A few odds and sods from Oulton Park last weekend. Nice to see George Carman (carmagw), albeit very briefly. If there is any appetite for a PU outing to a racetrack, let me know and I'll see what I can do to secure a ticket or three...

1 - Cheshire sky (K-5 IIs, Tamron 17-50)


2 - Commitment (K-3, Tamron 70-200)


3 - Air spray (K=5 IIs, DA300)


4 - Correct heagear (K-5 IIs, DA300)


5 - Jolly burgundy giant (K-3, Tamron 70-200)


6 - The ides of arch (K-5 IIds, DA300)


7 - Ptimed for action (K-5 IIs, Tamro 17-50)

Some terrific stuff there, George. Am just about to post mine. Nice to see you for a couple of minutes...

Worth waiting for, George. As you say, it is hard to create original action shots at Silverstone, given the cluttered backdrops, and at some points on the track you'll be lost without a 600mm lens plus TC... Even so, the pan shot of Vettel passing The Wing (#11) works well and I love the sunset and Red Arrows photos. I missed the latter as I'd sloped off to Oulton Park on the Saturday.

There are some very nice observational details here, too, such as the marshal pondering the reflection in the pit lane glass. A cracking job, all told.

A stunning selection, Bill. All great, but I love #12 in particular.

Yes, an Arron photo thread that's wholly devoid of internal combustion. A few avians, quadrupeds and other oddments seen around the UK in recent times...


1 - Village weaver, Marwell Wildlife (K-3, DA300)


2 - Short-wheelbase mute swan, WWT Arundel (K-5 IIs, Tamron 70-200)


3 - Bored, Marwell Wildlife (K-3, DA300)


4 - Red admiral, WWT Arundel (K-5 IIs, Tamron 70-200)


5 - Floral nonsense, Kelsey Park, Beckenham (K-3, DA300)


6 - House sparrow photo-bombs meerkat pen, Marwell Wildlife (K-3, DA300)


7 - Fledgling trumpeter swan, WWT Arundel (K-3, DA300)


8 - Coot wars, Kelsey Park, Beckenham (K-5 IIs, Tamron 70-200)


9 - Great grey wisdom, Marwell Wildlife (K3, DA300)

A few from last Saturday. Chateau Impney is just off the M5 J5, close to Droitwich, and was being used competitively for the first time since 1967. The event was very well organised and will hopefully become an annual staple. Only pre-1967 cars are eligible.


1 - Not as sophisticated as a Mercedes W06, but much more charismatic. It's a GN/Frazer Nash, known as 'Piglet' (K-5 IIs, Tamron 70-200, 1/200)


2 - Little and large (K-3, Tamron 17-50)


3 - Interested spectator (K-5 IIs, 70-200)


4 - Country life (K-5 IIs, 70-200)


5 - 19th century chateau, 1913 Mercedes (K-3, 17-50)


6 - Pitts flies over the paddock (K-5 IIs, DA300)


7 - TV cameraman possibkly feeling the heat (K-5 IIs, 70-200)


8 - Worcestershire source (K-5 IIs, 70-200)


9 - Same scene, added colour (K-5 IIs, 70-200)

Very nice work, George. Love the mono portraits, but am not so sure about Jacques Villeneuve's hair transplant...

Thanks, everybody, for the kind words.

@Mike: It's always worth keeping an eye on msv.com for details of forthcoming fixtures at Oulton Park and other circuits within the MSV/Brands Hatch group. The information is quite detailed and a full timetable is usually posted several days ahead of each meeting.

@Simon: Yes, 1/80 can be a bit of a challenge - but it's OK at slow- to medium-speed corners (the hit rate is still quite low, although that's down to my wobbly technique rather than any inadequacy on the camera's part). I wouldn't try it at Copse, where they're doing about 165mph at the apex... Generally, I start off at 1/125 or 1/160, then move up and down between 1/60 and 1/250 to see what is (or, more frequently, isn't) achievable.

Didn't take quite as many shots as usual this year, partly because I nipped away from Silverstone on Saturday morning, drove the 125 miles to Oulton Park, did some photography there and then headed back to Northants (as you do). Here, then, are a few bits from the weekend as a whole...


1 - Lewis prepares to follow the Williams drivers for a while (K-5 IIs, Tamron 70-200)


2 - How the F1 paddock looks just before 6.30am, when for some reason I seem to be the only one there (K-3, Sigma 10-20, a panorama stitched together with PS Elements 12)


3 - Mercedes team formation during Friday practice, with Nico Rosberg ahead and Sir Frank Williams on TV (K-5 IIs, 70-200)


4 - Something that turns even more effectively than a Mercedes W06... (K-3, DA300)


5 - Valtteri Bottas wonders how on earth Williams managed to convert first and second to fourth and fifth (K-5 IIs, 70-200)


6 - Between this shot's composition and execution, 17-year-old Max Verstappen had aged by 1/80 of a second (K-3, Tamron 17-50)


7 - Up at Oulton Park, meanwhile, the pace of life was a little more relaxed (K-5 IIs, 70-200)


8 - Paddock dwellers were stupefied to learn that an Alfa Romeo required surgery (K-3, 17-50)


9 - A40 driver Matt Moore decides to put Pentax's dust seals to the test (K-3, DA300)


10 - What could possibly go wrong? (K-5 IIs, 70-200)

One subject, huge diversity. Fabulous, Alan.