Light Painting a WWII Piper L-4 N33579 and a Willys “MB” Jeep
For the second year in a row, Joannie and I left the cold Minnesota winter weather and set off for Florida. Unknown to us at the time was that it would be freezing in Florida too! Record cold weather greeted us with wind chills in the teens while we were at Walt Disney World!
Prior to arriving in Florida, we made a stop to light paint these two wonderful World War II era vehicles in Carrollton, Georgia.
Joannie was a bit under the weather that night, so our friend Ray and I did the light painting for this project. I met Ray and his wife Melisa at EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh back in July. It was there that I created three unique projects for them while at EAA.
Project #1 was of the amazing P-51D Mustang "Old Crow". I light painted Old Crow during the Wednesday night fireworks show. Our long-time friend Wayne Nolden assisted me that evening. And yes, there are actual show fireworks in the final artwork!
Project #2 was the light painting of CubCrafters XCub N920RS. I light painted that one with the help of Mike Port at Hickory Oaks Campground near Oshkosh.
Project #3 was of Douglas DC-3 N728G. This warbird was light painted (under rather heavy security) during the Saturday evening fireworks show. And yes, it also has show fireworks in its final artwork as well.
All three of those projects can be found on the "Light Painting Stories - 2025" page on this website as well as in our "light Painted Aircraft and More" gallery. Please go check them out, you won't be disappointed!
We headed off to Florida early the morning after this project as a nasty winter ice storm was only a few hours from hitting the area - and we want no part of it! It turns out that we would be back here in just a few weeks to light paint another unique aircraft. More on that in a bit.
This cool light painted photograph of Piper L-4 N33579 and a Willys “MB” Jeep. The conditions outside weren't too great, so we went with the indoor approach which turned out pretty cool!
Light Painting a 1958 Porsche 356A 1600 Speedster
After freezing at Walt Disney World (we still had a lot of fun, but it could have been much warmer), we headed to Fort Myers where the weather (eventually) did get warmer.
We hit the golf ball a little, relaxed with great friends, and then headed to Naples for the amazing Cars on 5th Concourse, and its spectacular Friday evening Jetport Reception charity event for Habitat for Humanity. It was there that we were commissioned to light paint this mint-condition black '58 Porsche Speedster.
Mother Nature attempted to ruin this one with a dew point that kicked in before it was even dark out, but we pulled it off!
This amazing automobile is spotless! Not to sound like bragging, but we think the final artwork is right up there with the Porsche too!
This black 1958 Porsche 356A 1600 Speedster looks even better than the day it left the factory nearly 70 years ago! It was truly an honor that we had the opportunity to light paint it!
Light Painting AirCam N74TV
We ended up with four additional light painting projects on our return trip back home to Minnesota. All four of them came about due to our friends Ray and Melissa (Ray apparently knows everyone in aviation on the east coast and beyond!)
The first two were created on the same evening near Carrollton, Georgia. Besides the AirCam itself being rather unusual, the hangar where we created it was pretty unique too. It has many large remote-controlled aircraft suspended from the ceiling!
The AirCam N74TV is certainly unique in its own right. It's powered by Twin Rotax 912S engines that are mounted on the wings. You can't see these beauties from the front of the aircraft (just the tips of the propellers). The engines are so cool looking that we decided to light paint them too!
We wrote separate blog post about each project. The links to both stories are below each finished artwork.
Light painting AirCam N74TV in this unique hangar was both challenging and rewarding too! The remote-controlled aircraft on the ceiling make for a really cool setting!
Since you couldn't see these Twin Rotax 912S engines from the front of the AirCam, I just had to make a second light painting that featured them!
Light Painting AH-1F “Cobra” N826HF
The night after light painting the AirCam, Joannie and I headed to Hampton, Georgia, where we had two amazing projects lined up! This one, of AH-1F “Cobra” N826HF, and a second one of UH-1H "Huey" N426HF.
Both helicopter light painting projects were created in the hangar at the Army Aviation Heritage Foundation & Flying Museum in Hampton, Georgia.
After assessing the size of these helicopters (they are big!), we chose to light paint each one separately. Doing so makes each one the star of the show and much larger in the imagery.
The history of each of these helicopters is amazing! The Cobra was shot down twice in Vietnam (the pilot died in the first one). Please click on the button below to read more about Cobra N826HF light painting and its storied history too.
As a side note, you can take a ride on both of these helicopters! The Army Aviation Heritage Foundation takes both of them to airshows throughout the country where they're both on display and you can take a ride on them too!
Upon seeing the large American Flag in the hangar at the Army Aviation Heritage Foundation & Flying Museum, I knew that it would make for a very fitting backdrop for the AH-1F Cobra N826HF's light painting.
Light Painting UH-1H "Huey" N426HF
While the Cobra is a large helicopter, the Huey is very bigger! It has a total length of approximately 44 feet from rotor to tail! It’s about 14 feet tall, with a 48-foot main rotor diameter, and weighs in at about 9,500 pounds! Yep, it's a big one!
Like the Cobra, this Huey is also a Vietnam era helicopter. While it didn't actually serve in combat, it did its service behind the scenes in several parts of the world.
And, as mentioned above, you can ride this wonderful aircraft at airshows too!
A stunning light painted photograph of UH-1H "Huey" N426HF. Joannie and I created this one in the hangar at the Army Aviation Heritage Foundation & Flying Museum in Hampton, Georgia.
Well, that's it for the moment. We've recently returned from the fantastic 2026 Motorhead Madness show in Duluth, Minnesota where we booked several projects that will happen once it gets nice up here in the Midwest.
We also have Corvette light painting projects in Missouri coming up in late April and early May. We'll post them here once they're complete. Please check back. Thank you! - M&J