Tips on shooting air shows

This weekend is the MCAS Miramar air show featuring the Blue Angles and the F-22 Raptor - Welcome to MCAS Miramar Air Show . This will be my first attempt at shooting an air show and was wondering if anyone had any tips or words of advice. I'm planning on bringing my 70-300mm and 24-70mm but am unsure whether or not I should include a wide angle and/or any other lens. In a perfect world I would have a 400mm or 600mm lens but unfortunately I do not. I don't think there are any teleconverters that work on the 70-300mm, are there?

At any rate, I would be grateful for any advice you folks may have to offer.

TIA

Dave

Hey Dave. If it's anything like the Oceana NAS show I went to a few weeks ago, all the action is going to happen right in front of you. The 70-300 should be good. In Virginia, the jets are not allowed low level flights above 590mph (below sound barrier). I boosted my exposure comp a stop, which helped a lot. Keep your shutter speed up, and boost your ISO.

It was my first air show, and there were a rew things I learned.
1. When using a CPL filter, Do NOT wear polorizing sunglasses. Really screws up what you seen in the viewfinder.
2. Almost every aircraft that went by did so in both directions.
3. No matter how fast the aircraft, they all made slow passes as well as fast ones.
4. Take Plenty of batteries, and Mem cards. I had taken 800 pictures before I realized I'd left the extra mem card in the camera bag in the car.
5. You'll get hooked.

If I can get away, and the weather cooperates, I'm going to a small local airport for a fly in. Mostly static displays but some aerobatics too.

Not that it matters much, but the speed of sound at sea level is just over 761 MPH (661 knots).

BWTHDIK

PhotoAV8R said:

Not that it matters much, but the speed of sound at sea level is just over 761 MPH (661 knots).

BWTHDIK

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You are correct sir. I was simply relaying what the announcer told us. I accepted him at his word since it's not a speed I will ever approach.

This guy produced a low-level sonic boom at the Fort Worth air Show this past weekend on a high speed pass. Something about the density of the air that day, according to the announcer.

F/A-18F Super Hornet