Motorsport Photography – Tips to Get You Started

You’ve leafed through thousands of racing magazines and seen numerous race photos of some of the fastest machines on the planet battling for that last inch of the track. You tell yourself next time you go to a race, you’ll take along a camera and come back home with pics just like those. But how?

1) Get a DSLR

Usually one would say it takes pure talent and the equipment can only play a minor role for many types of photography that is out there, motorsports is one of the rare exceptions where you need special equipment. A good example would be when a person with pretty good skills can capture a beautiful landscape image with a point and shoot camera however a relative newbie could botch it up with a state of the art DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex). With motorcycles traveling at speeds of over 200mph, all the skills in the world could not capture that: You need a DSLR. More specifically it is the speed and control that a DSLR can offer.

When researching for a camera, look for things like a high frames per second shooting mode, high speed auto focus and near absence of shutter lag. Today, the quality of cameras are very high and an entry level DSLR can do the job but try to look for the above options with quicker specs. This will make your life easier when you use a higher end and faster DSLR so remember that when shopping around. As for lenses, it’s obvious that the longer the zoom range you have the more options available at your disposal but don’t think that having just a short lens makes it hopeless. Learn to work with what you have and stop daydreaming about things you don’t.

2) Know The Track

Unless you’ve been to the track numerous times, it’s essential to explore the track as best as you can to scope out good potential spots to shoot from. If you have never been to a racetrack before at all, it’s easy to get caught off guard by just how monstrous a track can be. In some cases getting from one end of the track to the other can easily be a 20 minute walk or more.

Finally when it’s time to take pictures at the race, you better know your exact positions and prepare in advance what shots you’d like to take. This will better prepare you to move around the track more effectively because if you don’t, many times you’ll end up getting stuck at some places and even miss numerous laps (even the race) by not having a predetermined plan of the spots you’d want pictures from. Race weekend usually consists of practice sessions for the racers so take full advantage of this and use those times as your own practice shot sessions.

3) Know The Sport

While it’s not necessarily necessary to have deep knowledge of the sport to get great shots, it can probably help make a difference or at least shorten the learning curve a bit. Back to the example of motorcycle races. Looking to get a picture of racers dragging their knees? A relatively tight, high speed corner is your best bet.

Want to get a shot of the racer tucked in low under the windscreen? Stay away from braking zones then because in those areas they need to sit up straight right before they prepare for corner entry. How about getting a stand up wheelie shot? You won’t see too many racers performing those antics while in the middle of a race so position yourself after the racer is over to get that one.

The above three tips hopefully can give you a head start of sorts, but they can’t replace the time you need to spend practicing and the trial and error everyone goes through. Your first time out may prove to be a rude awakening but once you get used to the speed of your subjects and the capabilities of the equipment you own, it will come together soon enough. In the end you just should enjoy yourself!