Industrial Photography and the Recovery of Flight 1549
B&H Photography Podcast
Jill Waterman
4.8 • 2.1K Ratings
🗓️ 17 January 2019
⏱️ 73 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
This week we recognize the 10th anniversary of the "Miracle on the Hudson." On January 15, 2009, with both engines crippled, US Airways Flight 1549 made an emergency landing in the icy waters of the Hudson River, with 155 people onboard. All passengers and crew survived.
On this week's episode of the B&H Photography Podcast, we welcome photographer Stephen Mallon, who documented the recovery of the airplane from the river, and Denise Lockie, who was a passenger on Flight 1549.
Stephen Mallon is that rare photographer who successfully blends editorial, documentary, commercial, and fine art photography, often in the same image. He is recognized for documenting large-scale industrial and marine projects, including the "The Reefing of USS Radford," "Next Stop Atlantic," and, of course, "Brace for Impact: The Salvage of Flight 1549." His clients include the New York Times Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, Fortune, Publicis, Sudler & Hennessey, and MAYTAG; and his series, "American Reclamation" is currently exhibiting at the Front Room Gallery, in New York. Mallon discusses his career trajectory, his medium format and full-frame gear choices, and how he straddles the line between his documentary subjects and a fine art photographer's vision.
Of course, we also talk about the series he produced on the recovery of Flight 1549 and how he approached such a historical subject. In the second half of the episode, we are also very fortunate to be joined by Denise Lockie, who survived the crash landing and a protracted stay in the icy waters. Lockie tells of her experience that day, her recovery process, and about looking back on such a life-changing event after ten years. We also discuss with Lockie her feelings about the images Mallon has made and the other iconic images from that fateful day.
Guests: Stephen Mallon and Denise Lockie
Photograph © Stephen Mallon
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | You're listening to the B&H Photography Podcast. |
| 0:04.0 | For over 40 years, B&H has been the professional source for photography, video, audio, and more. |
| 0:09.6 | For your favorite gear, news, and reviews, visit us at bnh.com or download the B&H app to |
| 0:15.4 | your iPhone or Android device. |
| 0:17.6 | Now here's your host, Alan Whitez. |
| 0:19.7 | Greetings and welcome to the B&H Photography Podcast. |
| 0:22.9 | 10 years ago this week on January 15th 2009, at about 3.24pm, US Airways Flight 1549 took |
| 0:31.4 | off from New York's LaGuardia Airport with 150 passengers and a crew of five for what |
| 0:36.8 | should have been an uneventful flight to Charlotte, North Carolina. |
| 0:40.6 | The sky was crystal clear and cold temperatures aside, it was a beautiful day to take to the |
| 0:45.1 | air. |
| 0:46.1 | The Airbus 320 had been climbing for three minutes when a flock of Canadian geese crosspads |
| 0:51.1 | with the plane taking out both engines. |
| 0:54.0 | Captain Chessley-Sullenberger, a seasoned pilot, quickly assessed the situation and despite |
| 0:59.4 | requests from the ground to attempt a dead stick landing at one of two nearby airports, |
| 1:04.5 | chose to follow his instincts to make sure everybody on board would be hugging their loved |
| 1:08.8 | ones before the day was up. |
| 1:11.1 | And as we all know, he did just that. |
| 1:13.7 | Our guests today are photographer Steven Mallon, who spent two weeks photographing the |
| 1:18.4 | recovery efforts for Flight 1549, which for the record is on permanent display at its intended |
| 1:24.5 | destination, the Charlotte Douglas International Airport. |
| 1:28.2 | We're also going to be joined by Denise Lockey, who is seated in seat 2C on Flight 1549. |
... |
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