About the Photographer - Colin Gatland

Mix a 1984 graduate of Corporate Photography from the Ohio Institute of Photography in Moraine, Ohio and add a Commercial Art background acquired from Sinclair Community College in Dayton, Ohio.  Not to mention a successful eighteen year commercial / industrial photography business (www.cgatlandphotography.com).  Throw that all together with a love of flying, mix it up with one late summer evening's full range of aerobatics in a 1939 open cockpit Waco biplane, and then don't forget to add a pinch of skydiving from 13,500 ft and you end up with one person that loves to be in the air with a camera...

There's nothing more invigorating than hanging outside of a plane or helicopter peering through a lens.  Doing whatever it takes to get that "perfect aerial shot" for our clients.  If the door won't come off, then bank the plane we will, to get exactly what our clients have asked of us.  I have been shooting aerial photography for over twenty years now, from residential to commercial.  Clients include realtors, developers, hospitals, city governments, corporations & manufacturing facilities.  From beauty images of residential and commercial areas to property footprints for developers; whatever the client's needs are, I strive to get exactly that.

My gear is Nikon, my platform from fixed wing to rotor.  From the pre-flight team conference to the execution of the flight plan to the final post production image work...I leave nothing to chance.  Aerial photography is what we do at TC Aerial Solutions and we do it extremely well.

About the Pilot - Tim Pond

Tim’s interest in aviation dates back to his childhood when his father, Dr. J.K. Pond, started flying.  From Tim’s solo flight at age 16, he proceeded up the FAA certificate ladder to get the licenses needed to fly larger aircraft under more challenging conditions. While attending The Ohio State University, Tim added his instrument ticket followed shortly by a flight instructor rating and graduated with a BS degree in Industrial Design.  This degree program included several photography course requirements.  These educational experiences enabled Tim to develop a deep interest in the photographic arts and presented an opportunity to pursue a few free lance photo projects himself.  Employment as a design engineer at Grimes Manufacturing and Fairchild Aircraft followed, advancing his understanding of aircraft construction and the business of aviation. 

Never loosing sight of the goal to actually get paid to fly, Tim always sought to expand his flight education and experience.  He initially built flight time by flying as a copilot for a small night freight operation and giving flight instruction, actually training his future wife, Liza, and others for private licenses and various other ratings.  After adding an Airline Transport Rating to his certificate, he landed his first full-time pilot position in 1985 and has been employed primarily as a corporate pilot ever since.  This also included a short stint as a line pilot for Mesa Airlines.  Tim holds type ratings in the Hawker HS125, Cessna Citation 650 and 550, and Lear Jet.  At present, he has amassed nearly 10,000 hours of flight time, and owns a Cirrus Design SR20 airplane. 

With Tim’s keen interest in photography of all varieties and Colin’s obsession for flight (Tim has tried to explain that skydiving is not flying, but Colin will not listen), it was a natural progression for the two to work together on aerial photography projects.  Their collaborative work since 1990 has included projects for various hospitals, hotels, and municipalities.
 

About the Equipment

If you are going to do a professional job, you need professional equipment.  That is why I use a Nikon D200 system and a Nikon D80 backup system for high quality aerial images.  Any requested post production image work is done with Photoshop.  Text & graphic overlays specific to the client can all be easily added to the final images.  Images can be output to CD, DVD or a myriad of print sizes on many different types/styles of print media. 

If you need the images integrated into presentations, brochures or other publications, as well as for web applications, we can easily handle that aspect for you. We have a full array of graphics, designers and web specialists at our disposal and eager to help make your completed project exactly what you envisioned it to be.

With TC Aerial Solutions, you don't just get two guys with a few planes and camera equipment,
you get over twenty years experience with aerial photography and a team behind the scenes ready
to make your aerial project a success.