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The Races

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
Back from the races, way out in the middle of nowhere. Two days and 45GB of RAW files. Bridge crashes, so I can't review the files. Here's one from the middle of the heap.

Car racing is fun, but my feet, my sunburn and an aching tooth will be for sale to the highest bidder over 20 cent tomorrow morning :(

S5 with Tamron 17-50 @ 17mm and f/6.3

 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
Nah.... it was only 40GB, 1,700 photos. What on earth do I do with them all :confused:

I don't have a clue about car photography, but here's the one that this project circles around. A "slightly" modified Subaru.

S5 with 80-200 AF-S @ 200mm and f/3.5

 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
There was an opening ceremony, obviously, with important men saying important words, but to hold the umbrella to shade for the sun, they needed a real VIP.

S5 with 80-200mm AF-S @ 92mm and f/8.0

 

Lars

Active member
Jorgen,

Very cool. "Slightly"... hehe. Those are awesome even in stock trim!

How did the equipment work out? D300? Sorry I didn't read the fine print - S5. What did you miss in terms of glass?

Photographing any sort of sports means you have to learn to understand what kind of photos people like. It also helps to have a great understanding of the sports. Finally, figure out which of your images you like, and more importantly, why you like them. Also (just as important), figure out what is missing or wrong with the images you don't like.

I spent a few years in the eighties photographing Frisbee freestyle - I was also competing at international level (this was when I was still a handsome, young man). I sure wish I had digital back then, but I did learn to shoot at the decisive moment down to a hundredth of a second, and I did learn what poses and moves looked good, partly because I understood the dynamics of the body movements and the interaction with the wind.

Those two images are great technically and as compositions, but a bit on the static side. No movement, and the center of attention is dead center. Very calm, no action.

I follow F1 websites, lots of photos there, perhaps some images there for you to relate to?
 
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Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
I ended up using what I had, the S5 with the 80-200 AF-S and a Tamron 1.4x for the "action". I was lucky, and had lots of light, so I could use ISO 400 and still get short shutter times and small enough apertures to get a reasonable DOF. I did buy a new tripod though, a light Benro, since I had to carry it around most of the day. I will need a better ballhead for panning. RRS has an excellent one with pan both at the base and at the head. Rather costly though, but for motorsports, it's probably worth it.

Mark Rebilas, who posts at the sportsforum at FM, has an excellent blog where he describes equipment and techniques. Very informative.

There are different target groups for these photos, so I need a wide variety. In addition, I take the photos that I like to take, like the VIP shot, that isn't really useful, but lots of fun to take :D

I will most probably buy one of the Sigma lenses (100-300 f/4 or, if I can afford it, 120-300 f/2.8. I do need more reach, and a TC isn't an ideal solution. The S5 focuses just fine, and high frame rates isn't that relevant with motorsports. Finding "The decisive moment" is much more important. What I will need sooner or later, is better high ISO for darker days. The D700 is an obvious candidate, but I lose one stop if I need to use a TC to maintain the same reach. Dilemmas, dilemmas... :LOL:
 
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Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
Motorbikes are great practice objects. They move fast, and often in unpredictable ways. Getting good motion blur on the background and the wheels, while at the same time keeping the bike sharp, filling most of the frame, was an interesting challenge, at least for me :)

S5 with 80-200 AF-S and Tamron 1.4x TC @ 240mm, f/11 and 1/230s. Cropped at the bottom.

 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
One doesn't have to be a man to see that it's meaningful to spend millions of monies on cars that have no other purpose than racing around a closed circuit accompanied by an abundance of noise, smoke, bad smell, pollution.... and pretty girls, but it probably helps :D

For some reason, it's fun

D80 with Tamron 17-50mm @ 17mm and f/9.0



S5 with 80-200 AF-S @ 280mm and f/4.5

 

edwardkaraa

New member
Nice photos Jorgen. This is a very difficult subject especially finding the right balance between shutter speed and motion blur, let alone framing at high speeds and focusing. Which circuit is this btw?
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
Nice photos Jorgen. This is a very difficult subject especially finding the right balance between shutter speed and motion blur, let alone framing at high speeds and focusing. Which circuit is this btw?
Thanks Edward. It's the first time I'm doing this "for real". But it's great fun, and they are all great people to work with. This was at a small military airbase in Sa Kaew, around 15km west of Aranya Pratet. Very improvised and very flat. The next two races will be at Bira, in July and August if I remember correctly, while the last one is the Speed Week in Bang Saen in November. The Speed Week is great fun, and very well organised. Highly recommended. You need good shoes though. It's a biiiig circuit, and the interesting parts are at the extremes, Beach road and the mountain.
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
Obviously, there were balloons. How anybody can dream of taking part in a car race without balloons is beyond me. I only wish that people could be more polite, and get out of the way when I try to take photos of the balloons, particularly the red ones, but alas... :p

S5 with 80-200 AF-S @ 200mm and f/3.5



PS. Did I miss focus on this one? It seems to me that the balloons are slightly out of focus. Is my camera front focusing? Maybe I need to see a doctor :confused:
 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
Here's Fuji Territory: Her face and black hair in the shadow, the cornet in the sun. Hardly anything blown and lots of detail everywhere. But whoever decided on the hats for the band... :scry:

S5 with 80-200 AF-S @ 200mm and f/5.6

 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
Pickup truck racing is a lively affair. In these settings, it's really the only kind of racing that reflects the true spirit of the people. Diesel engines and leaf spring rear suspension compulsory.

S5 with 80-200 AF-S with Tarmon 1.4x TC @ 210mm and f/5.0

 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
Since Thailand doesn't go to war very often (I believe the last time was against Burma, who had occupied the country and burned down the capital, Ayuttaya, earlier the same year, under King Taksin in 1767). In the Land of Smiles, even the soldiers smile most of the time, at least when they don't have to fight yellow or red rebellions in the streets of Bangkok.

S5 with 80-200 AF-S @ 100mm and f/3.5

 

Jorgen Udvang

Subscriber Member
Your trusted family car: Toyota Corolla. At least the headlights are original... almost :ROTFL:

S5 with 80-200mm AF-S and Tamron 1.4x TC @ 280mm and f/5.0

 
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