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    Q&A with Orange County Register photographer Jeff Gritchen
    • June 25, 2023

    Jeff Gritchen has been a photographer with the Southern California News Group, which includes 11 daily newspapers, for nearly 30 years. This Q&A is edited for brevity.

    Q: How did you come up with the idea for a collection of images showing the letters of the alphabet?A few years ago a friend gifted me a personalized letter art photo that spelled out my last name. It was letters made from everyday objects. One evening I looked at it and wondered if I could do that from the air. Some letters were easy to find, like O – others were very difficult, like N.

    Q: How long did it take you to work on this?I worked on the project from February to June 2023, with one image coming from 2022. The pictures span 13 Orange County cities and varied in altitude from 50 feet to 375 feet above the ground.

    Q: What led you to become a photojournalist?I’ve always been curious, and have never been able to a desk for eight hours. When I took a photo class in junior high, I was hooked.

    Q: When did you become interested in flying?In the 1990s, I earned my private pilot license with an instrument rating. I never wanted to fly professionally, just for fun. In 2015, I got my first drone and was able to mix my love of photography with flying.

    Q: What’s the most memorable aerial shoot you have done?A couple stand out: Flying over empty suburbia during the pandemic showing an eerily quiet Orange County. The coronavirus shutdown emptied beaches, closed malls and shuttered theme parks, giving the area an eerie, empty feeling. And, giving our readers a “Santa-eye view” of houses and businesses decorated for the holidays at night.

    Q: What gear do you use for your drone photography?I use DJI drones – a Phantom 4, Air 2s, Mavic 3 – and sometimes a helicopter.

    A variety of Os seen from the air around Orange County, CA, in 2023. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen)

    More aerial work from Jeff Gritchen

    Watch Newport Beach’s Wedge go wild with insane waves
    8 before-and-after images show regrowth a year after the Coastal Fire in Laguna Niguel
    Before and after images of Irvine Lake with a billion gallons of new water
    Video: Orange County’s best Christmas lights look spectacular shot from a drone
    Aerial footage shows an eerily quiet Orange County — Disneyland, beaches and malls

    ​ Orange County Register 

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