Motorsport Photography Guide.

[Raskill]

Hi all,

I decided to type this 'guide' up today. I don't know how helpful it will be, but hopefully it has a few tips in it that people can learn from. It's almost the sum total of what I know about motorsport photography. Almost.

So here it is, Alans brief guide to motorsport photography.


Motor-sport shooting guide.


Shooting motorsports isn’t as hard as you’d think. With a ‘prosumer’ dslr and a fairly inexpensive lens, you can produce nice, quality, images with just a small amount of knowledge and a bit of practice.

Motorsport: What am I trying to shoot?

Different motorsports require different approaches. For instance, rally requires a shutter speed that show background blur and debris in the air, while allowing for the vehicle to be sharp, but still having a sensation of speed.

V8 supercars requires a sensation of speed, while having a nice sharp car, but also trying to capture something a little different, like a wheel in the air, flame-out from the exhaust etc.

Drag cars might require images from the start of the run, showing extreme tyre deformation, the front wheels lifting in the air and giant exhaust flames.

The best way to figure out what you are trying to photograph, is to have a look at what the various publications are using. That being said, don’t just become a photography ‘clone’. Try to find a different way of portraying your chosen motorsport, while still producing images that are useful. Be unique.

Panning technique:

Panning allows you to produce the images where the vehicle is sharp, but the wheels and background are blurred. These are the ‘standard’ motorsport image.

Panning technique is something you will develop over time, there is no 'standard' panning technique, but here’s some tips none the less.

Stand with your feet about shoulder width apart, this makes a nice stable platform to shoot with, and assists in a smooth rotation at the hips. Place your feet so you will take the picture square on to subject.

Keep your elbows tucked down near the body as much as possible. This helps get a smooth rotation. If you leave your elbows out, it's just one more thing to wave about in the breeze and upset your balance.

Judge the speed that your subject is coming past you. I find it is useful to pan very slightly faster than the subject, but slowly decrease that speed, allowing the car (or whatever) to catch up. When this happens, your pan speed and vehicle speed should be in relation to each other. Take the picture.

Get used to pressing the shutter slowly and carefully. If you get to excited, you will push down on the shutter release to hard, and this will show in your image.

Once you have taken the picture, continue your panning motion until you reach the end of the arc. If you stop panning as soon as you take the image, you will find your will eventually stop before you take it, and ruin your shot.

Practice, practice and practice. I find that longer focal lengths are easier than shorter ones, because of the apparent speed with which you have to pan. I also try to use a shutter speed around 125 – 160, depending on the speed of your subject.

Get used to panning as cars go by you on a straight. Once you have this under control, try panning with cars as the exit or traverse corners or are coming towards you.

Find a nice busy bit of highway and practice there. You may look like a weirdo, but it will help you to acquire, track and take a shot of your subject.

Panning is easier for faster vehicles due to the smooth movement of your body at faster speeds. Slow vehicles are very hard to capture, because of the ‘jerkiness’ of large body movements.

Get used to panning with both eyes open, keeping one eye through the viewfinder, the other watching your surroundings. It might just get you that once in a lifetime shot, make you a millionaire and a photographer legend. Or, maybe not.

Motorsports: Theres no room for the artistic.

Bzzzzzt. Wrong!!!!. Any number of photographers can take an image of the car hurtling by. You want your images to stand out from the pack, to be somewhat unique, ideally they are recognisable as your images.

Try exposing for bright backgrounds and producing silhouetted images, try ultra slow shutter times, try zooming as you pan with slow shutter speeds. Try everything and anything! Digital cameras allow for experimentation. Don’t be shy.

Try to zoom in as close as you can. Don’t rely on cropping to get you close to the action. The closer you zoom in and take the image, the better, as you can always crop later.

One thing about motorsport images that seems to be very much a constant is that they are usually contrasty and colourful. Of course, they don’t have to be, but they generally are.

What gear should I carry?

I don't want to get to bogged down in this, because there are so many options and brands.

Generally I carry 2 bodies. Why? Because changing lenses trackside lets dust and crud into your camera. It's also handy to have a long lens on one, and a shorter lens on the other.

I shoot Nikon, so use D2h's. I carry 10 GIG of cards, which is more than enough for me. You'll need more if you shoot with a 12 megapixel camera, as your file size is much larger. You need to be prepared for almost anything. I carry camera cleaning gear, wet weather gear for the body and lens. This is usually a couple of plastic bags and a roll of gaffer tape. Works a treat, and costs nest to nothing. Also, a small first aid kit is handy and some high energy bars to snack on.

I bought both my bodies second hand fron the U.S. and had them serviced and cleaned. They work like new.

Lens wise, I carry a 120-300 F/2.8 and a 24-70 F/2.8. I came to this conclusion through much trial and plenty of error. I also carry a speedlight, but rarely use it.

So, now I’m trackside. What now?

As long as you brought your camera, spare batteries and lenses, go forth and take photos. However, as always, there’s a few small tips to learn from.

Learn the track before you attend and learn where most of the action is. For example, turn 2 at Eastern Creek Raceway produces more accidents than nearly the rest of the track put together.

Figure out the best time of day for the images you want. As a rule of thumb, you want the sun coming over your shoulder, not directly towards you. The eastern side of a track is usually best before lunch time, with the reverse after lunch. Midday can be a hard time to get images due to harsh shadows. Of course, this all depends on the type and style of image you want.

Also, remember to be considerate of other spectators if you are on their side of the fence. More than once I've found myself having to apologise to someone for being in their way. It's easy to forget your surroundings when you are watching the world through a tiny view finder.

What to do with images?

So, you’ve taken 5000 images from a weekends racing. (This isn’t an uncommon amount, and neither is higher). So what will you do with the images. You can try any number of things.

If you have been photographing ‘grass roots’ motorsport then try to find a magazine devoted to that type of motorsport. You might only get $30 - $40 dollars per image, but it’s better a lot than nothing.

Also, if your images are good enough (i.e. you’re happy with them and have received good feed back), consider selling them to drivers or teams. If you want to travel down this track, it’s good to get known around the pits/dummy grid areas. Learn about the class of motorsport you are photographing so you can talk with drivers without sounding like you know nothing. Learn lap times, different classes, drivers names, course records etc.

Have business cards to hand out and a website for them to look at. Neither are expensive. A smugmug gallery and 500 business cards will set you back well under $200. Ensure though, that the event you are covering does not have an official photographer already, who may have exclusive rights to coverage.

If you are at a major motorsports event, such as V8 Supercars, Moto GP etc and you happen to get some great images of an accident (or similar), you need act fast. Really fast. You’ll need to send the image(s) to magazines that weekend. Sometimes deadlines may be the Sunday night, with the magazine being printed Wednesday or Thursday. Forward low resolution, watermarked images. Editors can decide if they want to use your images or not and then ask for a larger sized image. Their contact details are usually easy enough to find in the first few pages of most publications.

You need to also be aware that some classes of motorsport prohibit the use of images taken of their cars for commercial use. Editorial use is fine. In particular, V8 Supercars does not allow this, and you must pay a fee to use the images for commercial usage.

Remember, you may not get the hundreds of dollars you think your images are worth, but you have to ask yourself “how much money am I going to make from an image if it sits on my hard drive and does nothing?” Selling 5 – 10 images a month to magazines will help you to fund better dslr bodies, or pay for the trip away you want.

A publication wants my images, but can’t pay….
This can, does and will happen. You have to ask yourself, if it’s money you really want for the images, or seeing your images in print? Money is good. Really really good, however, getting your images printed has more benefits. For instance, V8 Supercars Australia will usually only give media accreditation to photographers whose images are regularly published. You can get a job covering most motorsport events if you can show you’re a published photographer with a good reputation. You can’t if you just have dollars in the bank.

However, you still need to pay for new gear….

It’s a juggling act. Pure and simple.

Where to from here?

So you’re taking good images, people are lining up to buy them from you, but where to from here? This depends on several things: Do you want to be a full time photographer? Do you have other commitments, such as family, mortgages etc that will stop you following your ‘dream’? Is there a market for a fulltime motorsports photographer in your town, region or state? Do you want to worry about things like business insurance, equipment insurance, GST, ABN etc etc

That’s your decision, I'm only giving you a tip or two.

[Hudo]

Fantastic information and a good read. I have only done 2 motor sport events and enjoyed them both. If you feel like a VerII. How about from your experience suggesting the motor sport kit? What lenses, camera's ect. I appreciate money or what you have impacts on this but from your experience what should you pack to the track?

Mark

[MCWB]

Great minds Alan, I was thinking of writing something similar just today after seeing a thread last night. I'll add some detailed comments later!

[michael_]

good read alan.

[Vodka]

Fan-bloody-tastic! Alan, thanks for putting the effort in to write this guide (and commenting in my First Attempt post). Although I don't see myself going pro in motorsport photography, I really did enjoy my first track day shoot. There's definitely quite a few pointers in this article that I'll be keeping in the back of my mind before/on/after my next trackday.

Ben

[michael_]

i feel sorry for you Ben, you have caught the MS virus its hard to look back, i got addicted at my first day in Feb this year and to date have now been to some sort of MS event nearly every weekend since

[Kyle]

Allan, yet again I'm impressed mate..

I will add to the pool in saying that when a magazine does want your photos, if it's a decent amount, try to get something from them in writing, like a purchase order or something.

Otherwise it's painful chasing them after the fact with nothing but a voice conversation.. (i know, i'm going through this now for ~$1000 odd)



Thankyou for posting some breif business suggestions, it's nigh impossible to get real info from the pros, which I can understand.


Another one, I was once told that contracts > freelance. If you can get a contract with a team where they pay you a rate per event or whatnot you'll be laughing

Kyle.

[Jeff]

Well done mate ,well written article.

Jeff

[Raskill]

Thanks for the comments folks. I just figured it would be useful to try and put in print what I've learned over the past couple of years.

Besides, this website is all about learning. Most of what I know I've learned from here, one way or another, so it was time to give something back.

Thanks again!

[MSF]

Some great info there..

Starting out doing motorsport is really hard for some people who don't have the right contacts etc, but persistance really pays off...

One thing I tell many of the new guys that I allow to tag along with me on some events that are trying to break into the scene is that ATTITUDE is often more important that the photos for some gigs. Your attitude will be remembered LONG after the photos have been viewed.. I honestly can not stress this enough... I know quite a few excellent photographers who are only hired by some magazines or for corporate gigs as a last resort because of their attitude...

You don't have to be the best photographer to make money, I am proof of that. You just have to give the customer what they want....

As for starting out.... unless you are really lucky and get a big break - Freelance is about the only way to start. It's bloody hard work and your costs will probably far outweigh your income for a long time, - but don't give up... Keep giving them what they want, and you will succeed more than the other blokes who don't.

As far as photography goes, the digital revolution has been the single BEST and WORST thing to happen to the industry...

BEST:
In that it has allowed just about ANYONE to buy a quality camera that will get them fantastic shots...

WORST:
In that it has allowed just about ANYONE to buy a quality camera that will get them fantastic shots...

here is an example...
I was in at Canon a few months back getting a service done on one of my cameras and was chatting to one of the girls there who was saying that she can't beleive the attitude (remember that word from before) from some of the so called 'professional photograhers' that come in and demand the world.... She summed it up as follows....

If you buy a Piano.. you "play the piano", but it appears you automatically become a 'professional photograher' as soon as you buy a camera...

She was saying the amount of demands that she is given by blokes that have an entry level DSLR and have absolutley no idea how to use it is amazing... Back in the 'film days' she never had that...

anyway.. back to motorsport...

The only other thing I can add to that is to ask if you can 'tag along' with someone who already has a heap of experience..

I've met a couple of you guys before at various events... (Michael, why weren't you at Oran Park on the 19th ??) and am happy to have somone who is just starting out - tag along and practice their skills - without the pressure that is sometimes placed on photog's when working... (obviously it depends on my contract and client's restrictions etc) but seriously.. I had a helping hand when I started out and am happy to do the same where time and contract permits.. If your stuff is good enough, and the budget allows, I'll even pay you for it...

Cheers
Jason

[michael_]

Hey Jason, OP, the TrackCorp Day? i couldnt make it at the last minute, how did it turn out? Good to see you on the site mate.

[MSF]

yep, Trackcorp day..

Was a great day actually.. shot about 1500 images,
It was heaps better than the last EC day (No rain for a start) and my first time shooting stills on the full track at OP since 1991..

Got EC on the 2nd Aug with Jimmy coming up, can you make it ??

Yeah, looked at this site a few times, but never joined so finally did whilst burning the 100 odd CD-Roms from The Dutton BTW, send me your postal addy - I'll send you a copy of the Dutton NSW DVD..

Cheers
Jason

[Kyle]

Welcome Jason.

Good additions there, attitude is so much more important than skills behind the camera

Cheers
Kyle

[bwhinnen]

Welcome aboard Jason. This site is a good starting point for any MS photog, why? Because here, we are friendly and offer advice.

Some great advice above from all!

I'll add to the points above from my experience this year.

Not all MS photogs are friendly, most are actually a very stand offish bunch and do not give a newbie the time of day and thus seem very arrogant, so Jason your comments are refreshing. Some are actually really nice guys though, some on the other hand are bordering on the point of being downright rude and offensive, I just ignore the later and get on with my job and make sure I am polite to them!

Alot of newbie MS photogs get into it because they share two passions, MS and photography. They may not have the best gear, they may not know the ropes, but they try, it is these people I like to see encouraged. Whilst I am not what I class a Pro shooter, I do ok, but I know if I had a pro to even partially mentor me I'd be much better.

If you can find a pro that is friendly, and accommodation, jump on the chance to join them, they will impart little tips that make the difference between an amateur and a pro!

The only thing I can add about attitude is to sell yourself, and never sell yourself short! Do not brag or be overbearing but if you know you can do it say so. Always carry a business card on you, this is probably the most important tool you carry besides the camera.

On track the only advice I give you is always speak to the officials and tell them where you are about to go or what you want to achieve. If you have a requirement for a specific shot, and want to do something that they are not quite comfortable with they may let you for one or two shots. They appreciate this greatly as they do not get it very often, yes you are responsible for your own safety, but never forget they and race control are ultimately responsible for everyone's safety and they have final say! Never forget, they always know the track really well too, where the accidents are, where it is good to stand to stay safe, where it isn't

Alan's comments at the top are the most important re: publishing, get in quick, strike whilst the iron is hot! Above all be professional!

My final parting comment is get things up quickly on the website, make sure you have one, it is well organised and easy to navigate for the general punter. You may not get many sales through it, but people do always look and browse, it is just another sales and advertising tool for your business!

Brett

[Kyle]

Well said Brett!!

Hey, will you be @ jamboree & willowbank in a month?

[Raskill]

Great tips folks. Perhaps we could let this thread run a while, and with a mods blessing, create a more definitive guide with all the tips in the one post.

MSF, where you at? Always keen to meet more MS photographers, will you be covering OP?

What has been said about attitude goes a long way. I have seen pro's roll their eyes at the antics of some of their compatriots (someones whose initials are D.K. springs to mind).

It's like anywhere in life, have a good attitude and good manners, and you'll find in easier to get what you want. Take some pics of the flag marshalls, get contact details, offer to send them the pics. Keep on the officials good sides. Find the media/pr people, thank them in person for your accred and tell them they've done a great job.

[MSF]

I'm on the Northern Beaches - Frenchs Forest to be more precise.

the MSF is MotorSportFotos.com and is Jade (My Girlfriend) and I

I originally started out with Drift King Productions and did a heap of work with Broadcast TV camera work with The NSW Rally Championship and then started contracting to AVE ( Speedweek / Inside Speed etc) doing the onboard race cam stuff and the interviews and pit camera work for them. Used to do everything from Go-Karts, Aussie Legends, Brute Utes, Super Trucks, GT-P, Formula Ford etc etc.

I always had a passion for 35mm photography though and used to cover heaps of events before the TV work, but stopped due to the huge costs involved in shooting film all the time - So I did the TV stuff for about 4/5 years. Then when the DSLR revolution started, I jumped back into the stills and haven't looked back... ( Yep, who'd a thunk that people actually paid $5,450 for a D60.... EEIIK.) ( Drift King Productions became Drift King Photos, (http://www.driftkingphotos.com) which is now http://www.MotorSportFotos.com to (a) move away from the whole "drift" name, and to expand the name to reflect what we really do..

I mainly do contract stuff nowadays, but when time allows - I'll get out and do some freelance stuff if the subject / event interests me..

I still have a normal 9-5 job - so photograhy I still consider a hobby whilst I have the Mortgage to worry about..

Main stuff I do now is the Dutton Rally Series, Easternats, TrackCorp Events and about a dozen or so corporate accounts when they need events (functions / product launches / xmas parties) covered. I also do a little bit of food and product photography for websites, brochures, prospectus, and and occasional feature shoot for car and bike magazines...

I did some stuff for Team Britek at Eastern Creek at round 5, but otherwise I don't do the V8 Stupidcars unless contracted unfortunately - there are far too many restrictions placed on the display and sale of the images.. too hard to cover your costs - let alone MAKE money

so um.. yeah.. that's about it.. LOL

[Vodka]

ahhh... kinda guessed it was you. Southo from PF.

Ben
(PF lurker from the Autospeed days)

[MSF]

Here is the next opportunity for a budding young motorsport enthusist to think about...

http://www.dslrusers.com/viewtopic.php?p=309926#309926

[MCWB]

Motorsport safety

Something that hasn't been mentioned much so far and that is very important is motorsport safety. A lot of people involved in motorsport are involved in risk management, and it's something you should think about before putting your eye to the viewfinder and finger on the shutter release. Remember that motorsport is dangerous. Period. It says so on the back of your ticket, and for good reason. If you end up being hit by something heavy going fast the chances are it's going to turn out nasty, so here are some ways to avoid it!

1. Know the track and know the racing.

The basic idea here is 'be prepared'. There is the safety aspect, if you can predict where a big incident is most likely to occur, you can avoid it or be prepared to get out of the way. The other aspect is getting the shot, if you can predict the racing you're more likely to capture it well! Being on the outside of a turn is usually more dangerous than being on the inside, and high-speed sections of track are usually more dangerous than low-speed sections, but remember that motorsport is dangerous and there are no safe spots to stand, only safer ones.

2. Even though you're not looking at it, it can still hit you!

Always keep your eyes on the action. This serves two purposes: (a) if an incident happens you get maximum warning to get out of the way (b) if an incident happens you get the opportunity to shoot it! Even if you're walking in the racing direction never turn your back on the action, especially when in a 'high risk' area. Don't chimp in a high-risk area, move well away from the track if all you're doing is chimping.

3. Even if you're looking at it, it can still hit you!

There is no shot for which it is worth getting seriously injured or killed. If you can feel or see something bad about to happen or happening then don't wait around taking pics of it, get the hell out of there!

4. Plan your escape route

If a big incident happens in front of you, you're going to have to move fast. Most accidents will be over within 5 seconds! Be aware of your surroundings: make sure you have something behind which to take cover and/or plan an escape route: you don't want to discover that wombat hole when trying to escape from an out-of-control car! Always shoot on your feet, if you have to get up and run away the seconds you waste getting off the ground could make the difference between life and death, or driving home and getting an ambulance ride to hospital. If you want to get down low, kneel rather than sit.

Just because there's a gravel trap, tyres, a concrete wall, hugh catch fencing etc doesn't mean a car can't get through/over/around it all and hit you, so be alert! Note that isolated concrete barriers and catch fencing will move when hit by heavy cars going fast, so never lean against, sit on, or take cover directly beside a barrier. If a car is coming straight at you, run away from the track and towards the flow of traffic. The debris from the impact will be strewn down track from where the car hits (and where you are currently) and this way you can also keep an eye on the action.

5. Work with the officials

The officials are there to make everyone's day easier. If you're unsure of something, ask them. If they tell you not to do something, don't. If you see something that they haven't, let them know. Simple.

6. Media access areas

If you've been given media acreditation, usually you'll know where you can and cannot shoot from. If you don't, then ask! The general puclic aren't allowed into some areas you can go with media accreditation, this is generally because these areas are more dangerous! Abide by the principles above and use common sense; the basic rule is to keep something solid (e.g. a wall) between you and the cars at all times.

[Alpha_7]

Very good points Trent, I hate for any of you to be injured or worse, because the danger is real and if you don't respect it, you just asking for trouble.