Airport Photography
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Trip to Osaka Kansai Airport RJBB for Plane Spotting in 2015 (Part 3)
Following the previous post, here are a few more aircraft photos. The content this time is relatively monotonous, mainly simple spotting, focusing on aircraft from various international airlines rarely seen at Haneda Airport.
But let’s start with a landscape photo.
On the day of the shoot, summer-specific cumulonimbus clouds towered over Osaka city and Osaka Bay, reaching altitudes of one or two thousand meters.
With these striking clouds as a backdrop, airliners flying at an altitude of tens of meters in the final approach phase make for the best photography targets.
This Boeing 737-800 belongs to T’Way Air, a Korean LCC. -
2015 Return to Osaka Kansai Airport (RJBB) Plane Spotting Part 2
Previous post introduced some special liveries; now let’s switch themes and take a look at aircraft during twilight and at night, as well as Kansai International Airport.
On this day, the runway configuration was RWY24L for departures and RWY24R for arrivals. From the observation deck, the arriving aircraft were directly to the west, making it quite easy to take sunset-themed photos.
For example, this Thai Airways Airbus A330-300, registration HS-TBF, is just about to touch down.
With the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge and Awaji Island in the background, and the reflection of the airport radar, various antennas, and rails in the foreground, this silhouette photo looks decent enough. -
2015 Return to Osaka Kansai Airport (RJBB) Plane Spotting Part 1
It had been a long hot summer since I last went plane spotting. I’ve been to Haneda quite a lot this year, so I decided to go to Osaka Kansai Airport (RJBB) to review what I knew and learn something new.
Compared to two years ago, I found that there were quite a few more aircraft with special liveries. It was a very fruitful trip.
The biggest highlight of this trip should be this brand new Boeing 787-9 from Singapore’s LCC, Scoot.
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Lecture Notes on Aerial Photography by Professional Photographer Hideki Motoi
I recently had the opportunity to attend an aviation photography lecture by Mr. Hideki Motoi, and I have summarized my notes from the session below.
Mr. Motoi is a professional photographer with over 50 years of experience in aviation photography. He has serialized photography knowledge in the famous enthusiast magazine Kokuu Fan (the editor-in-chief was also present at this lecture) for many years, and I have known of him for a long time. It was a great honor to listen to his full 3-hour lecture in person. By the way, there were fewer than 30 participants in this small lecture, mostly middle-aged and elderly people aged 50-60. I was considered young in the group; it seems the age group of aviation photography enthusiasts is trending towards the older demographic.
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Red Bull Air Race World Championship Chiba
Following the previous post.
The 17th was a beautiful sunny day, originally a perfect day for watching the airshow and photography, but due to the following two reasons, it didn’t go very smoothly.
First was the temperature. The weather forecast predicted 28 degrees, so it was supposed to be a pleasant spring day. However, once the sun came out, the cloudless blue sky turned the spring day into summer, the beach continuously absorbed heat, and the ground temperature rose steadily; according to the loudspeakers at the venue, the high temperature at noon reached 36 degrees!
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ANA's Free Wallpapers
ANA’s official website offers free wallpapers for PC and tablets. I highly recommend them, as the photographer is Ozawa, whom I just introduced last month. Take this 747 for example: the positioning of the aircraft and the sun is fascinating. How does one capture the timing so perfectly? Truly impressive.
There are others, such as
and so on. They are all a feast for the eyes, aren’t they?
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CP+ 2015 Camera and Photo Imaging Show and Aviation Photography Seminar
Every year in mid-February, there is a large-scale photography equipment exhibition in Yokohama – CP+. I have been attending for several years. When I go, I look at the equipment, but my main purpose is to attend the free lectures, because every camera manufacturer invites some excellent photographers to give explanations to the audience, such as their works, shooting and post-production skills, and of course, introductions to the latest camera products.
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Seeing off Skymark Airlines A330 at Haneda Airport
A couple of days ago, I wrote about Skymark Airlines applying for bankruptcy protection and business reconstruction. Thinking that I wouldn’t be able to see their A330s anymore after February 1st, I decided to go to Haneda Airport yesterday (January 31st) to capture their final silhouettes.
Before going, I checked Skymark’s official website for A330 flight times and made a simple memo in Evernote. I couldn’t catch the morning and forenoon flights, so I focused on the afternoon flights: Depart to Fukuoka (RWY05) Sky13 12:35 Sky15 13:50 Sky17 15:00 Sky19 16:05 Sky21 17:25
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Shigeru Shibata Captures Chinese Navy Intercepting Soviet Heavy Nuclear-Powered Missile Cruiser — Part 2
“Fulongzhi” Photo Record (Part 1)
“Fulongzhi” Photo Record (Part 2)
November 19, 1985
At 7:30 AM, the rented Cessna 172 took off from Naha Airport. Visibility was approximately 40 km.
At 9:10 AM, a small white dot was spotted between the clouds and the sea over the East China Sea. Observation through binoculars confirmed it was the “Fulongzhi”. Two warships were ahead of the vessel, with one following behind.
At 9:30 AM, flew over the “Fulongzhi”. Shibata requested the pilot to approach from the side of the “Fulongzhi” in a circling pattern at an altitude of 200 feet (over 60 meters). After photographing the foredeck and panorama using an 85mm lens, continued photographing various parts of the hull.
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Shigeo Shibata Captures the Chinese Navy Intercepting a Soviet Heavy Nuclear-Powered Missile Cruiser — Part 1
Note: The user provided a very long text. I need to translate the content while adhering to the specific terminology and tone. Key terms check:
- 伏龙芝号 -> Frunze
- 重庆舰 -> Chongqing (DDG 133)
- 轻型螺旋桨飞机 -> Light Propeller Aircraft (matches context)
- 赛斯纳172 -> Cessna 172
- 失速 -> Stall (Not applicable here, but kept in mind)
- 拦截 -> Intercept
- 航向 -> Heading
- 航速 -> Speed / Knots
- 基洛夫级 -> Kirov-class
- 现代级 -> Sovremenny-class
Let’s draft the translation blocks.
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ANA FLY! Panda Livery 767 Approaching Retirement
ANA’s famous panda-themed jet, JA606A, will enter its major maintenance phase—which happens once every eight years—starting next week on December 9. Afterwards, it will be repainted back into the standard livery, so if you have the chance to see it in the next couple of days, be sure to take a photo for the memories!
ANAのFLY！パンダジェット（JA606A）が12月9日で運航終了。約8年毎に行われる重整備の塗装更新によるもので、今後はANAの通常塗装へ。 pic.twitter.com/IbOb5nlNN5
— 月刊エアライン編集部 (@ikarosairline) December 5, 2014I found two shots I took myself on Flickr to share with everyone.
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'Rain Man" Meets the A350 XWB'
In Japanese, there is a term “Rain Man” (雨男) referring to someone who always encounters rain when they go out. Therefore, an umbrella is a travel necessity, just like a wallet. Regrettably, in a sense, I am also a “Rain Man.” For instance, in recent years, whenever I traveled to Nikko, Fukuoka, Hamamatsu, or Kyoto, I always ran into rain. This was proven true again during my trip to see the A350.
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Spotting Planes at Haneda Airport @ Ukishima-cho Park
Recently, I was asked online about photography spots at Haneda Airport. It seems like a good idea to polish up the “Haneda Airport Spotting@” series, so I’ll write about Ukishima-cho Park this time.
Ukishima-cho Park is located within Kawasaki City, just off the seaside on the outer side of Runway A and Runway D. It is not only a very famous aircraft spotting location, but also a popular spot for fishing.
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Spotting Planes at Haneda Airport @ Keihinjima Tsubasa Park
For taking photos of aircraft at Haneda Airport, the observation decks on the terminal buildings are generally the easiest spots (Terminal 1 allows shooting of 34R/16R, while Terminal 2 and the International Terminal allow shooting of 34L/16L). Additionally, Jonanjima Seaside Park (for takeoffs on 34R and landings on 22) and Ukishima Park (for landings on 34L) are also quite well-known.
Keihinjima Tsubasa Park is also a decent spot for photography. It is a seaside park located to the right of Runway 22, basically parallel to the runway, so it allows for side-profile shots of aircraft on landing approach.
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Back to Chofu Airport Open Day
The Chofu Airport Open Day is usually held every year, but it was cancelled last year due to the natural disaster on Oshima Island. After waiting for two long years, the day finally arrived. My previous blog post is here: Tokyo Chofu Airport (Chofu Hikojo, Chofu Airport) Shooting Notes.
In the morning, I took the Keio Line from Shinjuku to Chofu Station, and then a 10-minute bus ride took me to the airport. This year’s schedule was the same as previous years: a lottery for Cessna flights, local snacks, visiting the Apron, various aviation supplies for sale, used aircraft parts, dance performances, aviation knowledge lectures, etc. This time, I specifically asked a professional about the ATC rules in this area. It turns out that this airport is just an info station, and FSC still needs to contact Haneda. To avoid the US military base, everyone flying south heads towards Yokohama.
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Five Schools of Aviation Photography
An article in the Airliner magazine I have on hand categorizes common aviation photos into five major types. I found it quite interesting, so let me give you a brief introduction.
School 1: The Contextual School Photos in this category integrate the aircraft with the surrounding environment to form a distinct theme. As a result, the photos tend to be narrative and emotional, effectively expressing the photographer’s mood and intent. For instance, utilizing natural landscapes like grasslands, forests, lakes, and mountains—whether it’s sunny, foggy, windy, rainy, or snowy—placing the aircraft within a vast environment easily creates a strong sense of imagery. The following photo is quite representative:
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Photos of the Week (Weekly Photos 2014/10/09)
1 After Typhoon No. 18, a twilight scene at Haneda Airport. With Mount Fuji in the background, the silhouette of a B747 is truly beautiful.
本日の羽田。 定刻14:05のLH717は今日は台風の影響で135分遅れで16:40に出発。 オレンジ色に染まる地平線に浮かび上がる富士山とジャンボジェットの特徴的なシルエット。 最高のコラボレーションであります。 pic.twitter.com/xYUSeNp2XD
— そらてつ (@sorate_2) October 6, 20142 Applying deicing fluid to a B787 at Oslo. The Dreamliner’s nose is truly cute.
PHOTO @Fly_Norwegian #B787 at Oslo. The amount of deicing fluid is incredible! (C) Javier de la Cruz pic.twitter.com/NwI5SpMUDQ via @VatsimPilot
— AirLive.net (@airlivenet) October 4, 20143 Look at the smiling A380, forget the fatigue of work.
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''Watching the US Navy "Blue Angels" Demonstration Team at Hickam Air Force Base'
That day while practicing flying at Honolulu airport, the flight school owner told me there is an air show this weekend, The location is Hickam AFB on the west side of the airport, which is the headquarters of the Pacific Air Forces. For these two days, the base is fully open to the public, and everyone can enter and visit, And there will be flight performances by the F22 Raptor and the “Blue Angels” flight demonstration team.
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Photo Highlights of the Week (Weekly Photos 2014/09/23)
1 On September 8, Boeing released photos of a new model in the 737 MAX family — the 737 MAX 200.
According to Boeing’s data, this model features a newly added door in the middle of the fuselage, a maximum seating capacity of 200, a 5% improvement in fuel economy, a fuselage length 2.2 meters longer than the A320neo, and a more spacious cabin.
2 A small aircraft at the site of a volcanic eruption
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Featured Photos of the Week (weekly photos 2014/09/17)
1 Honeywell International Boeing 757-225 Flight Test This Honeywell Boeing 757 is quite special; it is equipped with an engine mounted on the fuselage, and it is unclear what special test purpose this serves. It arrived at Kansai Airport in Japan last Thursday. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the chance to see it in person, so I will just introduce it here.
from Anchorage to Osaka https://t.co/yf0NP4O3oC 非常にレアなB5がKIXに向かっているようです。 pic.twitter.com/Lbv0mNinCA
— Flightradar24ウォッチャー (@FR24spotter_jp) September 11, 2014Click to enlarge:
© Oates Peter