View allAll Photos Tagged PlaneWatching
This was our first trip to Bali. The first morning after arriving my wife and I both had jet lag. The wife opted to sleep, I took a beach walk and spotted planes landing in the distance. I found some shade and watched some landings until I melted from the heat and humidity. I only had a 70-180mm lens with me and really needed a 400-600mm lens. Heat haze and the fence line also affected photo quality. We left Bali several weeks later and I had a chance to shoot from the International Terminal - that was much better, even with shooting through tinted glass. DPS was fairly busy with a nice mix of Indonesian and international flights coming in. I would definitely go back there again.
My wife and I spent some time at Nellis in November 2020 - great experience but our photos sucked big time. I think operator error on our settings. We decided to drive back down (10.5 hours) to Las Vegas in December 2020 to get some more photo practice (and for her to do some more shopping). Overall the photos turned out much better but still not where we want to be quality wise - especially when trying to photograph fighters taking off. Any advice? The landing shots look much better but we had better lighting and slower aircraft speeds.
We caught the tail end of one of the weapon school courses so it was a hopping place - we didn't mind that at all!
I was passing through Sea-Tac on my way to San Jose for a big Comic Con. I had a few hours between connections so I decided to spend them in the Alaska Airlines Lounge in the North Concourse. I think it's Alaska's best lounge, even though it often doubles as a day care facility for unruly children. The view of air traffic is awesome, especially when landings/take offs are from the North. This was a great day for photography, except for glare from the thick windows. How I wish there was an open air observation deck above this concourse!
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LAX is a plane watching paradise - it's always busy and there is a great mix of domestic and international airlines. I try to stay near there a few times a year. On this trip I had just finished attending the WonderCon in Anaheim so I stayed a day at the H Hotel, famous for their 12th floor terrace. This terrace provides good views of both the 24 and 25 runways but lighting and obstructions are a problem - but it's still fun! I took these photos at the end of March 2023.
I had some time before my flight home to Boise so I found a nice area past Security to do some plane watching. SJC is a lovely airport with good views of the active runway. I was lucky enough to catch a special livery and the arrival of a Zipair 787. Nice way to pass the time!
Primera Air have begun operating at London Stansted Airport in April 2018 both short haul and long haul low cost routes. The airline began with flights to Europe with Boeing 737-800 OY-PSA and then on 19 April 2018 started it's first scheduled flights to New York Newark airport using a leased Boeing 757-200 from National Airlines whilst awaiting delivery of Airbus A321 aircraft.
Please see my video of Primera including the first departure of PF041 to New York www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUu_I4fif0k&;
Deer Jet Boeing 787-8 BBJ Departing London Stansted Airport 05 May 2017
Please see the video of the departure here
I took these photos from one of the parking garages at LAS. I checked in early and had some time to kill so I wandered up to this spotting spot - it was pretty nice - and cold. It was about 35 degrees with a nasty wind blowing. I lasted about an hour before heading back inside. I would definitely come back here again - when it is warmer!
Some photos from the Premier Inn Terminal 4 before heading out to explore London. For some reason my photos from this hotel aren't as crisp as they used to be. Baffling. I took these photos at the end of September 2022.
Whenever we're in Las Vegas I try to spend a few hours at McCarren watching planes land. These photos are from the Sunset Road spotting location so there is some fence blur. I took these photos on a nice day in March 2018.
I had a few hours to kill at the H Hotel near LAX so I made the most of them. Nice crisp morning for photography - and a nice mix of air traffic. LAX is always so cool to watch planes come and go. I took these photos at the end of March 2023.
I flew into LAX on my way to a big ComicCon in Anaheim. I decided to treat myself to a night at the H Hotel - it is expensive but worth it. The plusses were there was an incredible number of heavies and special liveries; on the downside I attracted murky, hazy, blah LA skies. Also, Runway 24L was closed for construction so a lot of traffic was landing on the south runway. All it all, it was a great way to spend parts of two days. I took these photos in late March 2024.
I visited Las Vegas mainly to watch the Red Flag exercise being held in January 2022 at Nellis AFB. We have been to several exercises before and expected a bunch of activity but on the 1st Monday of the 2nd week, not too much was going on. It looked like a normal training day. We could see the B-52s and B-2 on the flight line but they never moved during the day. Also working against us was the very high winds in the area. Very few Flex West departures, most were straight out. Oh well, here's hoping to a better day tomorrow!
I took these photos on 31 January 2022 outside of Nellis AFB, Las Vegas.
Since we were in Las Vegas, the wife suggested we go to Nellis Air Force Base to see if anything interested was going on. This was our first time in this area so we weren't sure where to go. We found a nice spot by the Speedway. The air traffic was great - we probably saw about 70 different aircraft takeoff and land - F-15s, F-16s. F-22s, F-35s, a KC-135, some Drakens, and a few US Navy Hawkeyes.
It was a great experience but neither of us got any excellent photos. I'm not sure if we were using the wrong camera settings, or if it was the distance and speed of the planes, if the heat haze was a factor, but most of our shots were grainy, blurry, and just not tack sharp. What a bummer, but we decided to come back in the near future.
I took these photos in mid-November 2020.
Filmed during Storm Georgina at London Stansted Airport on 24 January 2018 this was a nice visitor in the shape of Transavia logojet in the Peter Pan Vakantieclub livery
Please see the video here youtu.be/W_tawsZqG_M
I love watching planes at Miami International Airport (MIA). There is a great variety of airlines/airplanes, the weather is usually good, and there are several nice spotting spots. I took most of these photos at the El Dorado viewing area in mid-October 2021.
I was riding the LA Metro Rail from Downtown LA to Mariposa Station. I decided to get off at the Aviation/Century Station and see how the plane watching was. It actually was very good - I had a view on aircraft landing on the north runway (24R) and the south runway (25L). The south runway was slightly closer. On this initial trip I only had a 70-180mm lens with me but the photos still looked nice, even with a little heat haze,
There are covered benches at this station and no one bothered me. The station had several Metro volunteers there to help travelers with question. From time to time one would pop over to see if I saw any good planes or basic questions about cameras. There were a few wacky passengers making transfers but they were on there for a few minutes. All in all I found this to be a good alternative to some of the other sites,
Keep in mind there is a constant breeze on the platform. In July it was welcome but not sure how it would feel other times of the year.
My wife and I drove to NAF El Centro to catch the Blue Angels practice for their first air show of the season. We were also fortunate enough to see some of the T-45 Goshawks trainers and other aircraft in town for the air show. Excellent day weather-wise. I took these photos in mid-March 2023 - what a great day!
Runway switch Monday at LHR; morning arrivals on 27L. We had tickets for Phantom of the Opera in the evening so the wife told me to head out to Myrtle Field for a bit before going into London. That worked for me! I took these photos in mid-October 2022.
I had a few hours free before my flight home. I went back to a nice spotting area at the end of the 26s for coffee and breakfast. After checking in for my flight I spent time in the American Airlines gate area. I took these photos at the beginning of December 2022.
These photos are from our third day of plane spotting at the 21-1 Red Flag exercises at Nellis AFB. After watching many takeoffs to the south in the morning we headed back to the Speedway area to watch the recoveries. What a great day to be outside - perfect weather and we definitely got a good workout watching everything coming home from the training range.
I took these photos near Nellis AFB, outside of Las Vegas, in early February 2021.
My wife and I stopped over in London for a few days on the way to Bavaria in October 2022. After we checked in to the Premier Inn I headed to the Myrtle Avenue Field for a few hours. Gorgeous day and a great way to try to overcome jet lag!
Photos from my 2nd day at the 22-1 Red Flag Exercises held at Nellis AFB outside of Las Vegas. The morning was very slow but things picked up shortly after noon. A number of fighters took off, followed by 2 B-52s, 3 B-2s, and a number of support aircraft. A major wind event was coming into Las Vegas and I think that led to a lot of last minute Flex West departure cancellations. It also made things very dusty, gritty, and hazy. For recovery operations everyone made a beeline to the Cheyenne Avenue spots. Excellent day but it was freezing by the time the last B-2 landed shortly after sunset. I took these photos on 2/1/2022.
After spending (wasting) two days at Nellis I headed back to my hotel near LAS. Beautiful weather so I found a spot in a small strip mall near the LaQuinta and just relaxed. I was fortunate to capture some special liveries and new planes (to me). I took these photos at the end of November 2022.
Air France Boing 787 taking off from Montreal (YUL) in the rain. Viewing from Parc Jacques-de-Lesseps.
I was riding the LA Metro Rail from Downtown LA to Mariposa Station. I decided to get off at the Aviation/Century Station and see how the plane watching was. It actually was very good - I had a view on aircraft landing on the north runway (24R) and the south runway (25L). The south runway was slightly closer. On this initial trip I only had a 70-180mm lens with me but the photos still looked nice, even with a little heat haze,
There are covered benches at this station and no one bothered me. The station had several Metro volunteers there to help travelers with question. From time to time one would pop over to see if I saw any good planes or basic questions about cameras. There were a few wacky passengers making transfers but they were on there for a few minutes. All in all I found this to be a good alternative to some of the other sites,
Keep in mind there is a constant breeze on the platform. In July it was welcome but not sure how it would feel other times of the year.
I had a few hours to spare at Fort Lauderdale Airport so I headed to the Hibiscus Parking Garage. Great spotting area and I had it to myself. Lovely weather with a nice breeze. Life was very good that day! I took these photos at the end of November 2023.
These photos are from a last minute trip I was able to book to London in May 2022. We were there in April 2022 and it was an adventure, not in a good way. My wife and I were both sick and spent most of the time at the hotel. No fun. She knew I was restless and didn't feel complete so she encouraged me to go back. Sounds good to me! I took these photos shortly after arriving on 5/12/2022. Landings were on 27L so I headed for the Myrtle Field for a few hours and then returned to the Premier Inn T4. Great weather and long daylight made for a great return.
We flew into Heathrow on an early morning flight from Munich. The wife was tired and sent me on my way so she could sleep in peace and then chill out. After the runway switch I went to Myrtle Field to join a bunch of other people checking out the busy arrivals at Heather. I took these photos in mid-October 2022.
I flew into LAX at the end of March 2022 to attend WonderCon in Anaheim. I came down early to do some plane watching and aviation photography. Because of the insane price of rental cars and gas I opted to stay at the H Hotel, famous for their 12th floor terrace. Air traffic definitely has picked up since my last visit. A lot of heavies were active and international traffic seems back to normal. About the only negatives were very few special liveries and the same murky, gray, blah sky that always happens when I'm there. Oh well, maybe next time!
I took these photos at the end of March 2022 at LAX.
LAX is a plane watching paradise - it's always busy and there is a great mix of domestic and international airlines. I try to stay near there a few times a year. On this trip I had just finished attending the WonderCon in Anaheim so I stayed a day at the H Hotel, famous for their 12th floor terrace. This terrace provides good views of both the 24 and 25 runways but lighting and obstructions are a problem - but it's still fun! I took these photos at the end of March 2023.
I had some time to kill before starting my drive back to Las Vegas; I wanted to miss the heavy LA traffic so I went to Clutters Park for a few hours. Good choice. Nice weather to enjoy my coffee and see a bunch of heavies coming and going. I think I left around 9:30 am and had a nice, relaxing drive to Vegas. I took these photos in early December 2022.
My wife and I spent some time at Nellis in November 2020 - great experience but our photos sucked big time. I think operator error on our settings. We decided to drive back down (10.5 hours) in December 2020 to get some more practice. Overall the photos turned out much better but still not where we want to be quality wise - especially when trying to photography fighters taking off. Any advice? The landing shots look much better but we had better lighting and slower aircraft speeds.
We caught the tail end of one of the weapon school courses so it was a hopping place - we didn't mind that at all!
Some photos of airliners at the Kona International Airport during at trip to the Big Island in March 2023. Beautiful area to shoot the planes but we hit it at slow periods. Still, it was a pleasant surprise.
After a pleasant drive from Los Angeles I arrived in Las Vegas on a lovely afternoon. Before heading to the hotel I decided to sit near the end of 26L and watch some planes come and go. Nice choice. A steady stream of planes landing in a beautiful late afternoon sky. I found a spot in a little strip mall and had a really nice view. Not a bad way to spend about two hours. I took these photos in early December 2022.
Some early morning and late afternoon photos from the Premier Inn Terminal 4 at London Heathrow. Nice view from the rooms but it's hard for me to get crisp shots through the double pane/glazed windows. Enough complaining - it was still a blast. I took these photos in mid-May 2022.
My London trip was coming to an end so I wanted to spend some time at the Myrtle Avenue field. Forecast was for excellent weather. Sunrise was shortly after 5 a.m. so I got an early start and got to the field around 5:15 - and people were there already! The bad thing was the sun rose almost directly behind the landing aircraft. We went en masse to Hatton Cross Underground Station and found some better angles. After a bit the sun got higher and was less harsh so we went back to the field. Beautiful day just sitting there watching life go by - until I fell asleep in my chair. I decided to return to my room for a proper nap. I regret that now since a bunch of cool planes landed and I would rather have shot them outdoors. Hopefully there will be a next time soon.
I took these photos in mid-May 2022.
After spending a few hours at the Myrtle Avenue field freezing my buns off, I returned to my room at the Premier Inn T-4 to warm up. My room wasn't the best on this trip since many rooms were closed to exterior cladding work but it was decent - and warm! As always there was a lot of activity going on - not a bad day inside at all.
I took these photos in the latter part of February 2020.
This WW II vintage aircraft, a B-17 belonging to the Commemorative Air Force, makes an annual visit to the War Hawk Museum. It's always a joy to see her but dang, can we get some clear weather? We are suffering from eye, nose, and throat irritating wildfire smoke. When she was in the air I could hear her long before anyone could see her. Fortunately, checking out my wife is always good for my sore eyes!
I took these photos at the Nampa Airport in mid-August 2021
This was a pleasant surprise. We went to bed expecting runway ops to continue to be on the 09s for the next few days. I got up early and noticed landings were happening on 27L. Nice. It was still before sunrise ... and raining ... so not the best light but a good time to practice. Due to the room we decided to hang around the room in the Premier Inn T4 for a bit so I was able to sneak in some more plane watching time.
These photos are from our second day the Red Flag 23-1 at Nellis Air Force Base in last January 2023. The day started off good with a bunch of Flex West departures. For some reason which we can't figure out, all the departures switched to straight out departures - pretty boring and not good for photography. Later in the afternoon we headed to Cheyenne Avenue for the recovery operations - and we weren't disappointed but it seems like the heavies landed on 21L instead. Oh well!