Heathrow July 09

[redpaul]

Hi folks,
Found this forum by looking for info on the Portrush Airshow.
Well chuffed to see the a380 will be making her debut 

I went home to London in July for the cricket so made sure I spent a few hours at Myrtle Avenue across the road from 27L.

Not the best quality as they were taken with my Sony a200 kit lens before I upgraded to my 500D.

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Paul

[casper]

  Hi Paul and welcome to the forum. Lovely series of photos. Is the A380 as impressive in real life as it appears?

[redpaul]

Hi Paul and welcome to the forum. Lovely series of photos. Is the A380 as impressive in real life as it appears?

Hi Casper,
Yeah it's a beauty. Was only 100 feet or so away when she landed. Not as loud as a 747 but way more impressive. Took a whole series of shots  but the one above was the best.

Off topic I know but I read one of your posts in another thread where you mentioned the burger van in Craigavon B&Q so i'm assuming you are in the Craigavon area like me?

Paul

[casper]

Yep, close by in Lurgan

[kingsavo]

Not the best quality? 

Bet most of the people here wish they could get photos that good all the time!

Anyway is this spot the main spot to photograph at? Do you only catch the arrivals? (not too worrying cos everything that is departing has to arrived in the first place!) Oh and what size of lens do you need to fill a frame? 200 enough?

[Dave]

Great collection of LHR shots there! Despite the cloudy weather, they turned out extremely well. The A380 really is a beauty in real life, especially in the Qantas and Singapore liveries!

By the way, how are you finding the 500D? Does it feature video?

[redpaul]

Not the best quality? 

Bet most of the people here wish they could get photos that good all the time!

Anyway is this spot the main spot to photograph at? Do you only catch the arrivals? (not too worrying cos everything that is departing has to arrived in the first place!) Oh and what size of lens do you need to fill a frame? 200 enough?

Hi,
Yeah this is the most popular spot at Heathrow. Usually anything up to 100 people here.
I've marked the field.

The arrivals at 27L alternate every week from morning to late afternoon.

You are only 100 feet or so away so I had my 18-70mm lens on for all the above shots.

Paul

[redpaul]

Great collection of LHR shots there! Despite the cloudy weather, they turned out extremely well. The A380 really is a beauty in real life, especially in the Qantas and Singapore liveries!

By the way, how are you finding the 500D? Does it feature video?

Thanks Dave.
Loving the 500D so far. Only got it on Tuesday but I can already see the difference in sharpness.
Yep it's got HD video too although the mini HDMI cable doesn't come with it so I haven't connected it to the tv yet to check the quality.

Paul

[Squad 701]

Hi Redpaul, I might be heading to Heathrow or Manchester next weekend.
I noticed the winds are predominantly Easterly next weekend, can you recommend a spotting location
for Heathrow for these conditions ?
The last time I was spotting in Heathrow the Queens building was still open 
Great pics - Cheers.

[redpaul]

Hi Redpaul, I might be heading to Heathrow or Manchester next weekend.
I noticed the winds are predominantly Easterly next weekend, can you recommend a spotting location
for Heathrow for these conditions ?
The last time I was spotting in Heathrow the Queens building was still open 
Great pics - Cheers.

Hi mate,
I only ever go to Myrtle Avenue so haven't any experience in the other areas although there is loads of info here including which runways are scheduled for landing and take-off.

Hope this helps.

Paul

[Dave]

I'm thinking of heading to either Amsterdam or Heathrow for a 2 day *spotting* trip next month with the girlfriend. My only concern with booking such trips is the weather. I'd hate to spend all the money on flights and hotels and end up with the weather being miserable cough Portrush cough.

Would you recommend Heathrow Paul?

[redpaul]

I would definitely recommend Heathrow Dave. You're guaranteed all types of A/C but unfortunately not guaranteed the weather 

Althought if you can book as late as possible you could take a chance on the 10 day weather forecast.

Paul

[Squad 701]

Hi Redpaul, I might be heading to Heathrow or Manchester next weekend.
I noticed the winds are predominantly Easterly next weekend, can you recommend a spotting location
for Heathrow for these conditions ?
The last time I was spotting in Heathrow the Queens building was still open 
Great pics - Cheers.

Hi mate,
I only ever go to Myrtle Avenue so haven't any experience in the other areas although there is loads of info here including which runways are scheduled for landing and take-off.

Hope this helps.

Paul

Hi Paul,
Thanks for the link, its got a great deal of useful information there.
I missed out on some very cheap flights, so unfortunately it's going to be the middle of October, next chance I get.
Cheers.

[Dave]

I would definitely recommend Heathrow Dave. You're guaranteed all types of A/C but unfortunately not guaranteed the weather 

Althought if you can book as late as possible you could take a chance on the 10 day weather forecast.

Paul

Well, I opted to head to LHR this week, found some cheap flights and the weather turned out to be fantastic, I even ended up flying on BMI's Star Alliance A320 G-MIDX on a flight between LHR and MAN.

I must admit, LHR turned out to be one of my best trips yet! I met up with a few friends for a 3 day hardcore spotting trip even went into London for a day, caught all 3 airlines using the A380 and even caught a few special schemes. I'm currently in Manchester for a day or two before heading home on Monday, so keep an eye out for a few photos