Goodwood tips

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robbie t

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So Goodwood Festival of Speed is upon us next weekend, i'm going down for the first time on the Sunday This will be my first motoring experience with my (fairly) newly acquired 400D so i have a couple of questions :

I only have my 18-55 kit lens at the moment, will i be able to get close enough to the action with this limited zoom to get any nice shots?

I have been looking at getting a circular polariser to bring out the skies in some recent shots, i'm thinking this may be beneficial with reflections on glass also? Are the Hoya green's any good or should i be looking at the PRO ones?


Thanks in advance

Rob
 
I went last year for my first time and it rained.
Didn't really think that much of the event myself but it always seems to get good responses on here.

I would say find a good spot close to the track very early on and stick to it.
 
robbie t said:
So Goodwood Festival of Speed is upon us next weekend, i'm going down for the first time on the Sunday This will be my first motoring experience with my (fairly) newly acquired 400D so i have a couple of questions :

I only have my 18-55 kit lens at the moment, will i be able to get close enough to the action with this limited zoom to get any nice shots?

I have been looking at getting a circular polariser to bring out the skies in some recent shots, i'm thinking this may be beneficial with reflections on glass also? Are the Hoya green's any good or should i be looking at the PRO ones?


Thanks in advance

Rob
Click to expand...

It all depends on what you want to photograph there? Wether it be action shots or static cars?

For action either on the hill climb or the rally stages there are ample opportunities to get close to the action. For the hill climb get down near the start close to Goodwood House where you can get close to the track and there are plenty of spots where you can get close to the rally stages (be prepared to do a fair bit of walking for this). On Sunday I'll be floating around the rally stages and on Molecomb corner on the hill climb (I've a track side pass for there !)

For the static cars and pits you can get really close but remember normally the crowds can be horrendous and getting a good shot can be difficult.

Dave
 
Take sandwiches and a flask, either that or lots of money....;)
 
I'm sure I've answered about four people's question regarding this very matter in the last week lol.

I've never bought a grandstand ticket yet always have been able to find a decent spot by the hillclimb. Don't forget every class of car has two runs on the track and I usually catch the second run in the PM. Buy an expensive programme (with a free radio!) for all the listings.

When I know what I want to see, I walk along parts of the track and weave my way in. It's not that hard. Also, there are smaller stand up grandstands along the route that are free and open. Again, you can weave your way on and they are stepped so shorter people can still see if nearer the back.

In front of Goodwood house is always good for when the F1 cars and more, like to do their burnouts. Also, further up past the footbridge where they like to more burnouts for other sections of the crowd.

All the paddocks are open for all to have a perv so you can get your dirty mits on them. And if you're really brave, you can do what one punter did on JayKay's black Enzo a few years ago, and write on the filthy dusty bonnet, "Jodie beat you!" (Top Gear, anyone?? :D)

I really must one day get out there and find a hidden forest route into the grounds so I don't have to pay for admission! I can see Goodwood house from my back garden ffs! :lol:
 
It's a really good day out. Track the passing bikes and cars with your camera and shoot at will! A longer lens would be better but not strictly necessary. Enjoy!
 
It's a brilliant day out, I'm going for all 3 days this year and even though it rained last year it was still fantastic. The atmosphere is completely different to something corporate like the Motor Show. Even they have stolen Goodwoods "Supercar Paddock" idea. ;) But yeah just to reiterate, your lens will be fine for static stuff and atmosphere shots but you may struggle with the track action. Even though you can get very close.
 
Thanks for the replies guys, some good info there. Can anyone give me short answer about the polariser please?

Shak - I see you're on bmwowner forum also ;)
 
robbie t said:
Thanks for the replies guys, some good info there. Can anyone give me short answer about the polariser please?

Shak - I see you're on bmwowner forum also ;)
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I'm guessing your namesake on there is also you lol!
 
the festival of speed is a great day out, ive only been twice but truely recomend it. im not going this year as ive been to busy to think about its but will intend to get there next year.
i think you should take a walk about lens ( your 18-55 is fine) plus you ideally need a longer lens , say upto 200 for the action photos, but what ever you take you will have a fantatic day
 
robbie t said:
Thanks for the replies guys, some good info there. Can anyone give me short answer about the polariser please?

Shak - I see you're on bmwowner forum also ;)
Click to expand...

Short answer:

Any of the Hoya filters are good, I have a Jessops 52mm polariser which does the job perfectly well too. And yes, it will make your skies bluer and remove reflections from glass or water. ;)
 
short lens definitely the answer for the static shots, though as already mentioned the crowd can be a real problem getting in the way - answer? get in there very early or stay until real late.

For action going up the hill, you're biggest problem is going to be the hay bales - they stand far too high and too close to the road to get good shots. Best answer I've found is a long zoom lens and place yourself half way up the hill fairly close to the front - means you can look quite sucessfully along the road way.

Oh, and don't think that the grandstands will help a better view - the seats aren't raked steeply enough so the only thing you get really good views of is the back of the head in front of you. The stands (being tempary) also have far too many roof support coloumns and get in the way for pics
 
Shak said:
I'm guessing your namesake on there is also you lol!
Click to expand...

Absolutely :D

MikeeB said:
Short answer:

Any of the Hoya filters are good, I have a Jessops 52mm polariser which does the job perfectly well too. And yes, it will make your skies bluer and remove reflections from glass or water.
Click to expand...

Thanks, i might just buy a green one then as my kit lens will be upgraded fairly soon.
 
I don't know about the green ones but all my filters are of the Hoya Pro 1 DMC range. eBay is where I buy all mine.
 
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