British Grand Prix

[RosemanJP]

No fairy tale finish for our boy after all!

[JohnG]

Welcome to the sports forum!

I don't generally comment on racing shots - it's not my forte. But as a fan of sports photography I'll offer up my opinion as a VIEWER if not a photographer of this sport:

1. Image is pretty soft. I'm not sure if it's a result of your panning technique, soft focus or a result of a heavy crop. But if the end result image is a car that fills the frame, the car should be sharp.

2. Looks like there was some object to the left between you and your subject so it appears as a dark band.

3. I can't believe I'm going to say this but this crop is too tight for my tastes. You've cut out part of the car on both ends and it just feels way too tight for me. I think a looser crop with some track space in front of the car might look a little better.

Please don't get discouraged though and don't take my comments the wrong way. I think you'll find we have a great group of sports posters here and one of the things I like about this forum is we actually offer each other constructive criticism. So rather than just say 'great job' on every photo postd like some other forums do we actually try to help each other become better sports shooters. So I hope you take my comments in the spirit in which they're intended. If I wasn't interested in helping I wouldn't take the time to respond.

Thanks again for posting here. I'm sure some of the other users who do more racing than I can give you some more detailed feedback on what you could do differently next time.

[RosemanJP]

Thanks John. I appreciate your comments very much - and I quite agree with you - much too soft. This was my first experience of trying to photograph motor racing, or indeed anything else fast moving. (My usual subject are roses which tend to stay pretty much in the same place!)

As you spotted, there was a heavy mesh safety fence between me and the action and on this shot of Hamilton I had to crop so much because the shot also included a fence upright.

This shot is perhaps a better composition, but my panning technique - and probably settings (F6.3 1/160) - still leaves much to be desired.

[airbrushjohn]

JohnG wrote:

3. I can't believe I'm going to say this but this crop is too tight for my tastes.

man o man!! i can't believe it either!! just kidding johng!!!hahahahahahahahahahaha!!

i agree with johng about cropping too much, and the softness! i also have an e-500, by the exif of your pic i see you had thesharpness on soft,for sports change that to hard.you did a really great job your first time out!! when you shoot sports use center focus! sometimes with the 500 you have to actually try to focus a few times, press the shutter button half way to hear the beep, and use c-af and pan your shots, it takes a bit to get used to at such high speeds! you really did good!! john

[DRGSin]

Ah those dastardly fences and mesh that line the motor courses. After years and 1000s of useless shots, Im resolved to the fact that if i cant get a clear view I wont shoot at all. Hate to say it but Ive given up. Instead Ive planted mmyself on higher ground and used longer lenses. Unfortunately, you cant get the killer shots unless youre up close. Its a catch 22. Dont let it stop you from shooting however because its great practice on your panning technique.

[RosemanJP]

Thanks for the encouragement, guys!

Now, if we could only stand here, with his kit................!

[TG]

Good effort.

Long lenses help when shooting through fences as they have a shallow depth of field. Try to getas closeto the fence as you can & shoot wide open. Overcast days are great because you don't get sunlighton the fence and the meshdoes not show up as much. Painting the fence blackworks but obviously this is not always possible.

Set your focus mode to continous focus or you can even manual foucus on a point on the track.

These pics were taken througha mesh fence at the Australian F1 GP, you can see the type of fence in the background of these shots. Overcast day long lens.


560mm (400mm & 1.4x TC) , 1/200 f8 (wide open for this lens with a tele convertor)



560mm (400mm & 1.4x TC) , 1/250 f8

[RosemanJP]

Thanks TG for your helpful advice. And for your very impressive pics. (I'm feeling increasingly embarrassed with my efforts!)

John

[RosemanJP]

Thanks TG for your helpful advice. And for your very impressive pics. (I'm getting increasingly embarrassed with my efforts!)

John

[RosemanJP]

Thanks TG for your helpful advice. And for your very impressive pics. (I'm getting increasingly embarrassed with my efforts!)

John