Last minute advice needed

[Tuffythepug]

Recently there was a thread about how to photograph an airshow. I don't go to airshows as a rule so I wouldn't ordinarily be that interested in how to get good shots at such an event. But some of the advice given to the OP of that thread will come in handy now. I've decided to get up early and stake out a spot on the top level of a parking garage in Downtown Sacramento to, hopefully, get some shots of the space shuttle Endeavor piggy-backing on a 747 tomorrow a.m. over the capitol. It is supposed to be at an approx. altitude of only 1,500 feet... so, about 500 yds.. I figure I'll have a minute or two to get some decent shots as it slows down and makes a big loop to make another pass before heading to San Francisco.

I'm having trouble imagining how big that thing will actually look from my vantage point. I'm taking a Canon A-1 film camera loaded with b/w and a Nikon D80.
I have some lens options to consider. If I use a 28 - 200 zoom on the Nikon that will cover what I need for sure. But I'd like to limit how many lenses I have to take to get good results with the Canon 35mm. my options for it are: a 50mm 1.8 , an 80-200 and a 35-105. Would the 80-200 be a good bet ? Any last minute advice is appreciated.

 

[Mike_E]

Your 18-200mm should be fine, you're not going to be shooting under f5.6 anyway, keep it at f8 or above. You'll never see any distortion in the sky even if you're nit-picky.

 

[tirediron]

The longer the better; something like a 400-500mm wouldn't go amiss if you felt like stopping at a rental place enroute.

 

[pixmedic]

The longer the better;.

that's what SHE said!