Motorsport advice

Historically I'm used to taking landscapes and travel shots but I'm off to Snetterton Racetrack on Staurday to watch the Aston Martin Car Championships with the sole aim of adding some motorsport photos to my portfolio.

I shall take my DA* 16-50, 50-135 and 60-250 and plan to place myself in/near the 'bomb hole' (on someones advice). Hopefully I can get down into the pits as well.

I aim to try some panning shots and try and catch some cornering action.

Any advice on camera settings, other kit to take or better positions (if you know the circuit) would be greatly appreciated.

I'm also going to Snetterton this weekend, Ralph, albeit for the Vintage Sports Car Club's seasonal finale on Sunday.

Saturday's Aston Martin OC meeting takes place on the '300' circuit - the longest of the three at the venue - and there is an elevated grass bank in the centre of the track, just behind the paddock. This provides views over the pit straight/first corner (Riches) on one side and most of the infield on the other. You can aim head-on at the cars as they come through Palmer, a quick left-hander, although it might be a bit of a stretch with a 250mm. There's also a pan shot from there as they head towards the next left-hander.

Few bother with the Bombhole nowadays - it used to be a classic Snetterton shot, but the run-off area now stretches most of the way to Great Yarmouth, so you'd need a 600mm with 27 times converter (approximately).

Murrays - a slow left-hander before the pit straight - should be OK with the 60-250. The spectator banks are reasonably close and AMOC meetings feature some softly sprung 1950s-1970s cars that are likely to kick up an inside front wheel when they hit the kerb.

Generally, I'd recommend sticking to the areas around the paddock, because you can explore several angles (and besides, it takes eons to venture to the outside because there's no pedestrian footbridge). Snetterton has a fantastic range of angles for those with a media tabard - you can get a range of shots from the hedgerows adjacent to the old A11, for instance - but it's pretty good, if a little limited, from the public areas. It isn't wholly surrounded by debris wire, either.

As for settings, if you are unused to panning I'd start at about 1/250 and work your way down to 1/80 or 1/60 as you become more comfortable. Cars won't be travelling at too high a speed, with the exception of the modern Aston GT4s, so 1/100 or 1/125 should be about right most of the time. For the head-on stuff, shoot as quickly as you like - 1/640 or faster. If you are standing at Murrays on the opening lap of a race, you could attempt a wide-angle shot with cars stretching back through Coram Curve. The only downside is that the field is often spread quite thinly by then due to the lap's length.

Enjoy the weekend - and best of luck.

If you have any specific questions, feel free to drop me a PM.

Simon
Brilliant advice and exactly what I was looking for, thanks.
The weather forecast is showing 'sunny intervals' for the area on Saturday, so hopefully it will be a good day out.
I'll take you advice on location although the qualifying rounds in the morning will give me a chance to do a bit of a recce and rehearsal for the main races in the afternoon.
I look forward to some good c&c when I post some shots next week.

Simon is right about the lack of a pedestrian footbridge, but there is perhaps a chance to cross the track between sessions, near the pit exit. The crossing at Touring car events is controlled by Marshalls under the direction of Race control, not sure if it's available at other meetings.

Whilst not as good as the new banking, the areas around the bridge are also quite reasonable, and can make a useful resting point if you have to walk in from the public parking.

Mike
Thanks for the input.
As I are not ardent motorsport followers, nor am I being chased by a magazine to produce something (fine chance) I can chill out, take my time and wander about, during the qualifiers in the morning, to find a spot.

I'm sure that wherever I sit, the photos will be better from somewhere else!

Brilliant day, weather was fantastic and the cars were out of this world. All credit to the guys that do this professionally. It is nowhere near as easy as it looks.

Here are 10 out of the many hundreds (I kid you not) that I took.

All C&C welcome

1


2


3


4


5


6


7. This was just how the sun caught the rear screen. I know this one is a bit weird but I quite liked it.


8


9


10

Glad you enjoyed it, Ralph.

I have just arisen at stupid o'clock and am about to set off for the Blackwall Tunnel, thence the M11 and several points east. Meeting colleagues for a Snetterton paddock fry-up circa 8.15.

Some very nice shots here. I'd have cropped the first more tightly and the second a little less so, so that there was a touch more space to the left of the Aston. I love the XK shot (#6), but would probably cut out some of the vacant area from behind, above and below the car. I'm rubbish at C&C, though, so will leave it to those better qualified.

If this was a first attempt at motor sport, I'd say it's a very solid start.

And yes, it's quite normal to take hundreds of pictures without ever laying a finger on continuous shooting mode. In the mid 1970s, my dad used to lend me his Spotmatic with a single roll of Tri-X, which left me 36 frames to cover a whole day at Oulton Park. Time change...

Like number 4 it looks like my dream Euro Lottery garage

Thanks for the comments.

Now that I look at it again I agree about the crop on number 2 as it would frame the picture better. My aim with number one was to show the apex of the corner as well as the cars, however now I've cropped it closer it is better, thanks.

Steve, there was a whole car park like this. I hate to think how much money there was parked in there!