Eye in the sky

"How are you with flying?"

It's a question we've all been asked, so I know it comes with a chance to shoot from, probably, a small plane, or maybe a helicopter. I already know to expect a bumpy flight; the plane lifts and drops at pockets of hot air. But aside from the usual flight turbulence, there's an extra dose of nausea from looking through the viewfinder while moving.

So of course I reply with, "Oooh, where am I going?"

Reporter Vanessa Miller and I tagged along with Senior Air Trooper Jon Degen on an afternoon patrol over Interstate 30 for a story on how budget cuts have affected the state trooper pilot program. You know those white horizontal lines on the highway? Yup, you're being clocked from the sky. Air troopers also assist in manhunts and aerial searches using an infrared-equipped plane. Read Vanessa's story and watch the package we produced for KCRG here. It wouldn't have been possible to send a TV photojournalist up on the same flight, but our video-capable DSLRs, paired with wide angle lenses, make it possible to shoot both video and stills.

We flew over one of my favorite sights from the air -- the Hawkeye Wildlife Management Area (identified thanks to

Google's satellite views), which in our current drought looks quite different

the last time I saw it in 2008.