Queen Elizabeth

HMS Queen Elizabeth is the lead ship of the Queen Eizabeth class of supercarrier, the largest warship ever built for the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom and capable of carrying up to 40 aircraft. Based at Portsmouth Naval base, she is the 2nd naval vessel to carry the name, and is due to be commisioned by the Queen in December 2017. 

Capable of carrying up to 40 aircraft, her complement is set of consist of Merlin helicopters for anti-submarine warfare, and F-35 lightning aircraft which will use VSTOL and as such arrestor cables and catapults are not required. The design emphasises flexibility, with accommodation for 250 Royal Marines and the ability to support them with attack helicopters and troop transports up to Chinook size and larger.

This image was shot just a couple of hours after she entered Portsmouth Harbour and docked within sight of HMS Victory. The approaches to Portsmouth Harbour are closed for up to 90 minutes each time she goes in or out, as the 65,000 tonne carrier takes up a lot of room in the narrow entrance which had 3.2 million cubic meters of sediment removed in preparation for her arrival.

The vantage point for this shot was in the middle of the Millennium Bridge in Gosport, next to the Royal Armaments Museum 'Explosion'. Again I have chosen to present this image as if it were a painting, as I wasn't happy with the way the picture looked as a photograph. With the dynamic range extended in Photomatix the colours were too harsh, without it just came out flat, and I couldn't find a happy medium. It perhaps wasnt the best viewpoint but I am pleased with the final result and it does look good hanging in the living room.