Much of my work is preconceived and we tend to start a day’s filming with a set of solid ideas in mind. Other filmmakers may prefer a more freewheeling approach and to let the magic happen spontaneously, but that can be extremely risky as ideas don’t tend to come on demand.

Searching for creative ideas is not like ordering room service when the hotel guest asks for food as soon as he or she is hungry. The best ideas for photographs tend to come when the camera and the mind are firmly decoupled.

The premise for this photograph, however, only emerged as the sun started to set at Alpine airport in West Texas. 

It was totally spontaneous; I certainly would never have conceived of making a picture with these extreme dimensions. This is a total one off for us.

But the whole image just works and works well. The aesthetic beauty of both the World War II bomber and the West Texas skyline, complement the cowboys who help evoke a sense of place. There had to be symmetry for the concept to work and my cowboys followed my directions with precision. Without the balance and the perfect bookends, there was no picture.

We would like to thank General Ron Fogleman - a decorated Vietnam veteran - for being the driving force behind delivering this aircraft to an unfamiliar airport in a remote part of West Texas. We love filming in this part of America because Texans, by and large, tend to make things happen as opposed to finding reasons why they should not.