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It was a Sunday morning, and I was doom-scrolling on Instagram when I found out that this weekend was an airshow not too far from me. I was staying in San Francisco and the airshow is in Rancho Cordova, just outside of Sacramento. I went to the airshow a few years ago.
Mather Field used to be Mather Air Force Base but was closed iņ 1993 and the airfield became Sacramento Mather Airport. It has no commercial flight service and is mainly used by cargo carriers like UPS and DHL besides private and general aviation. Every now and then jets show up for training and pattern work.
From being there in the past, I knew that there is an entrance fee to visit the 2025 California Capital Airshow. I looked up tickets only to find out that all the tickets were sold out besides the VIP package which went for $800. Way too much as I wouldn’t even be able to use all the amenities the ticket comes with. I wouldn’t make it to the airport until noon, and I would be mainly focused on shooting the planes anyway.
Like I said, I have been to the airshow before and know from where I would shoot if I could make it to the flight line. However, this was not possible as I just wouldn’t spend that much money on the VIP ticket. I know the airport, as I have been there before for regular plane spotting. The question was now where I can go, or better, where can I drive and park to watch the show. My worries were that lots of the areas I have used in the past for plane spotting would be closed due to the airshow.
I loaded up my gear and headed out the door. Of course I was right, that my favorite spots would be closed and a no-parking area with police patrolling the area and sending people on their way if they still try to stop.
My idea was just to follow the perimeter and hope at one point they would let you park somewhere and that there is even parking available as I showed up “late” to the show. I kept driving and found an area where lots of other people parked with their cars to watch the airshow. It is opposite the flight line on the other side of the airport. I was farther away from show center than I would have from the official airshow grounds, but it also gave me a different viewpoint and some of the jets flew right over me. Wow, what an experience. It was also the first time getting my new Canon RF 100-300 f2.8 out to shoot an airshow. I am impressed how amazing this lens is but a little bit too short from my position. Luckily, the high resolution of the R5 MkII helps in that regard.
This location is actually pretty good as you can just drive there and park your car and sit in the bed of your pickup truck and watch the show or set up next to it with your chairs. That’s what lots of people there did. But you will miss out on all the static displays on the show grounds. Thanks to my scanner I was able to listen in to the pilots and air boss to hear what’s going on.
It was a fun show, even though I missed about 1/3 of the performers. The highlight of this year’s airshow was the Blue Angels. Last time I went, the Blue Angels weren’t performing. I always love to see the Blue Angels.
A first time for me, thanks to my amazing new camera, I shot around 10.000 photos. Before, with my old 5D MkII, I shot around 300-400 photos. Of course, most of the 10k photos are just the high frame rate bursts I took to make sure to not miss the action.
Below you can see my favorite photos of the 2025 California Capital Airshow.
Peter is an award-winning photographer who travels all over the world to capture the beauty of our planet as well as the achievements of humanity. Follow Peter on his travel blog Gate to Adventures for more amazing places to go and explore.
