Motorbike racing photography

**MacMan** · 21st March 2012, 12:56 AM

Originally Posted by p38arover

Great shots, Macman. The type to which I aspire. With the road bikes, one can even see the detail in their leathers.

Do you shoot hand held or with a tripod/monopod?

Even with a monopod I find it difficult to steady a 300mm lens. I usually end up with the lens resting against a post.

It depends on the lens and the situation. For the Safari shots I relied heavily on a monopod, only because I had one chance to get the shots I wanted. I was doing media work for the winning team and had to deliver for each day's press releases. It was a nuisance carting it everywhere though. For nearly all the shots I used a 70-200 F4.0L with image stabilisation (IS) but often turned the IS off because it doesn't always play nicely with a hard mount.

For track work I will often shoot with the same lens, IS on but off hand. The key to offhand work is to get your stance and support correct. It's very similar to shotgunning - support the camera with your leading hand under the lens, and put most of your body weight on your leading foor. With the panning shots, it pays to pick a bike 3 or 4 seconds before it ends up where you want to shoot. I take these kinds of panning shot with both eyes open. Once it's as close as the bike in the first shot I'm actually watching where it is with my left eye more than the right, almost sighting it over the lens. Stability comes if you swing from the knees and the hips rather than trying to track with your neck, mainly because the arms move less that way and I find it's my arms which introduce the really destructive wobble. Next time you're out at the track near a corner, just practice tracking the bikes without shooting. That way you start to get a feel for how much you need to move (it's a surprising amount) and you'll find the blackout time when the mirror is up less confusing. Then, pick your time, establish correct exposure and shoot in manual mode. If you can get down to 1/500 and still keep the bikes looking sharp you're getting the hang of it.

One of the super things with the 1D is the very short blackout time. It can rattle off 10 frames a second, but I normally knock it down to 5 or 6 unless I'm doing pass through shots with preselected focus. It does have some drawbacks though. The AF system is extremely complex and requires careful setup for each kind of shot. Set badly, and it will take pictures as bad as a ten year old pawn shop dunger. It took me a long time to come to grips with it and I still get caught sometimes.

I've used other bodies in the past but there's a reason that you see lots of these and Nikon D3/D3s bodies out there mounted on big lenses. Once you know what you are doing they make it much easier. But you can LEARN what you need to learn with anything.

**MacMan** · 21st March 2012, 12:57 AM

Originally Posted by isuzurover

Great pics! Finally some interesting 2-wheeled action

The only bad motorcycle is the one that doesn't go... I love them all, but these rally guys are amazing.

**MacMan** · 21st March 2012, 01:03 AM

If you want some more eye candy, try this.

Full size here.

2011 Safari winner Todd Smith.

Full size here.

**p38arover** · 21st March 2012, 07:39 AM

I'll come back to the other points later as I'm just about to go out, however.....

Originally Posted by MacMan

For nearly all the shots I used a 70-200 F4.0L with image stabilisation (IS) but often turned the IS off because it doesn't always play nicely with a hard mount.

.... this reminded me that I'd read a warning (somewhere) to turn I stabilisation (shake reduction in the Pentax is in the camera, not the lenses) off when panning. I'd forgotten and I hadn't.

**MacMan** · 21st March 2012, 09:20 AM

Have a look at http://ghrhonda.dirtbike.com.au/blog/ Isuzurover.

Ron, I find half the fun is taking pictures of the other stuff that goes on around the track or bivouac. The Safari was fascinating for a change of scenery.

I'm already looking forward to the Condo 750 and Finke this year. In 2011 the team went to Dakar for the first time. They took 2012 off from Dakar to focus on development, but are giving it another nudge in 2013.

**p38arover** · 21st March 2012, 07:17 PM

Mongrel! Your pix are so good I feel embarrassed to show my feeble attempts!

**slug_burner** · 21st March 2012, 07:23 PM

MacMan,

Great photos, I downloaded the full size images and zoomed in and still had sharp images.

What a diverse forum we have. South American Dakar! How's your Spanish, I am not at translator standard but I would not go hungry, thirsty, ...

Did you go the 70-200 f4 for the weight saving over the f2.8? I splashed out on the 2.8, I like it but don't lug my gear far from the car or have to hold it all day.

Ron,

A few people on here are practiced at PP and know what packages to use etc. I am sure they would help you along. I have an old copy of Photoshop which I can play around on but I am not a wiz. I only play around on special occasions when I turn one of my photos into a Christmas card for the family or have to use a photo for some special purpose.

You can polish a t..d but it will still be a t..d. It is better to start with a good picture. Work on knowing your equipment and getting your technique sorted instead of becoming PP wiz.

300+ · 21st March 2012, 07:53 PM

Hi Ron, I think I'm not bad at landscape pictures, mediocre at wildlife and woeful at motorsports.

As a result I'm planning on some practice at Eastern Creek this Sunday. I will PM you my phone number and maybe we can compare cockups?

Cheers, Steve

**MacMan** · 22nd March 2012, 03:09 PM

Originally Posted by slug_burner

MacMan,

Great photos, I downloaded the full size images and zoomed in and still had sharp images.

What a diverse forum we have. South American Dakar! How's your Spanish, I am not at translator standard but I would not go hungry, thirsty, ...

Did you go the 70-200 f4 for the weight saving over the f2.8? I splashed out on the 2.8, I like it but don't lug my gear far from the car or have to hold it all day.

Thanks SB.

Spanish not flash, but the guys told me that it's very easy to get along with pretty much everyone so long as you're wearing team gear. Nobody goes hungry unless they're a vegetarian.

I'm very fussy with the focus, primarily because my pictures are also used by the team's sponsors for their own advertising. Their logos and gear have to be sharp and look good.

I have the 4.0L for two reasons - at the time of purchase it was sharper than the first generation F2.8L IS lenses, but it was also very much cheaper. The relatively light weight and slimmer shape is good, but it's still far from discreet. I would very much like one of the second generation F2.8L IS 70-200s because the larger aperture gives the AF more light and kicks off another 18 cross type sensors for the AF. The F4.0 lens means that the centre AF point is the only cross type sensor active. Doesn't sound like much but when trying to nail shots of fast bikes with cluttered backgrounds it's still easy to completely muff the focus.

**MacMan** · 22nd March 2012, 03:11 PM

Ron, remember that good photographers never show people their duds

For all the camera gear in the world, everyone ends up with bad ones from time to time.

Thread: Motorbike racing photography

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