MIA/RDU Spotting

[dzanello]

Does anyone know of any decent places to get shots at MIA? Will have a ~3hr layover there in March so I am hoping to go beyond the terminal if time permits.

Has anyone been through RDU? It looks like they have an outdoor observation deck but it appears to not be connected to the terminals from the map on their website (www.rdu.com)

[Longreach747]

miami has the holes..but on a bad day with traffic i can take 1hr to get there, it's a pain in the ass to find, you need a car to shoot MIA.

better off just shooting from inside the terminal...no obs deck, well there wasn't when i was there in january.

[herpa2003]

RDU does have an observation deck that is great for photography. The only problem is that it is pretty far from the passenger terminals. It would be a lengthy but not unreasonable walk from the terminals if you had no luggage as it is located near the general aviation terminal. The observation deck is neat in that it has speakers tuned to the ATC frequencies allowing you to hear the aircraft talking to the tower, which allows you to get flight numbers of the aircraft you photograph.

Just to give you an idea of the perspective that the observation deck allows, I believe these shots were taken from the observation deck at RDU (none of these shots are mine)-

[photoid=338844]

[photoid=191049]

[photoid=5827651]

Here is a view of the observation park (again not my photo)-

[photoid=81988]

[col1962]

The 3rd photo is one of mine and was indeed taken from the observation deck. It is a bit of a hike from the terminals though if no luggage then doable. There is one of the car parks next door so a shuttle bus should get you there.

Sun is behind you until mid-afternoon and the deck is under cover, there are toilets and a water fountain, kids play area but no shop, traffic is a little slow but all in all a good place to visit

Colin

[Greg]

The first photo is mine and it shot from the observation deck. I actually think a walk from the terminal should be possible, when I was there we walked over to the observation deck from the the FBO buildings.

[Electric-Jet]

I know of a good spot that is right outside the airport perimeter, but I dont think you can walk there. The planes landing on 23R go real low over your head. Here is a shot of mine.

[photoid=5762273]

If you want more info just let me know.

[dzanello]

Thanks for your suggestions, I leave on the 24th. Does MIA's parking garage have a decent view? Traveled thru MIA many times but never ventured past security other than getting between terminals C and D...

[tomas_cubero]

Hi Dean,

Well Miami is a great airport to spot. both inside and outside. Outside you have the famouse Holes already outlined and for Cargo and RWY09 there is El Dorado furniture, where there is a dead end and some road fencing where you can stand up to get some height for the arrivals, last time I was there (2005) I couldn't shoot departures but then I was 14 and much smaller hehe. I was in Miami now for two weeks but mostly for shopping so I couldn't go to the holes or El Dorado but its a great spot.

Now inside, it is also great, well at least from terminal A. In 2005, Lacsa still had the LR626/627 flights SJO-MIA-SJO which departed around 1:30pm Miami and arrived around mid-day so my waiting time was at daylight, nowadays that flight does not exist and rather there is LR690/691 which arrives at 9:30pm to Miami and leaves the next day at 7:30am, leaving no chance for waiting photos. But when your layover is at daylight, this is what you can take from terminal A and I guess the other terminals can be similar:

[photoid=431564]
[photoid=431562]
[photoid=431567]
[photoid=430726]
[photoid=430723]
[photoid=430523]
[photoid=430361]

Enjoy and Good Luck!
Tomas.

[dzanello]

Thanks,

I'd like to get over to El Dorado Furniture, but is cab fare at MIA really $15.50 as stated on Wikipedia? Ouch. Looked on Google Earth and it doesnt appear as though you can walk there....

[Longreach747]

like i said, you need a car and el-dorado isn't easy to get back from...the holes is even more difficult.

[dzanello]

Well Miami is a great airport to spot. both inside and outside.

Thanks for the info. I actually ended up staying within the American A,C,D,E terminals. Did a lot of walking, but got some nice shots when reflections didn't interfere. I also got some shots of the old Control Tower building being demolished. More to come soon....