How To
PLanespot
Planespotting, it's done by millions of people around the world, whether they are catching a flight themselves or on one of the many spotters’ spots specially made around the airport, where they try to catch the flying beauties on camera. Planespotting is a great hobby in which you track the movement of aircraft, which is often accomplished by photography. Not only does planespotting teach you about planes, but it also teaches you about aviation in general.
Step 1: Find a good location.
Any location around the airport can be good for different types of shots with your camera. Pictures of the planes can be taken from behind, front, from the sides or below the plane and after takeoff or landing. You can also use https://www.spotterguide.net/ to find the best spots around most airports in the world (It tells you all the information about the airport).
Step 3: Use the right equipment.
It is recommended to use an actual camera (i.e. not a phone) but your phone is fine as well. Cameras with lenses that have focal lengths of around 300mm are for most airports the best depending on how far away you are from the planes. Tripods aren't necessary but could be useful if you don’t have a steady hand.
Step 4: Composition of a photo.
The pictures can be taken in different ways, from the side, front, below, but what should you have and what should you not have in your shot. One of the musts is the cockpit, you always want to have the cockpit in the picture unless you’re specifically trying to take a picture of the tail for example. Why is that? The cockpit is one of the main parts in an aircraft, it's where the pilots are and where everything is controlled. You don't want to have a picture from for example the wings to the back of the plane, but you can have a picture from the wings and the front of the plane or even not have the wings on and just the nose
Step 5: when should the shot be made.
Key moments in a planes take off or landing are when you want to take your shots. But pictures can of course also be taken at any point during taxi.
TIPS
Key moments in take off are usually:
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When it starts moving at the start of the runway.
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Front wheels in the air and back wheels still on the runway.
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Just after it has left the runway
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Plane already in the sky and it starts to take in its landing gear.
Key moments in the landing are usually:
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Picture taken from the front when the plane is still in the sky
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Picture taken from straight behind the landing strip
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When plane is still in the sky
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Just as back wheels touch the runway and the landing gear smoke is still there (can be taken from the side as well
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picture taken by me during take-off at Zurich Airport, Swiss A343, flight LX180 on its way to Bangkok. | picture taken by me during take-off at Zürich Airport, Swiss A330-343 on its way to Miami Airport | picture taken from http://www.jsbpics.de/plane-spotting-zurich-airport/ , American Airlines landing at Zurich |
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picture taken from https://centreforaviation.com/analysis/reports/zurich-airport-international-declining-new-investments-for-now-538516 , |