Newbie to Motorsports - advice please

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Dippy

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Andrea
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Hi

This weekend intend to go to the Sunseeker Rally for the first time. I have never been to an event like this but want to have a go at motorsports photography for the first time. So I just wondered if anybody had any advice on what to expect. As I say, never been to an event like this. I am going with family who are seasoned motorsports enthusiasts but I am going hopefully for the photographic entertainment.

My photographic comfort zone is equestrian where I find it is better to freeze motion, however, I appreciate this is not always best in motorsports, hence my question here.

I have a tripod, not a monopod..... is that really necessary? Trying to think, travel light etc also panning??? another first for me??

Any help would be grately appreciated.
I have a f2.8 70-200 and a 1.4 tc but not sure whether I need the tc or not??

Thanks

Andrea
 
I have been a couple of times and am going to somerley house on Sunday,i use a 70-200 on a ff and find that it has enough reach,thankfully you get a fair amount of time between cars to alter your settings and plenty of cars that you will get some good pics.
I have always handheld for motorsports and never had any problems.Hopefully if your family are seasoned fans they will know the good spots already.
 
I've not been either, but am planning to go this weekend.

You might need the tc - it depends how close you get ! Some rally pictures are even taken with wide angle lenses :eek:

I say stick it in the bag anyway, bes tto have it than not.

Not sure what you are shooting but in Canon speak set the camera up in AI Servo focus mode (this will make it focus continually) and Tv (shutter priority) - go for anything between 1/60th and 1/320th depend on the car speed. If its a bit gloomy you might need to up ISO. Also make sure you are in continuous shooting mode.

As far as panning goes select a focus point (centre probably). Aim at the car and move with the vehicle so that your focus point stays at the same place on the car.. e.g. lets say you aim at the door handle, as the car goes past keep that focus point on the door handle. Keep the shutter button half pressed so the camera focuses and continues to do so. When you are happy press the shutter button but don't stop panning ! the car is still moving, so you need to as well.

Do you know what stages you are doing ?
 
A tripod is not really practical for motor sports. You can easily pan without one; just need to move your body smoothly and remember to start moving before you take the shot(s), and continue afterwards. For panning experiment with shutter speeds, you might need to use as slow as 1/60 sec to get a good effect. For non panning shots, if the car is moving across the don't use too fast a shutter speed. You want to have a hint of motion in the picture, perhaps some motion blur in the wheels. A good starting shutter speed would be 1/400 sec. If the car is heading straight towards you, you will need a higher shutter speed

Other tips, spare battery, plenty of memory cards, use continous AF and continous shooting, and take a waterproof cover for the camera and lens. A bin liner will do if you don't have a proper one.

the tc is small and light, so it's not going to hamper you if do take it.
 
starletman said:
I have been a couple of times and am going to somerley house on Sunday,i use a 70-200 on a ff and find that it has enough reach,thankfully you get a fair amount of time between cars to alter your settings and plenty of cars that you will get some good pics.
I have always handheld for motorsports and never had any problems.Hopefully if your family are seasoned fans they will know the good spots already.
Click to expand...

Thank you for your help :thumbs:
 
Craft said:
I've not been either, but am planning to go this weekend.

You might need the tc - it depends how close you get ! Some rally pictures are even taken with wide angle lenses :eek:

I say stick it in the bag anyway, bes tto have it than not.

Not sure what you are shooting but in Canon speak set the camera up in AI Servo focus mode (this will make it focus continually) and Tv (shutter priority) - go for anything between 1/60th and 1/320th depend on the car speed. If its a bit gloomy you might need to up ISO. Also make sure you are in continuous shooting mode.

As far as panning goes select a focus point (centre probably). Aim at the car and move with the vehicle so that your focus point stays at the same place on the car.. e.g. lets say you aim at the door handle, as the car goes past keep that focus point on the door handle. Keep the shutter button half pressed so the camera focuses and continues to do so. When you are happy press the shutter button but don't stop panning ! the car is still moving, so you need to as well.

Do you know what stages you are doing ?
Click to expand...

I am a using a Nikon but I get the gist in canon speak. Thanks for the help re panning, thats very helpful.

My family are going all day but I am not sure if I will hang on for the later stages.

Thanks very much:thumbs:
 
mortimerhill said:
A tripod is not really practical for motor sports. You can easily pan without one; just need to move your body smoothly and remember to start moving before you take the shot(s), and continue afterwards. For panning experiment with shutter speeds, you might need to use as slow as 1/60 sec to get a good effect. For non panning shots, if the car is moving across the don't use too fast a shutter speed. You want to have a hint of motion in the picture, perhaps some motion blur in the wheels. A good starting shutter speed would be 1/400 sec. If the car is heading straight towards you, you will need a higher shutter speed

Other tips, spare battery, plenty of memory cards, use continous AF and continous shooting, and take a waterproof cover for the camera and lens. A bin liner will do if you don't have a proper one.

the tc is small and light, so it's not going to hamper you if do take it.
Click to expand...


Thank you for your help, some great pointers. Can you just help me on one point if I use 1/60 sec with a 70-200 lens, will i not get camera shake?? Thanks again:thumbs:
 
The problem you have is that as seasoned motorsports fans, your friends will want to go somewhere where they can get a view of the car for a long time, usually up higher than the stage on wide sweeping sections.:'(

For interesting photo's you want to be on the inside (if poss with a wider lens) or on the exit of a bend, which isn't so great for spectating. Other things to look for are water splashes and jumps. But I'm not familiar with the Sunseeker.

You shouldn't need anything longer than the 70-200. For rally photography, the only time you need longer is just to be lazy - you can always get closer than that - I often shoot rally cars with my 10-20:nono:.

Try to get your SS low enough to get movement in the car wheels, without ruining the shot with your movement, experiment around 1/200.

And if Rally cars aren't in a straight line you can't get a front to back sharp panning shot - due to the fact that there's more that one plane of movement. i.e. if you pan perfectly with the front of the car, the rear of the car is likely moving away from or towards the camera, therefore moving at a different speed.
 
starletman said:
I have been a couple of times and am going to somerley house on Sunday,i use a 70-200 on a ff and find that it has enough reach,thankfully you get a fair amount of time between cars to alter your settings and plenty of cars that you will get some good pics.
I have always handheld for motorsports and never had any problems.Hopefully if your family are seasoned fans they will know the good spots already.
Click to expand...

You're going to be incredibly lonely if you go to the estate on Sunday!
 
Phil V said:
The problem you have is that as seasoned motorsports fans, your friends will want to go somewhere where they can get a view of the car for a long time, usually up higher than the stage on wide sweeping sections.:'(

For interesting photo's you want to be on the inside (if poss with a wider lens) or on the exit of a bend, which isn't so great for spectating. Other things to look for are water splashes and jumps. But I'm not familiar with the Sunseeker.

You shouldn't need anything longer than the 70-200. For rally photography, the only time you need longer is just to be lazy - you can always get closer than that - I often shoot rally cars with my 10-20:nono:.

Try to get your SS low enough to get movement in the car wheels, without ruining the shot with your movement, experiment around 1/20

Thank you, thats very helpful - much appreciated!

And if Rally cars aren't in a straight line you can't get a front to back sharp panning shot - due to the fact that there's more that one plane of movement. i.e. if you pan perfectly with the front of the car, the rear of the car is likely moving away from or towards the camera, therefore moving at a different speed.
Click to expand...
 
DemiLion said:
You're going to be incredibly lonely if you go to the estate on Sunday!
Click to expand...

This made me laugh... but its only funny because last year I planned to go on the sunday myself and only realised my error when I looked up the times on the website...on the saturday evening:bonk:
 
Dippy said:
Thank you for your help, some great pointers. Can you just help me on one point if I use 1/60 sec with a 70-200 lens, will i not get camera shake?? Thanks again:thumbs:
Click to expand...

If you're using a digital SLR, you can always review the images and adjust your shutter speed accordingly

Secondly, if your lens has IS or VR, it might have a IS / VR setting for panning which will help counter camera shake.
 
Thank you all very much for your help, much appreciated. x
 
I've not been to the sunseeker rally, but we get the Tempest rally close to me. I tend to use my 70-300mm (can't afford an L yet) and that's enough. Often I've used my 17-85mm when standing trackside or on corners.
The only time I've used the tripod is when the light goes and you get the opportunity for taking great light trails.
 
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