet up in the sky. It must be one of the more outrageous places in which to build a commercial airport.

My idea was to build a story around this airport and the setting demanded some strong props, especially - of course - a plane. We found access to a real beauty. Originally built for the US Army Air Corps as a C-47-DL and served in the US military during World War II in North Africa and in the eighth Air Force. It then went on to participate in the D-Day invasion. In 1946 her job was done and she was converted to what she is today - a Douglas, DC-3Ce.

The problem was always going to be getting the plane into Telluride and we needed a break in the winter weather. That break came 40 hours before the shoot schedule and we grabbed it. To be candid, I didn’t care about the difficulties of it leaving afterwards; that was someone else’s problem. We just had to make full use of its visual splendour during its short mini break at 9000ft.

I would not be the first to use the metallic splendour of aviation as a prop and then throw in the top models of the era. It’s a combination that worked so well for Norman Parkinson in Nairobi in 1951. The difficulty was making sure I glorified all three parts of the image: the girls, the plan and the unmistakable backdrop of Telluride. It was a challenging concept to execute, especially with temperatures at 20 degrees below zero.

My full respect to the girls: Josie Canseco, Daniela Braga, Brooks Nader and Erica Lawrence and, of course, my pilot Brandon Jewett.
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