Robert J Wiseman
Photographer and aviation enthusiast
Robert Wiseman started photographing DC-3s, Convair 340s, DC-4s and DHA Drovers at Broken Hill with a Kodak Box brownie camera in 1960.
Robert moved to Adelaide in 1962 and soon got a Yashica J3 SLE and was a regular visitor to West Beach and Parafield Airports.
Between 1969 and 1974 Robert travelled the world (Asia, Europe, South Africa, South and North America, Iceland, Middle East, Iran, India, Burma and Indonesia). By then he was running two Nikormat SLR's and a Yashoca Mat 124, 70mm twin lens reflex camera and photographed lots and lots of aeroplanes.
During this period Robert's photographs were being published in Flight International magazine.
Robert attended two SBAS Farnborough Air Shows, Hanover Air Show and the Paris Air Show in 1973 where he witnessed the crash of the Tupolev Tu-144 SST. Another highlight was a two hour stopover at Saigon's Tan Son Nut airport in 1970 at the height of the war in Vietnam, when TSN was the busiest airport in the world.
The Nikormats were worn out by the time my wife and I returned to Australia and they were replaced by Nikon F401s and later F55. In the following years Robert attended all the major air shows around Australia plus Jakarta IAS in 1996.
Robert's photographs continue to be published in newspapers, magazines and books including Stewart Wilson's In Australian Service series.
Robert's interests are focused on commercial and military aircraft plus helicopters and fire bombers, especially those types operated in Australia.
Robert J Wiseman at Avalon
