Photographer Dustin Snipes reinterprets magical Marfa Lights posted: 30/12/2020
Californian captures unidentified Flying Air Force above vast Texan landscape.
The unexplainable visual phenomenon known as the Marfa Lights have entranced people in the night sky above Texas for 137 years with acclaimed American photographer Dustin Snipes reinterpreting the marvel with the help of the Red Bull Air Force. Some people believe they are spirits of fallen warriors or paranormal phenomena like ghosts, UFOs and will-o-the-wisp, while scientists see them as either natural gases emitted from the earths core or atmospheric reflections of vehicle headlights and campfires.
Whatever way you look at them, the orbs of light that seemingly float just above the horizon of the remote city of Marfa are breathtaking which is why Snipes wanted to capture his own take during a New Moon pitch black night illuminated by the glowing Milky Way galaxy.
The lack of light pollution ensures the night sky is vast and oceanic with Snipes recruiting the Red Bull Air Force to dive in unison like falling comets through the night.
Here is what the Californian and Red Bull Air Force captain Jon DeVore had to say about this unique project:
What were the major challenges for you two on a mission like this?
Snipes: There were a lot of options. We could have created these lighting conditions a bunch of different ways. So at the end of it, we had to decide what was the most important element for us to capture. I think having a very clear, beautiful night sky was on the top of the list. Looking at it from the perspective of, Do we want this to look like people, or do we want them to look like look like something else? - it really questions what youre looking at. Trying to reverse engineer how we were going to get that look was definitely the most difficult because its something Ive never shot before. Knowing who the Red Bull Air Force were, and what they could do under these conditions also played a part in it. There were a lot of unknowns, but every time the Red Bull Air Force and Jon and I had talked to each other, I felt more and more comfortable.
DeVore: Typically, when we do night jumps, we can spot the ground pretty well because were either doing a show over a city where theres at least some identifiable locations on the ground. This location literally was blackout dark on the ground. We drove two pickup trucks to our landing area and put headlights on, which yes, when youre standing on the ground, that that looks like enough light. But when youre 10,000 feet in the air looking down, they look like tiny little dots of light. At least during our first jump, that was a little difficult to distinguish. That was the first challenge for sure. Secondly, its really challenging to communicate with a guy once you exit the aircraft. Sure, we have some lights on us and weve learned throughout the years how to spot each other pretty well, but to get together under canopy or in freefall, it just takes a lot more of a coordinated effort to be able to get together because there are less visuals. Thirdly, would be trying to understand Dustins vision from an artists point of view and how we could choreograph our dives to best suit his dream or what he was trying to capture, combined with what we were trying to do performance-wise. So, it definitely wasnt an easy one, but it all came together.
Jon, whats happening mid-jump or what's that feel like while you're doing manoeuvres like this?
DeVore: In this type of a project, youre looking outside, its loud, its noisy, its windy, and in this instance, it was also cold. Then you look out and your adrenaline starts to get going because especially on this one, youre looking down, and you see two little dots of light youre believing are your trucks. Now, you cant mess this spot up. Theres no other visual reference on the ground before you exit, you cant see anything else other than those two dots. Initially, that beginning is the most important part. When you exit, theres a lot that comes through muscle memory because all of us on the team have around 21,000 jumps. Weve been doing it a long time and have a lot of air time. Then you're actioning out, jumping out of the plane. You look back up as everybody else is actioning out, you see everybodys pyro firing. At least my point of view, I get excited or happy at that point. I realize the dive is working where everyones pyro fired, theres no malfunctions. Everyone is in the formation that we had discussed and spreading apart like a starburst in the sky. That initial freefall and choreography is definitely muscle memory. But once you start to track away from everyone and youre on your own while youre deploying your parachute, thats when everything gets surreal. You pull your parachute, everything slows down, the parachute stops you to pretty much a halting speed. Then, everythings quiet. You can start to really calm down and look around and realise what it feels like up there in outer space. And then you have to start looking around and scanning where youre picking up your teammates. Thats an intense moment because you can run each other over, and thatd be horrible. Then obviously, things go well, you get together, and then its back into muscle memory mode where were all human pilots flying our parachutes - our bodies - and we get together. When you see it all working like clockwork, the nerves calm down and excitement picks up and youre just excited that youre pulling it off. And then the real deal comes where youre landing. Especially in this environment, just having little headlights from a truck lighting the ground. Thats a depth perception mental trip because the grounds coming up real fast. Obviously on parachutes we have no motors, so were landing with engines out basically. Coming in on approach and landing and making sure yo
Most recent headlines
04/09/2025
Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), in collaboration with Dalet, has been a...
09/05/2025
Wooden Camera, a leading innovator in camera accessories, is proud to announce the launch of a new line of products for the Blackmagic URSA Cine Cameras. These ...
09/05/2025
LYNX Technik, provider of modular signal processing solutions is expanding its popular Series 5000 platform with three new 12G-SDI cards. The new cards provide ...
09/05/2025
Pebble, the leading automation, content management and integrated channel specialist, has completed a project to migrate ON TV, the major independent broadcaste...
09/05/2025
NUGEN Audio launches its new speech intelligibility plug-in, DialogCheck. A mono, stereo and multichannel dialog clarity meter, the software provides an objecti...
09/05/2025
Disguise the technology platform and solutions provider that powered MDL Beast Soundstorm 2024, Dubai Expo's Al Wasl Dome and visual displays at the Burj ...
09/05/2025
CVP has announced it will demonstrate its cutting-edge broadcast, live production and studio solutions at MPTS 2025. Taking place at Olympia London from 14th - ...
09/05/2025
Mediagenix, a global leader in smart content solutions to profitably connect the right content to the right audience, and White Peaks Solutions, the prominent e...
09/05/2025
SportsEngine Play, the first-of-its-kind streaming service for youth sports, has agreed to a multi-year extension with AI-automated sports content leader, Pixel...
09/05/2025
Friend MTS, a leading global provider of content protection services, today announced that TOD, the premier sports and entertainment OTT subscription service fo...
09/05/2025
ZEISS announces that it is in development on a new virtual lens technology that will allow visual effects and compositing artists to apply an authentic lens loo...
09/05/2025
At the 2025 Media Production & Technology Show (MPTS), Cerberus Tech will showcase the latest major enhancement to its Livelink IP video delivery platform the...
09/05/2025
Capitol Broadcasting Company welcomed Warren Thomas as the new Vice President an...
09/05/2025
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. Studio Technologies said the Harvard University athletics department has integrated Dante-enabled equipment from the vendor into its broadcast ...
09/05/2025
NEW YORK ITN, a provider of a local linear supply side platform, and Magnite, a independent sell-side advertising company, have announced that they working toge...
09/05/2025
LEEDS, U.K. Nugen Audio has launched a new speech intelligibility plug-in, DialogCheck and offered up quotes from technologists working at places like Netflix p...
09/05/2025
AJA I/O Gear: The Heart of Broadcast Solutions' VEGO Mobile Editing Solution
Brie Clayton May 8, 2025
0 Comments
When working remotely on broadcas...
09/05/2025
What do they teach in an Advanced Adobe After Effects Course?
Roland Kahlenberg May 8, 2025
0 Comments
There aren't many advanced After Effects co...
09/05/2025
Larry Jordan Sits with Trevor Morgan of OpenDrives at NAB 2025
Brie Clayton May 8, 2025
0 Comments
Trevor Morgan, COO of OpenDrives, shares how the co...
09/05/2025
Berklee Popular Music Institute Announces UK Festival Debut and Tour Dates For the first time, BPMI will bring Berklee-affiliated artists and students to the ...
09/05/2025
Here is your host, Patrick Kielty!
In the season finale of The Late Late Show, ...
09/05/2025
My Eurovision Party 2025 - join in on the fun with RT Kids!
Eurovision launche...
08/05/2025
A sinister fairy infiltrates a desperate family in Kenneth Dagatan's In My Mother's Skin, which premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Photo co...
08/05/2025
As expected, continued weak demand from key sales markets and declining economic...
08/05/2025
A new three-part series is coming to BBC iPlayer and BBC One
(Image: The Christie Archive Trust)
The BBC has announced Agatha Christie's Endless Night, a...
08/05/2025
For skyward-bound operators, training focuses on the unique aspects of flying ISR missions, including the management of onboard surveillance equipment and the e...
08/05/2025
The cable industry has told the Federal Communications Commission it supports the National Association of Broadcasters' proposal to allow broadcasters to us...
08/05/2025
WASHINGTON The Consumer Technology Association has continued its opposition to mandates requiring that NextGen TV/ATSC 3.0 tuners be included in new TV sets, sa...
08/05/2025
TAG Video Systems, the leader in software-based IP end-to-end workflow monitoring, deep probing, and real time visualization, has named Paul Maroni as Vice Pres...
08/05/2025
This year's UK Pavilion in hall 5, once again managed by Tradefair, will provide visitors with the unique opportunity to discuss and be involved in cutting ...
08/05/2025
Rohde & Schwarz will showcase its latest energy-efficient transmitters and 5G Broadcast technologies, designed to support network operators and content provider...
08/05/2025
IRVING, Texas Nexstar Media Group has tapped Bill Nardi as vice president of station operations, responsible for overseeing the day-to-day broadcast operations ...
08/05/2025
SEATTLE LumaTouch is partnering with CNN Academy to improve mobile storytelling techniques and support training across all of CNN Academy's training simulat...
08/05/2025
WASHINGTON The Society of Broadcast Engineers has filed comments with the Federal Communications Commission that support a proposal by the National Association ...
08/05/2025
Senior adviser to the United States Agency for Global Media Kari Lake has announced that One America News Network (OAN) will provide newsfeed services for fre...
08/05/2025
EdMon Expands as AI-Driven Post Production Workflows Gains Traction in Sweden an...
08/05/2025
Using Luma Mattes in Adobe Premiere Pro
Graham Quince May 7, 2025
0 Comments
This very quick tutorial shows you how to take an RGB clip and apply its ...
08/05/2025
OpenDrives Unveils Free Your Data' Initiative with New Astraeus Cloud-Nativ...
08/05/2025
Student Spotlight: Grigori Balasanyan The Armenian composer, who was named Boston Conservatory at Berklees 2025 student commencement speaker, talks about his ...
08/05/2025
08 May 2025
VEON Shareholders Re-elect Board at 2025 AGM, Founder Augie Fabela ...
08/05/2025
Comedy and entertainment channel U&Dave bring back their #1 ranked programme of ...
08/05/2025
May 8th, 2025 Press Materials Available Here
Tribeca Festival 2025 Unveils New Premieres Spanning Film and Music
Slick Rick's Victory with Idris Elba a...
08/05/2025
May 8th, 2025 Press Materials Available Here
Tribeca Festival 2025 Announces Lineup for Inaugural Storytelling Summit
11-Day Industry Event Launches with Tal...
08/05/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Vizrt's Nicholas Jameson on AI in Workflows, Pushing Boundarie...
08/05/2025
Creating Alternative Brand Experiences: Live Sports in the Age of Fortnite, Meta...
08/05/2025
PGA TOUR's David Piccolo: Advanced Graphics and Virtual Production Tools are...
08/05/2025
Tech Focus: Advancing Immersion in Sports Broadcasting with AR and Virtual Produ...
08/05/2025
Expect even more chaos this July with Harriet Webb leading the returning cast, p...
08/05/2025
Back to All News
Now in Production: Comedy Action Film Husbands in Action'...
Photographer Dustin Snipes reinterprets magical Marfa Lights posted: 30/12/2020 
