# Motorsport -- panning, SS & motion



## lambertpix

Rather than hijack someone else's thread, I figured I'd start a new one here.  Feel free to add panning & motion shots, tips for panning, etc.

The context of the discussion in the original thread was that slower shutter speed helps create a sense of motion, but the speed needed to do so is somewhat variable.  To that end, here are a handful of shots that (I think) show motion pretty well.

Both of these first two were at 1/250 -- the first shot is turn 3 at Road America:



Brembo by lambertpix, on Flickr

The  small size doesn't show it too well, but at 1:1, the lettering on the  brake calipers is tack-sharp, and the brake glow helps the sense of  speed, too.  This next one was the little straight at Indy:









This one, also at Indy, was at 1/125:






If  you're just looking at wheel motion, some show it more than others, and  some show it only on one wheel (I especially like the "RF" in chalk on  the front wheel):


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## Braineack

those are really sharp.  what glass and body are those with?

probably a good idea to not threadjack, that wasn't the intent


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## lambertpix

Braineack said:


> those are really sharp.  what glass and body are those with?
> 
> probably a good idea to not threadjack, that wasn't the intent



Thanks - the first was a 40D, the other three were a 7D.  All of them were a Canon 70-300, which isn't known as a super-sharp lens, but isn't too shabby when it's stopped down a bit.  This lens also has a "panning mode" for its IS control, which (if you remember to set it) seems to work pretty well.  I do believe some of Canon's newer (and better) lenses detect panning automatically, and thus, don't need you to set it yourself.

I didn't mention this earlier, but one of the other things I've noticed with any sort of panning is that the more square you are to the direction of motion, the easier it seems to be to get good panning shots.  I'm sure this is due in part to the fact that focus is changing very little as the subject moves across the frame, but I think it also helps that the subject is square to the lens when you shoot.  I've seen shots that have cars approaching at an angle with the front of the car sharp and the rear OOF -- I've not been able to recreate this myself (aside from seeing various degrees of OOF from front-to-rear), but this can also be a really cool "speed" shot if it's done well.

Going back to one of the comments in the other thread, I'd love to have credentials to go wherever I wanted and set up exactly the right angle, etc. -- especially somewhere like Laguna Seca where there's an iconic chunk of track like the corkscrew.  I figure if I'm lucky enough to convince someone to credential me, I'll have accumulated enough experience to be able to take advantage of it!


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## Braineack

I've always wondered what anyone would do if I just went where I wanted without care...luckily the two tracks I go to (VIR and Summit Point) have pretty decent vantage points.


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## DBA

I can probably count the times I've attempted panning on my hand, here are a couple favorites though.

Both shot freehand with a 300mm (2.8) at 1/200.

Only advice I really have is to follow through with the panning motion, basically keep panning for about .5-1 sec after hitting the shutter.


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## lambertpix

Nice - #2 looks great -- like he's crashing right through the underbrush!


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## DBA

lambertpix said:


> Nice - #2 looks great -- like he's crashing right through the underbrush!


Thanks Lambert! Yeah it does look like that, but in reality the track is 10-15 feet wide. :mrgreen:


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## 12sndsgood

I have found you can vary your SS a bit depending on how fast the object your shooting is going. I generally start out at 1/100 and go slower and slower I try for crisp shots but i'll live with a little blur if it has good movement to it. 

1. shot at 1/20th a sec on my tamron 70-200 which is a little slow to focus compared to others and no vibration reduction. she was probably going around 30mph




NASRA-69 by Square1 photography, on Flickr

2 this one I was on 3 days of shooting and like 8 hours of sleep for the entire weekend so I started out slow before I got down to the usual speed. this was 1/250th a sec and he was going around 100mph by this point. huge difference in speed between the first two. but also a huge difference in SS to match.




NHDRA-1 by Square1 photography, on Flickr

3 this is my more typical panning shot at 1/60th a sec around 100mm with the same Tamron lens. entry speed was probably around 60mph at this point




MDU4-40 by Square1 photography, on Flickr


quite a lot of difference in the blur between the three


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## tecboy

12sndsgood said:


> MDU4-40 by Square1 photography, on Flickr
> 
> 
> quite a lot of difference in the blur between the three



Is that drifting? This shot is cool!


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## 12sndsgood

Yeah that's drifting. I spend the summer covering Drift event's for a couple magazine.


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## lambertpix

12sndsgood said:


> 2 this one I was on 3 days of shooting and like 8 hours of sleep for the entire weekend so I started out slow before I got down to the usual speed. this was 1/250th a sec and he was going around 100mph by this point. huge difference in speed between the first two. but also a huge difference in SS to match.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> NHDRA-1 by Square1 photography, on Flickr



The reflection here is fantastic -- great shot!


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## Robin_Usagani

Sure..  Mine is only 1 horsepower.


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## 12sndsgood

lambertpix said:


> 12sndsgood said:
> 
> 
> 
> 2 this one I was on 3 days of shooting and like 8 hours of sleep for the entire weekend so I started out slow before I got down to the usual speed. this was 1/250th a sec and he was going around 100mph by this point. huge difference in speed between the first two. but also a huge difference in SS to match.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> NHDRA-1 by Square1 photography, on Flickr
> 
> 
> 
> 
> The reflection here is fantastic -- great shot!
Click to expand...



Thanks I was pretty happy with it. I had wanted some blur on the front wheel because it looked so static.  When they came back the next month,= after this as I was getting new shots of them I noticed he was basically on his wheelie bars the first few hundred feet down the track so the front wheel wasn't really moving hardly at all to begin with so that made me feel a little better about it lol.


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## R3d

Washington DC SCCA Rallycross by R3d Baron, on Flickr




Washington DC SCCA Rallycross by R3d Baron, on Flickr




Washington DC SCCA Rallycross by R3d Baron, on Flickr


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## lambertpix

Nice!  I don't know if I'd be brave enough to do that with my daily driver!


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## Tailgunner

I'm still trying to figuring this one out. Every time I try panning, my photos end up with very little motion. 

Here an example (setup - D7100 w/70-200mm 2.8 VR II).


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## Robin_Usagani

Slow your shutter.


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## lambertpix

Not quite as much motion as I'd like, but here's a bike from Mid Ohio:


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## 12sndsgood

Tailgunner as Robin set slow your SS down  what SS was that shot at? 

Good shot Lamberpix I think the blur is good but it doesn't look like as much movement because you got him so sharp. I'll sacrifice a bit of movement when I can get a face thru a helmet show up that good.


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## lambertpix

Thanks - I believe he was the only one out there w/o a smoked visor.  I loved the eyes in that shot.  A little more action here, but I wish the faces were visible.  Still just fair in the panning dept.


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## ratssass




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## Braineack

Forgot I took these, thought they were fairly successful pans:


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## lambertpix

I *love* those cars!!  The sponsor decals are hilarious.... "Laughing clown malt liquor" and "bummerworld"?  Great stuff.


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## 12sndsgood

Love when cars are stickered up or have some contrasts to catch  Have found it a lot easier to catch focus when you have that.


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## brian_f2.8

Some nice work here. The object will be the sharpest when it's perpendicular to your camera mirror. 
It takes practice. I never thought I'd get a NASCAR or Indy car at a 1/30th. I get good results at 1/60th on a consistent basis.


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## DragonHeart




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## DragonHeart

Sliding into Sunset @ Sun-Life Stadium


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## DragonHeart




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## DavidMcc2

View attachment 61173


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## ronlane

This isn't panning or slow ss, but here is a way to convey motion. I've been trying this a really enjoy it. 5 shots at 1/1000, in TV, with ISO at 1600 to get a f/10 f-stop. Not perfect but fun to try.


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## Braineack

DragonHeart said:


> Sliding into Sunset @ Sun-Life Stadium




I know the owner of this car.  He's on my turbo miata site.


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## Rags

Can I join the party?...












Rags


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## gconnoyer

I have some drift ones I need to upload as well. Shot at 1/50-80

2.8, 1/160, ISO4000. Taken right at the starting line at the track


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## Steve5D

This is a recent one that I like:


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## lambertpix

Rags said:


> Can I join the party?...
> 
> Rags



Nice panning on the dragster!  I think the truck would work better for me in a tighter crop - there's implied movement in the top pickup and the race truck that are fighting in opposite directions when I view it.


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## Rags

lambertpix said:


> Rags said:
> 
> 
> 
> Can I join the party?...
> 
> Rags
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Nice panning on the dragster!  I think the truck would work better for me in a tighter crop - there's implied movement in the top pickup and the race truck that are fighting in opposite directions when I view it.
Click to expand...


Ha! I didn't notice the conflicting parked pick up... This is better.. Thanks






Rags


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## R3d

DSC01132-3 by R3d Baron, on Flickr

The only thing I don't like about this one is that there's not enough room in front of the car for my personal preference, but I do really enjoy the aesthetic.  This was a REALLY tough one, and the best of a couple hundred tries to get it.


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## Rags

Well then... (sorry posted horse race pan by mistake)






Rags


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## R3d

1/50




Austin 400 Pit/Paddock by R3d Baron, on Flickr

1/60




Australian V8 Supercars Austin 400 by R3d Baron, on Flickr

1/20 or thereabouts can be fun with a wide-angle.




DSC01803 by R3d Baron, on Flickr


1/30




Washington DC SCCA Rallycross by R3d Baron, on Flickr


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## Braineack

great set!


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## jfrabat

OK, I had not seen this post, so I'll post some of mine (including ones I put in a recent thread).  First some older ones (maybe 10 years ago?  This first set was before I got a DSLR, by the way):

1. Porsche 944



2. Honda Civic


3. Volkxwagen Super Beatle (this thing was a beast, running neck to neck with non-turbo porsches!)


And here is one from about 3 years ago:

4. Kart


ISO 100
f/5.6
1/250 sec.
Focal Length 80mm


And here are some I posted recently which I took in Exotics Racing in Las Vegas (talk about a parade of great subjects!) to show the improvement over time:

1. McLaren MP4-12C


ISO 100
f/13
1/200 sec.
Focal Length 70mm


2. Corvette Z06 (red)


Sony SLT-A77V Camera
Sony SAL70300G Lens
ISO 100
f/13
1/125 sec.
Focal Length 70mm


3. Ferrari Scuderia


ISO 100
f/11
1/160 sec.
Focal Length 70mm


4. Porsche 977 turbo


ISO 100
f/13
1/160 sec.
Focal Length 70mm


5. Lamborghini Gallardo Superleghero


ISO 100
f/14
1/100 sec.
Focal Length 75mm


6. Lamborghini Gallardo


ISO 100
f/14
1/100 sec.
Focal Length 75mm


6. Mercedes Benz SLR McLaren (braking hard)


ISO 100
f/13
1/125 sec.
Focal Length 90mm






I know I got some more somewhere, but I have to get home and look for them...

Anyway, feel free to critique me, as I want to improve my technique!  R3D already commented on trying even slower speeds on my other post, and I know I should have left more room in the front (it was not available for all the shots, and they are going on my son's wall, so I needed all the shots to be more or less in the same scale), but other than that, let me know if you see something that could have been improved.

By the way, do you guys shoot a single image or burst when shooting these?

Felipe

PS: Don't ask me why, but I just noticed looking at this that all my panning shots are always right to left...  Something to think about for the future!


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## R3d

I shoot bursts of about 8 per flyby, but it also depends on how fast they're moving past.


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## DBA

Another one I got from an event a couple weeks ago.


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## 12sndsgood

Jfrabat I put my D7000 and go with around 3 shots per car. I found when shooting all day at a drift event if I had it on high continuous I would go thru 3000 photos in a day and that's just to many to deal with. I worked on going with a slower speed and just pressing the shutter right before they got to the spot I had picked out.  I will generally start at around 1/200 for the first 30 minutes then step down to 1/100 for the next half hour. then it's usually down in the 1/60th range the rest of the day depending on how late we go. I will always take a few runs trying to get down in the1/20th range for practice but on a 70-200 with no vibration reduction I don't come out with to many keepers going that slow. even on a monopod.  One thing in your photo with the supercars I would have just tried to get different positions to give yourself some variety. I will generally change spots every hour if I'm shooting all day


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## jfrabat

I agree with the number of shots; in this one, I was shooting burst for about 15 to 20 minutes, and I got over 150 shots to go through...  of course, the Sony A77 does not help in that regard, as it shoots VERY quick burst.  But I tried shooting single shots, and I did not quite get as many shots as I would like, so I defenetly have to stick with burst (maybe just go with slow speed).  As for the position, on this particular track, that is the only place that you can go.  I could have changed the angle to get the curve at the end, butit was a little too far...


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## 90foxbox

Carlisle AFN 2013 by 90FoxBox, on Flickr

Took this a while back at Carlisle All Ford Nationals. Vaughn Gitten Jr was the driver.

Wheels are kinda dark but I liked it.


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## ratssass




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## lambertpix

jfrabat said:


> By the way, do you guys shoot a single image or burst when shooting these?



Great set - I love that beetle.  I always shoot bursts, but over the years, I've wearied of sifting through big piles of photos every time I come home from an event, and I think I've gotten a little better at firing off 3-4 shots at a crack vs. just holding the button down.

The last time I can recall filling up my buffer was this little conflagration -- two of these Porsche's (56 & 02) were leaning on one another coming out of turn 14 at Road America, and by the time I started shooting, things started getting messy.  I wound up with something north of 20 shots of these guys banging on one another coming up the hill, collecting at least two other drivers along the way (incl. the guy at the far left).  For any of you who follow sports car racing, that's Madison Snow's *mom* in the 56.


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## Rags

ratssass said:


> View attachment 62445



That little roadster is neat. Is it an old MG TF?

Rags


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## R3d

Madison Snow is a beast.  Looking forward to when he makes the step up to factory.


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## lambertpix

R3d said:


> Madison Snow is a beast.  Looking forward to when he makes the step up to factory.



That's one fast family.  I don't know that Melanie is doing a whole lot of racing anymore, whether the hit I saw was a contributing factor or not, but it's nice to see Madison doing so well.


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## midgeman

Hey there lambert. I see you've made the move as well...

Here are my favorites from 2013. Very difficult to choose just four...

Honda Grand Prix of Alabama, Barber Motorsports Park 



Ed Carpenter #20, Ed Carpenter Racing by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr

Goodguys Nashville Nationals



Low and... Fast? - Goodguys Nashville Nationals by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr

NHRA Hot Rod Reunion, Beech Bend, KY



2013 NHRA Hot Rod Reunion by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr

All American 400, Fairgrounds Speedway Nashville



2013 All American 400 by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr


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## Roba

Took this today, from 170 pics i had 12 keepers. It was my first go at motorsport panning, after taking tips from this thread.
I was using d7000 with a AF-S Nikkor 55-300 4.5-5.6. This was M 1/500 5.6 at 300mm, i had it on AF-C and went between 9 and 1 and even tried 3d but with little success.
Any c+c or tips would be great thanks Rob

It was taken at the NZ road race champs in Christchurch


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## Rags

Roba said:


> Took this today, from 170 pics i had 12 keepers. It was my first go at motorsport panning, after taking tips from this thread.
> I was using d7000 with a AF-S Nikkor 55-300 4.5-5.6. This was M 1/500 5.6 at 300mm, i had it on AF-C and went between 9 and 1 and even tried 3d but with little success.
> Any c+c or tips would be great thanks Rob
> 
> It was taken at the NZ road race champs in Christchurch



Nice. 

I think 1/500 is a little fast. Why don't you try SS160 to see how it works

Rags


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## Roba

Thanks Rags, I did try a slower SS, but down to me and not the equipment, I just couldn't get a sharp pic worth keeping. 
They were moving pretty quick at this spot 80-90mph and a good 30m's away. 
But it was fun trying.


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## Rags

Keep trying.. It's a question of rhythm ...

Here's SS160 @ about 130mph

http://ragspix.smugmug.com/Competitions/1107-Drags-Infineon/i-SwBDgr7/0/X3/DSC_7268-X3.jpg

It was a good effort, but at SS500 you don't get spoke blur & that seems to be a requirement....

Rags


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## Hayman

I've only tried panning a couple times and it was tricky for me to get the feel of it, but here are a few that I've took.


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## ratssass

...nice shot,but no way were a pair of TD's going 130 mph past the tree.TF's aren't even doing that!


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## Rags

ratssass said:


> ...nice shot,but no way were a pair of TD's going 130 mph past the tree.TF's aren't even doing that!



You're right, picked a wrong pic, sorry

This is at SS100, f11

http://ragspix.smugmug.com/Competitions/1107-Drags-Infineon/i-58cVLz7/0/X3/DSC_7303-X3.jpg

Rags


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## ratssass

....There ya go.....I'll by into that one.Real nice shot!!


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## lambertpix

Roba said:


> Took this today, from 170 pics i had 12 keepers. It was my first go at motorsport panning, after taking tips from this thread.
> I was using d7000 with a AF-S Nikkor 55-300 4.5-5.6. This was M 1/500 5.6 at 300mm, i had it on AF-C and went between 9 and 1 and even tried 3d but with little success.
> Any c+c or tips would be great thanks Rob
> 
> It was taken at the NZ road race champs in Christchurch



I think the panning is mostly a matter of practice & technique -- balance your equipment well, and pan through your shot.  The other thing to look for with bikes especially is to get on the inside of a turn if you can - you'll get a much better view of the rider, and if you shoot early, you might get some eye contact as the rider looks through the turn.


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## Rags

I'll go a step further...
Scope the track as soon as you get there and see how the sun hits the shooting sites you're interested in.

You can then guess where you should be shooting that day at a particular time - follow the light

Try not to shoot your subject in the shadow side

Panning is most successful when the subject is passing laterally across your frame

Rags


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## Roba

Lambertpix Ruapunna track is a left hand track which is impossible to get on a inside corner, unless you've got one of those special passes, but I do no what you mean about getting on the inside, and trying for a clear face.

Rags, I followed the whole track around trying to shoot straights and corners, so I feel I'm heading in the right direction with trying out plenty of different positions.

is there anything I could improve with the camera settings to help me out? Or is it purely technique?

Rob


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## midgeman

Roba said:


> Thanks Rags, I did try a slower SS, but down to me and not the equipment, I just couldn't get a sharp pic worth keeping.
> They were moving pretty quick at this spot 80-90mph and a good 30m's away.
> But it was fun trying.



Practice practice practice. Did I mention practice? No matter how fast the car/motorcycle is traveling, 1/500 will always be way too much. Like others have said, try at least 1/250 or below. Since this was your first try it is ok, but you will need to be on the inside of the corner or looking down the straight to get the best shots. 

Were you shooting burst mode or single?


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## Roba

Burst, but only 2-3 at a time.


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## midgeman

For shooting burst mode, 170 total shots seems REALLY small. Shoot until your memory card is full. I am very confident in my panning, but even in single mode I come home with thousands. The more you take the better chance you will have more keepers. Personally, I never use burst mode because 1)my camera is too slow so I miss the composition I want and 2)my panning motion gets shaky for some reason. What I do is find the composition I want, pre focus on that spot if needed, then wait for the car to start panning and snap the shutter just as it passes through my desired framing, one shot. Another thing I do for faster vehicles is to "think ahead" as they pass by. Otherwise I tend to miss the car or only have the rear in focus.


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## Braineack

I try to keep the headlight, or alike, fixed in a focus point of the viewfinder before clicking -- that way you know you're matching the speed.

End up with pretty good results that way:


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## midgeman

That might work for tighter framing and moderate shutterspeeds, but I don't think it would for something like this with a super slow SS and wide angle. This is where I must "think ahead" of the car. 




Light Speed! by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr


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## Roba

170 total is small I admit, but I had a bit of a schoolboy error and only had that left on my card and no spare. 
Lesson learnt! And thanks for the advice everybody. 

Rob


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## Rags

Midgeman, that shot is a beauty

Rags


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## Tailgunner

Is this any better?


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## Roba

Sorry if it seems I'm Mr 20 questions, but are you all hand held? Or is anybody using a mono or tripod?

Rob


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## 12sndsgood

Usually handheld.  Sometimes I can use monopod but you have to be on a position where you can get a good pan with the monopod.  Depending on your location and elevation it can be awkward to pAn with a monopod.   Usually if I'm not on the same level as the car I won't use a monopod. Or if the track is changing elevations I won't use it.


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## Braineack

Tailgunner said:


> Is this any better?




isn't this the same thing you posted in #16?  I believe it is, so no, it's not better than that exact same shot as before


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## midgeman

Braineack said:


> isn't this the same thing you posted in #16? I believe it is, so no, it's not better than that exact same shot as before



It's not the exact same thing. The SS looks a little slower with a little more motion in the wheels. 




Tailgunner said:


> Is this any better?



For that, I'd say it's better. Keep lowering your SS and keep practicing. I'd also crop out that top portion where the grass ends.


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## midgeman

I am 99% handheld. The only time I use a monopod is in low light with a very slow shutter.


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## Tailgunner

Braineack said:


> Tailgunner said:
> 
> 
> 
> Is this any better?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> isn't this the same thing you posted in #16?  I believe it is, so no, it's not better than that exact same shot as before
Click to expand...



Almost, minus the added Motion Blur in the wheels with the help of my new CS6 software


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## Braineack

no, it didn't help.


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## Tailgunner

Braineack said:


> no, it didn't help.



Wut, you couldn't tell the difference between the original and the repost at first glance. Now you're saying the added effect didn't help after I had to point out the changes? Ok lol


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## Braineack

exactly.  you had to point it out...


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## Tailgunner

Braineack said:


> exactly.  you had to point it out...



Ok lol 

The changes was meant to be small and subtle. The fact that I had to point it out after YOU commented on it being the SAME photo tells me I did a decent job. Thanks.


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## midgeman

Tailgunner said:


> Ok lol
> 
> The changes was meant to be small and subtle. The fact that I had to point it out after YOU commented on it being the SAME photo tells me I did a decent job. Thanks.



I don't understand the logic here...


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## Rags

Can't we all be friends???

I think its better with blurred wheels and midgeman made a good point about the crop

As a guide I say SS160 to begin with with... but the slower the subject the longer the shutter opening. SS160 would stop all motion of a car going into the pits at 30 +/-.

Experiment and check your lcd to see if you got what you wanted

Rags

BTW... I think shooting cars is boring. Bikes are more exciting...


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## Braineack

I'm not being mean.  I'm just saying the image isn't any better.

Sure, it may have motion blurred wheels now, but it's still not a great pan, and imho, it's not a shot in general: The BG needs blur, it's not a great composition, and the IQ lacks (not sure if just due to the image compression on the resize). I suppose a crop could help, but without the panning effect, it's still just a pretty boring shot of a car.


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## Tailgunner

midgeman said:


> Tailgunner said:
> 
> 
> 
> Ok lol
> 
> The changes was meant to be small and subtle. The fact that I had to point it out after YOU commented on it being the SAME photo tells me I did a decent job. Thanks.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I don't understand the logic here...
Click to expand...


Does their have to be any logic? lol 

Basically: 

Me: how about this photo
Member: it's identical to your original photo
Me: good, you didn't notice my subtle changes to the wheels
Member: Oh ya, I saw that, it's not any better
Me: I thought you said the photo was identical? 




Braineack said:


> I'm not being mean. I'm just saying the image isn't any better.



Oh I know, I'm not crossed or taking anything as being mean.

Anyhow, we already discussed the issues with my photo in the previous pages, one of which would be nice if it had some more motion blur in the wheels. I can't practice my panning due to the wether. So I got bored and decided to play around with my newly acquired CS6. I wanted my changes to be subtle, thats why I didn't mess with the background blur.


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## Rags

CS6?... Now you're talkin'

Shoot high SS, freeze everything, dup the shot in CS6, make a layer for the sharp car, motion blur the other background shot, put sharp car on top and erase parts of sharp car rear at reduced value (& the wheels)

All adjustments to taste

See what you get... 

Rags


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## Braineack

don't worry, we've all cheated:












these were from my first ever time panning.  It was shot at 1/200 and 1/320, the best I could do.  I exaggerated the wheels and bg blur in post, otherwise it was just a car on the track.

not sure what happened to the IQ on these...


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## midgeman

I haven't 
I don't even know how.


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## Tailgunner

Rags said:


> CS6?... Now you're talkin'
> 
> Shoot high SS, freeze everything, dup the shot in CS6, make a layer for the sharp car, motion blur the other background shot, put sharp car on top and erase parts of sharp car rear at reduced value (& the wheels)
> 
> All adjustments to taste
> 
> See what you get...
> 
> Rags



I watched a youtube on that last night, pretty neat. 

Anyone old enough to remember the saying "Is it Real or is it Memorex?" Now it's " Is it real or is it Photoshop?" lol


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## pdq5oh

3 from the old Rolex Series


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## lambertpix

pdq5oh said:


> 3 from the old Rolex Series



I guess it *is* the old Rolex Series now... good set.  Is that Mid-Ohio?


----------



## pdq5oh

Hi. Yes that's Mid Ohio. & I don't cheat on my pans. They turn out in the camera, or they turn up on the floor. I wish a TUDOR race was coming to Ohio. I like the World Challenge Series that will be there tho. The Audis actually have a chance. Maybe in TUDOR they will; given how they did in testing for Daytona. And didn't do too badly last year. Maybe I'll run into you there this summer.


----------



## Rags

Ahhh... one man's cheating is another man's art....

Rags


----------



## lambertpix

pdq5oh said:


> Maybe I'll run into you there this summer.



Hopefully - I made it up there for the vintage cars & vintage bikes last year.  I forget what I had going on for Rolex there, but I caught those guys over at Indy.  I'm hoping to make it to a couple more races this year.


----------



## pdq5oh

Rags said:


> Ahhh... one man's cheating is another man's art....
> 
> Rags



I guess we all end up at the same place


----------



## midgeman

pdq5oh said:


> ...I don't cheat on my pans. They turn out in the camera, or they turn up on the floor...



Couldn't have said it better. Nothing wrong with tweaking the exposure, sharpen, etc. but adding wheel blur is just a no for me. No matter how you put it its fake.


----------



## lambertpix

midgeman said:


> pdq5oh said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...I don't cheat on my pans. They turn out in the camera, or they turn up on the floor...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Couldn't have said it better. Nothing wrong with tweaking the exposure, sharpen, etc. but adding wheel blur is just a no for me. No matter how you put it its fake.
Click to expand...


I want to read the name on the brake calipers.... ;-)


----------



## skwty

lambertpix said:


> Rather than hijack someone else's thread, I figured I'd start a new one here.  Feel free to add panning & motion shots, tips for panning, etc.
> 
> The context of the discussion in the original thread was that slower shutter speed helps create a sense of motion, but the speed needed to do so is somewhat variable.  To that end, here are a handful of shots that (I think) show motion pretty well.
> 
> Both of these first two were at 1/250 -- the first shot is turn 3 at Road America:



I was excited to see this was at Road America.  I live in the area and my first trip to Road America with my brand new Canon T2i garnered me this shot:


It was my first attempt ever at stopping something moving this fast and was taken with my 250mm "kit" lens from Canon.  The sharpness is there on some of the shot, but maybe didn't hit as much as I could've with a faster shutter speed.  I LOVE the shot I quoted above though, excellent!


----------



## lambertpix

skwty said:


> I was excited to see this was at Road America.  I live in the area and my first trip to Road America with my brand new Canon T2i garnered me this shot:
> View attachment 64116
> 
> It was my first attempt ever at stopping something moving this fast and was taken with my 250mm "kit" lens from Canon.  The sharpness is there on some of the shot, but maybe didn't hit as much as I could've with a faster shutter speed.  I LOVE the shot I quoted above though, excellent!



Thanks -- you're lucky to have RA in your backyard.  It's probably the most fan-accessible track I've been to -- easily better than Mid-Ohio and worlds better than Indy.  Turn 3 is great for hard-braking shots (dim light == glowing rotors on cars), and of course turn 5 always has lots of action.  One of the lesser-traveled spots is Canada corner -- there's a trail through the woods that pops out right above the apex, so you're looking down at the cars as they come through.  Sort of a tricky spot to pan, because you can't pick up the cars until they're right on top of you, but it's a unique vantage point.

Good luck -- hopefully, I'll make it up there for the TUSCC race.


----------



## 12sndsgood

There is some new software out to fake panning and rolling shots.  About $2500. Personally I'll stick with gettin them in camera.  Last thing I have time for is faking blur on 100 plus photos.  Time is money.


----------



## midgeman

$2,500 to make fake photos? What a rip-off...

In other news, I can't wait for the motorsport season to get back underway so I can continue panning, SS & motion.


----------



## lambertpix

Too busy panning to hit the damned brakes....  




IMG_8339.jpg by lambertpix, on Flickr


----------



## Tom23

Just found my 2 old panning shots, 7 years ago with Konica Minolta D'image Z10, the best looking camera ever made




Carrera 997 by Tomislav Mavrovic, on Flickr

1/125 f3.2 ISO 64






Carrera 996 by Tomislav Mavrovic, on Flickr

1/100 f3.2 ISO 64


----------



## 12sndsgood

midgeman said:


> $2,500 to make fake photos? What a rip-off...  In other news, I can't wait for the motorsport season to get back underway so I can continue panning, SS & motion.



Agreed. But i don't think the commercial world will care one bit how you get them the shot you want.


----------



## midgeman

lambertpix said:


> Too busy panning to hit the damned brakes....




Bump & Run!


----------



## TheGiant

First post! A few from past years at the Rolex 24 at Daytona. I have my tickets ready for next week. Anyone else going?


----------



## midgeman

Nice shots. Really digging #1. You should post up an intro thread with your gear, experience, etc...

I've never been to the 24 at Daytona, but it's on my bucket list. Do you live near there?


----------



## pdq5oh

lambertpix said:


> Too busy panning to hit the damned brakes....
> 
> 
> 
> 
> on Flickr



That's good. The front brake is locked up but not the rear. Note to driver: Put more brake bias to the rear.


----------



## TheGiant

midgeman said:


> Nice shots. Really digging #1. You should post up an intro thread with your gear, experience, etc...
> 
> I've never been to the 24 at Daytona, but it's on my bucket list. Do you live near there?



Thanks! I will post an intro, just saw this thread first and had to share 

I live near Daytona. Looking forward to the (former) LMP2 cars tearing up the track this year!


----------



## lambertpix

TheGiant said:


> midgeman said:
> 
> 
> 
> Nice shots. Really digging #1. You should post up an intro thread with your gear, experience, etc...
> 
> I've never been to the 24 at Daytona, but it's on my bucket list. Do you live near there?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Thanks! I will post an intro, just saw this thread first and had to share
> 
> I live near Daytona. Looking forward to the (former) LMP2 cars tearing up the track this year!
Click to expand...


Agreed -- those are some sweet shots.  I really want to get to an eduro and get some of those day-into-night shots.  Daytona always seems to have a marvelous sunset for the 24, too.


----------



## lambertpix

pdq5oh said:


> lambertpix said:
> 
> 
> 
> Too busy panning to hit the damned brakes....
> 
> 
> on Flickr
> 
> 
> 
> 
> That's good. The front brake is locked up but not the rear. Note to driver: Put more brake bias to the rear.
Click to expand...


Thanks -- I'm slightly out of my element here, as I don't know what sort of setup / proportioning valve / etc., they were running, but I wouldn't be surprised if they weren't set up to optimize for a higher-speed braking zone.  This is right after the cars came off Hullman Blvd - the 2nd-highest speed area of the track, I believe, so even if they were fiddling with the bias for different parts of the track, I doubt the driver would have had a chance to make a change by this turn.  Again, I'm not 100% certain of this, but if they were getting any amount of front downforce, it would have given them more front grip in those high-speed braking areas, I believe.

He also got caught out a little by action 2-3 cars further ahead of this shot (notice all the dust that's been kicked up), so he just got accordioned a little bit.  Fun shot, though!


----------



## eRoD

One of my favorite shots... Formula D at Palm Beach International Raceway



Canon 7D w/ 70-200 2.8L
ISO 160
200mm
f/16
1/60sec

Here's another I did at Homestead-Miami Speedway


ISO 500
98m
f/4
1/100sec

After reading through some of the comments, it looks like I have speed up the shutter speed just a little. Majority of my panning shots are blurred on the back side of my subjects. But I'm also not using any tripod or monopod.

I too will be at Rolex 24, can't wait!


----------



## TheGiant

cool! Will you be credentialed or shooting from the stands?


----------



## midgeman

lambertpix said:


> ...I really want to get to an eduro and get some of those day-into-night shots. Daytona always seems to have a marvelous sunset for the 24, too.



This is the main reason I want to go to Petit. Glowing brakes, exhaust backfire, beautiful twilight tones... Maybe they'll run to sunset at the Mitty. One can hope.





eRoD said:


> After reading through some of the comments, it looks like I have speed up the shutter speed just a little. Majority of my panning shots are blurred on the back side of my subjects. But I'm also not using any tripod or monopod.



I don't think there is anything wrong with your SS. That is just what happens with panning combined with SS and the angle at which you're shooting the car. Those are good just the way they are. It is possible to get the entire car "crisp" even at very slow SS from a side on profile. A monopod won't really change that.


----------



## eRoD

TheGiant said:


> cool! Will you be credentialed or shooting from the stands?



I wish I had press access/passes... Unfortunately I'll be shooting from the stands, I also have garage access and something called FANZONE. Since I've never been to a Rolex 24 event I have no idea how the access works.

When I worked for the Sprint Car series #30 race team at Homestead I had "hot" passes, I had access to everything except press areas, even during the race. Hopefully the infield will be open to walk around as the race is going on. Then I'll be able to hunt for a good spot. 

How was it last time you went? Anyone else have any idea how it works at Daytona?



midgeman said:


> I don't think there is anything wrong with your SS. That is just what happens with panning combined with SS and the angle at which you're shooting the car. Those are good just the way they are. It is possible to get the entire car "crisp" even at very slow SS from a side on profile. A monopod won't really change that.



Thanks! Those crisp pictures made my jaw dropped!


----------



## brian_f2.8

I'll be shooting the Rolex 24 and Daytona 500. Looking forward to it. Never shot a 24 hour race. Longest I ever shot was Sebring. 

The Daytona 500 is well, THE DAYTONA 500!


----------



## TheGiant

eRoD said:


> TheGiant said:
> 
> 
> 
> cool! Will you be credentialed or shooting from the stands?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I wish I had press access/passes... Unfortunately I'll be shooting from the stands, I also have garage access and something called FANZONE. Since I've never been to a Rolex 24 event I have no idea how the access works.
> 
> When I worked for the Sprint Car series #30 race team at Homestead I had "hot" passes, I had access to everything except press areas, even during the race. Hopefully the infield will be open to walk around as the race is going on. Then I'll be able to hunt for a good spot.
> 
> How was it last time you went? Anyone else have any idea how it works at Daytona?
Click to expand...


Thats the same pass I have as well. You will be able to go almost anywhere in the infield. Garage passes will put you right next to the crews when they bring broken cars to the garage to repair. Fanzone is basically just outdoor tables and a bar/restaurant. Overpriced as expected... They do have a huge jumbotron of the race though which is nice.

There is a 6' chain-link fence between turn 4 & 5 that is a great place to shoot from. There are many holes that have been bent open to stick a lens through, or you can do like most people do and bring a ladder. I usually bring a 4' stepladder and shoot right over the fence. It's totally allowed.

Turn 6 is a great spot with a few bleachers and more fencing. I usually find an RV spot and shoot from there at night. For banking shots, I recommend looking between turns 8 & 9. Love this spot at night especially with a low power flash to illuminate the reflective car stickers.

Im on an iPad and can't figure out how to post pics, but here's a link to the track map: Imageaytona.jpg - Trackpedia

I look forward to seeing your shots


----------



## TheGiant

Also, sometime around 10 or so on Saturday night they will shoot fireworks near turn 10. I have yet to get a good angle to pan a car and get a pyro burst but I will definitely be trying again this year.


----------



## eRoD

brian_f2.8 said:


> I'll be shooting the Rolex 24 and Daytona 500. Looking forward to it. Never shot a 24 hour race. Longest I ever shot was Sebring.
> 
> The Daytona 500 is well, THE DAYTONA 500!



This will be my first 24hr race.

For the Daytona 500 I'll be working for the same team again and they even added another car... so I'll be running around shooting for both teams. All access! I'm really excited.



TheGiant said:


> Thats the same pass I have as well. You will be able to go almost anywhere in the infield. Garage passes will put you right next to the crews when they bring broken cars to the garage to repair. Fanzone is basically just outdoor tables and a bar/restaurant. Overpriced as expected... They do have a huge jumbotron of the race though which is nice.
> 
> There is a 6' chain-link fence between turn 4 & 5 that is a great place to shoot from. There are many holes that have been bent open to stick a lens through, or you can do like most people do and bring a ladder. I usually bring a 4' stepladder and shoot right over the fence. It's totally allowed.
> 
> Turn 6 is a great spot with a few bleachers and more fencing. I usually find an RV spot and shoot from there at night. For banking shots, I recommend looking between turns 8 & 9. Love this spot at night especially with a low power flash to illuminate the reflective car stickers.
> 
> Im on an iPad and can't figure out how to post pics, but here's a link to the track map: Imageaytona.jpg - Trackpedia
> 
> I look forward to seeing your shots
> 
> Also, sometime around 10 or so on Saturday night they will shoot fireworks near turn 10. I have yet to get a good angle to pan a car and get a pyro burst but I will definitely be trying again this year.[/



Thanks man! This will be a fun few days!


----------



## brian_f2.8

Nice, which teams are you shooting for?


----------



## eRoD

brian_f2.8 said:


> Nice, which teams are you shooting for?



Same team #30 race car and another car. I'll get full details of the assignment they day before.


----------



## eRoD

Here's another panning shot from Formula D



Canon w/ 70-200mm 2.8L
ISO 100
200mm
f/14
1/60sec


----------



## Aakajx

Some nice shots  . I wish I practiced this on the weekend just gone


----------



## a_auger

Here are some of my first attempts at panning. Taken last summer during the Bagotville International Air Show with my old Canon T3 and the rather crappy Canon 75-300 that I have now replaced. That last pic with the stuntplane was taken at 1/320, he gas going FAST! Not too shabby for a first time, but if I have the chance to get more airshow pics in the future, I'm sure I'll get better results...


----------



## lambertpix

a_auger said:


> Here are some of my first attempts at panning. Taken last summer during the Bagotville International Air Show...



Nice job!  I saw Shockwave at Airventure this year -- they did the daytime show, and a night show, too (really difficult to photograph moving planes at night, btw).




IMG_0410.jpg by lambertpix, on Flickr


----------



## Roba

Had a chance to practice my panninig and slower SS at the weekend, and C+C welcome.
I got from 1/250-1/160and down to 1/125.





















Rob


----------



## DBA

The event this past weekend had a good spot for some panning shots. 1/60 with a little fill flash.


----------



## midgeman

First time shooting in the rain. 




'Shine Country Classic - 24 Hours of LeMons by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr


----------



## Rags

Jeeze, that's a good looking LeMon. ... 

I shot that event at Sonoma Raceway and they were pretty bad..

Glares tough, but I like the shot

Viewers unfamiliar... this is the correct spelling... they're all lemons (not LeMans)

Rags


----------



## midgeman

Thanks Rags. I have since tried to reduce the glare some. Apparently one of the headlights wasn't firmly mounted, so it was pointing directly into the camera. 

There was a pretty large mix of cars ranging between junkyard special and budget racer. It made for an interesting watch. A few more photos can be found in my thread here: http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/photojournalism-sports-gallery/351823-24-hours-lemons.html


----------



## Braineack

I tried vertical panning on some LeMons cars at a 24hr:


----------



## Rags

Verticle doesn't work for me

You might be better in taking a infocus car shot separating it in PS flip the back @ 90 apply ps motion blur - return back & and reassemble

Heathy to experiment

Rags


----------



## Braineack

Had I shot them in vertical format, and had a much longer shutter speed, the result might have been interesting.   I did these over a year ago.


----------



## v4forlife

Round the outside by Wil Collins, on Flickr




51 by Wil Collins, on Flickr


----------



## ratssass

Braineack said:


> Had I shot them in vertical format, and had a much longer shutter speed, the result might have been interesting.   I did these over a year ago.



I'd be interested to see that,if you have the opportunity..


----------



## midgeman

Another shot from the LeMons race. 

1/8
f/16
50mm




'Shine Country Classic - 24 Hours of LeMons by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr


----------



## midgeman




----------



## petrochemist

Great thread with loads of cracking posts!
Here are a few of my favorites (I'll limit it to one of each class, planes, boats, cars & bikes):
















Now I really must get sorted for the British Touring Cars tomorrow...


----------



## v4forlife

Not a fan of the larger motorsport events, well not to visit anyway. You stay in one place, limited access to everywhere..I am photographing Team Army in an endurance motorcycle series at the moment, and I get full access to everywhere I want to go. Plus the racing is just as good. But having said that, have fun bud.


----------



## petrochemist

Thanks, fortunately with pit lane passes our access should be reasonable 
Not that you can see much of the track from the pits at Brands Hatch, but the inside of the hairpin generally works out pretty go for track shots.
I have to admit I find bikes better for photography, but I can't currently get passes for them, and even when I was working with the superbikes I only had a paddock pass.


----------



## PropilotBW

Man, a lot of cool photos here!


----------



## petrochemist

I ended up being too close to the action to use my DSLR effectively. I'd only brought the 150-500 lens for it so I could play with Infrared too with out overloading myself. At the hairpin the 150 couldn't get both wheels in for any of the cars Got some OK shots of the drivers but with no background they could have been parked. 




Cleo driver by Analyst 1, on Flickr

The panned IR shots worked out OK fortunately:





Andrew Jordan - Infra red panning by Analyst 1, on Flickr




IR BTCC - Neal by Analyst 1, on Flickr


----------



## 90foxbox

First real crack at panning. 




IMG_3485 by Mikel Novack Photos, on Flickr




IMG_3207 by Mikel Novack Photos, on Flickr


----------



## midgeman

Boogity boogity boogity.


----------



## TheNevadanStig

I have yet to attempt panning, but with the racing season starting here soon, I'm going to be taking lots of shots when I'm not actually in a car. What do you guys do for these? Single focus point on a single part of the cars as it goes by with you tracking it?


----------



## midgeman

I pre-focus on a single point where the car will be in my composition. So, pre-focus, wait for car, pan car as it enters my planned composition, snap and repeat. People probably have all kinds of different techniques but that works best for me... I would suggest starting around 1/100ish depending on how fast the cars will be and work your way down from there.


----------



## 90foxbox

TheNevadanStig said:


> I have yet to attempt panning, but with the racing season starting here soon, I'm going to be taking lots of shots when I'm not actually in a car. What do you guys do for these? Single focus point on a single part of the cars as it goes by with you tracking it?



For mine I just used AI Servo on my 6D. I think most of mine were shot at like 1/30th. Cars were all doing under 50mph.


----------



## lambertpix

TheNevadanStig said:


> I have yet to attempt panning, but with the racing season starting here soon, I'm going to be taking lots of shots when I'm not actually in a car. What do you guys do for these? Single focus point on a single part of the cars as it goes by with you tracking it?



I typically use AI Servo.  If you find the camera hunting while you're panning, the pre-focus technique midgeman mentioned works pretty well, too.


----------



## v4forlife

AI servo as well, but I have transferred all AF functions to the AF button on the back, so half pressing the shutter does nothing.


----------



## midgeman

My latest from this Saturday at the best short track in North America. 50mm, 1/25 SS


----------



## bribrius

wow. that is some really good panning.


----------



## rcjoe

still learning....


DP racing by J.Damian_003, on Flickr


----------



## nzmacro

These are all excellent in this thread, not easy to get right at all. Amazed at some of the slow shutter speeds in here, impressive. I'm generally going the other way, so a few things in here I'll certainly give a try next shoot.

All the best and just great to see.

Danny.


----------



## Hannu

Hi all, new in this forum. Hoping to have fun, learn and contribute. Here my first contribution. Hope you like it!




1992 Deltona por Hannu*, en Flickr

Cheers!


----------



## 90foxbox

Gave panning another crack this past weekend while in the stands of the Grudge Inc event at Milan Dragway.

Didn't realize when I shot my AutoX event that I had the lens on the wrong OS setting. 

I didn't shoot for too long as I was there just to enjoy the event but I got two solid keepers IMO.




IMG_4102 by Mikel Novack Photos, on Flickr




IMG_4093 by Mikel Novack Photos, on Flickr

This one is cool but not sharp at all and there's a guy in the way.



IMG_4060 by Mikel Novack Photos, on Flickr


----------



## midgeman

1/40 @ 300mm


1993 Porsche 964 Turbo S by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr


1/30 @ 18mm


Porsche vs Jaguar by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr


----------



## midgeman

Not a lot of action in this thread lately... pun intended. 

Too bad I was locked at 400mm, 1/80 SS


Binning it - 1975 Jagermeister Porsche 911 RSR by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr


----------



## lambertpix

Oversteer: when you bury yourself in the kitty litter a$$-end first.   Good shot - I love the cloud around the rears -- still trying to save it!


----------



## midgeman

I was lucky enough to get the entire sequence I only wish that I wasn't zoomed in so far.
He actually tried driving out of the gravel... not gonna happen. That wasn't the only wreck of the weekend either.


----------



## lambertpix

midgeman said:


> I was lucky enough to get the entire sequence I only wish that I wasn't zoomed in so far.
> He actually tried driving out of the gravel... not gonna happen. That wasn't the only wreck of the weekend either.



Torque:  How fast you bury your wheels once you're in the kitty litter.   ;-)

Physics of Racing T-Shirt | Winding Road Racing


----------



## skwty

Spring Vintage event at Road America last weekend.  This is one of my favorites from the 100's that I shot.  AMA Super Bikes coming up very soon!  Cannot wait!


----------



## lambertpix

skwty said:


> View attachment 74664
> Spring Vintage event at Road America last weekend.  This is one of my favorites from the 100's that I shot.  AMA Super Bikes coming up very soon!  Cannot wait!



Nice -- RA is still my favorite track.  So many good fan-accessible shooting spots, and beautiful terrain.  I'm hoping to make it up there for the Tudor weekend.


----------



## midgeman

Recent favorite. 

1/60, 390mm, Road Atlanta. 


Like Lightning by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr


----------



## dvizer

First post to the forums, but I attended Formula D in Atlanta a few weeks ago and wanted to share.  C & C welcome.


----------



## lambertpix

dvizer said:


> First post to the forums, but I attended Formula D in Atlanta a few weeks ago and wanted to share.  C & C welcome.
> View attachment 76048



Nice job - keep posting!   ;-)


----------



## skwty

AMAs are over and I finally finished going through the hundreds of shots that I took..here are a couple panning shots that I liked:

1.


AMA-1_193 by sukosaki, on Flickr

2.


ama-3-supersport_067 by sukosaki, on Flickr

3.


ama-2_060 by sukosaki, on Flickr

4.


ama-2_310 by sukosaki, on Flickr

5.


ama-2_595 by sukosaki, on Flickr

6.


AMA-1_205 by sukosaki, on Flickr

7.


AMA-1_200 by sukosaki, on Flickr

8.


AMA-1_207 by sukosaki, on Flickr


----------



## Wozza

Gee haven't been to a motorsport event for some months, which is a shame as it's my favourite thing to shoot. Here's a couple from that one anyway...





Escort Pan by Wozza_NZ, on Flickr





Rally Starlet by Wozza_NZ, on Flickr


----------



## lambertpix

Here are a couple from a little dragstrip near here on Friday night.  First time at a drag race -- it proved fairly challenging as the light faded, but there were one or two that I wound up liking.



IMG_9801.jpg by lambertpix, on Flickr

Not the most outstanding panning job, but the setting sun produced some cool lighting for a while:



IMG_9457.jpg by lambertpix, on Flickr

Sadly, one of the better panning shots, but I framed just a little too tightly:



IMG_9589.jpg by lambertpix, on Flickr

Anywho, it was good practice -- we're getting into the thick of racing season around here now!


----------



## midgeman

You had some nice light there, Lambert. I actually think 2 is the coolest one. As for 3, I hate when that happens. Solid pan but clip the car...

Here are a few from a drag race I attended last weekend. 

1/50, 400mm


Nostalgic Drag Racing by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr

1/15, 18mm


Nostalgic Drag Racing by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr

1/50, 320mm


Nostalgic Drag Racing by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr


----------



## lambertpix

Here's one from Mid Ohio this weekend -- there are a few with slower shutter speeds, but I thought this was a good start.



IMG_6594.jpg by lambertpix, on Flickr


----------



## TheNevadanStig

From the watercross event this weekend. Definitley a challenge panning a jet ski as they bounce around pretty good.



349 by TheNevadanStig, on Flickr



344 by TheNevadanStig, on Flickr



336 by TheNevadanStig, on Flickr



321 by TheNevadanStig, on Flickr



313 by TheNevadanStig, on Flickr


----------



## lambertpix

Here's one at 1//50 -- not quite as razor-sharp as some of my faster ones, but it's decent, I think:



IMG_3624.jpg by lambertpix, on Flickr


----------



## ShaneF

Still working on my technique 1/100


----------



## lambertpix

Mid Ohio vintage bikes:



IMG_7536.jpg by lambertpix, on Flickr


----------



## petrochemist

Here's one of he many I took last weekend at the British Grand Prix:


Ferrari  F1 2014 side by Analyst 1, on Flickr


----------



## BananaRepublic

Wozza! what shutter speed do you use for those type of shots and how far back are you from the car, what lense are you using there. I never seem to get more than a few right.


----------



## tecboy

FIM SuperBike World Championship 2014


----------



## midgeman

BananaRepublic said:


> Wozza! what shutter speed do you use for those type of shots and how far back are you from the car, what lense are you using there. I never seem to get more than a few right.



A slow one. It depends on the speed and distance from the moving object that determines what SS to use. Starting around something like 1/150 is ok, then slow it down to see what the results yield. 

Most motorsports require a long lens, at least 300mm, but it depends on the desired results. Panning can be done with any lens, wide angle or telephoto. Most of the shots in this thread are probably taken around 200 to 300 as a guess from the spectator areas. Getting closer to the subject is almost always better. 

Panning is a technique that will never yield a 100% keeper rate. It requires a lot of practice and the slower the SS gets the less keepers there will be.


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## petrochemist

BananaRepublic said:


> Wozza! what shutter speed do you use for those type of shots and how far back are you from the car, what lense are you using there. I never seem to get more than a few right.



My Grand Prix panning shots were taken at between 1/180s & 1/50s. 
Mainly at around 300mm (450mm EFL) and at least a fifth of them have been deleted even though I usually keep ones that are nearly there. Camera shake was more of a problem for the few shots I tried at 400-500mm (600-750mm EFL) but this may have been down to the less predictable route the cars took in that section of track as much as anything.
IIRC the best shots at 1/50s & 1/90s looked OK on the cameras screen, but on the computer screen there not quite sharp. Around 1% of those at 1/125s still look reasonably sharp at full size which is a big improvement on my normal rate. Perhaps an effect of the free wine at lunchtime???
At the touring cars in April I found my 150-500 wasn't wide enough for my favorite spot (the inside of the hairpin) whilst at the powerboats a few years back I real wished by telescope (~1000-4000mm) could give sharp images when zoomed in - 1000mm was roughly 3 boat lengths at the nearest part of the circuit.

My work has include motorsport for nearly 20 years so I've had quite a bit of practice at panning - quite possibly well over 30,000 shots by now - I'm not sure the proportion that are 'right' has changed much in that time. To begin with it might have been 1 shot in 3-4 films feeling OK, but that was only looking at 6x4 prints so that standard of 'right' has probably changed!


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## BFiggy

Here's a few of mine. Shot at 1/80, 1/60, and 1/40...



Rosso Dino Enzo Ferrari by Axion23, on Flickr



Koenigsegg CCX by Axion23, on Flickr



Azure Blue McLaren P1 Driving by Axion23, on Flickr


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## Braineack

dvizer said:


> First post to the forums, but I attended Formula D in Atlanta a few weeks ago and wanted to share.  C & C welcome.
> View attachment 76048



that rx8 is my friend's new car.


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## midgeman

Braineack said:


> that rx8 is my friend's new car.



Does it still have a rotary? 


Classic livery... 1/25 @ 400mm


Snap Into A Slim-Jim by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr


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## Braineack

no, it's an LS1.


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## pdq5oh

The pics I posted were shot between 1/40 & 1/100.


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## midgeman

Braineack said:


> no, it's an LS1.



That's a shame. I'm not a purist or anything, but a little variety would be nice.


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## Braineack

midgeman said:


> Braineack said:
> 
> 
> 
> no, it's an LS1.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> That's a shame. I'm not a purist or anything, but a little variety would be nice.
Click to expand...


the car has to last more than a few boosted pulls.  The LS1 is a great motor, especially if you need torque to keep the car sideways.   It ends up in many race cars for a reason.


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## midgeman

Rotaries are race engines. They can handle the stress, just require a lot of cooling. Power can be had if desired. See ---> Mad Mike.

To me, the LS is the easy way out. And yes, there are a lot of them, hence my statement about wanting more variety.


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## lacogada

Enjoy looking at all the shots here and would like to learn more about panning.

Do not have race cars or motocross near me. Truck going approx 25 to 30 mph.

Lens 50mm 1.8  SS 1/50  F8  ISO 100

Seems the sharpest spot is the passenger door rear view mirror.

What would I need to do to get more of the truck focused ?


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## Braineack

dvizer said:


> First post to the forums, but I attended Formula D in Atlanta a few weeks ago and wanted to share.  C & C welcome.
> View attachment 76048



I just shared this with the driver of the Rx8 and he was pretty damn happy with it... (almost as much as his win in seattle)

keep posting!


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## BananaRepublic

I was just wondering about this image with respect to gauging how well or not I did. I think if there was more stuff in the background it would look better. I,ve done nothing other then convert to jpeg, which is not great.


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## kmaz89

From a drift event in PA this past spring


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## midgeman

lacogada said:


> Enjoy looking at all the shots here and would like to learn more about panning.
> 
> Do not have race cars or motocross near me. Truck going approx 25 to 30 mph.
> 
> Lens 50mm 1.8 SS 1/50 F8 ISO 100
> 
> Seems the sharpest spot is the passenger door rear view mirror.
> 
> What would I need to do to get more of the truck focused ?



Good panning technique. You are really nitpicking to suggest the sharpest part is the mirror (I agree), but overall it doesn't take away from the pan. In general, we want the front of the car to be the sharpest. To achieve this you would have needed to pan ever so slightly faster. Due to the nature of panning, it is often times impossible to get the entire car sharp. If the car is approaching/leaving at an angle to the camera, it will not entirely be in focus. Distance and SS will also have an affect.

Example (notice the rear of the car is blurry if enlarged):


Like Lightning by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr


In order for the entire car to be in focus, it must be exactly perpendicular to the camera. The slower the SS, the less likely the entire subject will be sharp. Both examples are taken at SS 1/60. 

Example (while not exactly perpendicular, it's close enough):


&#x27;Shine Country Classic - 24 Hours of LeMons by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr




BananaRepublic said:


> I was just wondering about this image with respect to gauging how well or not I did. I think if there was more stuff in the background it would look better. I,ve done nothing other then convert to jpeg, which is not great.



Looks good to me. I am not sure if more background would help, but a slower SS would help convey more motion. One thing though, the sky looks very odd. Was it overexposed and you tried to recover it?


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## midgeman

1/15, 260mm. Not entirely sharp, but I think it suits the artistic nature of the image. 


Legends (Explore) by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr


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## Braineack

DSC_9571-57 by The Braineack, on Flickr




DSC_0159-91 by The Braineack, on Flickr




DSC_9263-40 by The Braineack, on Flickr


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## ChaseH

Indy MotoGP 2014

Valentino Rossi





Yonny Hernandez





Andrea Iannone


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## lambertpix

One of the first from Road America -- 1/100, F/11 @ 150mm



IMG_9590.jpg by lambertpix, on Flickr


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## pdq5oh

From the Honda 200 at Mid Ohio. I was messing around with my Canon 55-250 STM lens and got this. I was very impressed with the IQ, for a $350. lens.



From the World Challenge Race at Mid Ohio.


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## lambertpix

1/60, f/11 @ 120mm:



IMG_9618.jpg by lambertpix, on Flickr


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## Braineack

#79 Panning by The Braineack, on Flickr

&#402;/5.6
_250.0 mm_
_1/80
 320
_


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## midgeman

Full set: Chasing the Dragon Hill Climb | Photography Forum

Canon t3, 1/15, kit lens at 18mm, f/3.5, iso100





Chasing the Dragon Hill Climb VII by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr


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## xzyragon

you guys have some amazing panning shots in here


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## krbimaging

Here are a few from this last weekend. I went to a Porsche Drivers Education (DE) and shot a few. Since I was positioned to Photograph in a turn I had my camera set at 1/60 through 1/100 Most of my shots I really tried to get the drivers in focus. Kind of like a Portrait shot. For the most part it's hit and miss at times.


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## lambertpix

krbimaging said:


> Here are a few from this last weekend. I went to a Porsche Drivers Education (DE) and shot a few. Since I was positioned to Photograph in a turn I had my camera set at 1/60 through 1/100 Most of my shots I really tried to get the drivers in focus. Kind of like a Portrait shot. For the most part it's hit and miss at times.



IME, 1/60 is mighty tough.  I like #6 -- the white GT3.  You're right -- when you can see the driver clearly, you're doing well.


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## Braineack

this is an old one I've always liked:






this was a tricky pan, only one really came out, but it's not as sharp on the rear as I'd like:





hmmmmmm


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## balthasarS

a few of my motorsport/panning pictures


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## midgeman

Both shot at 1/20 and 18mm.




Purple Haze by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr




Daunting Daytona. by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr


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## midgeman

1967 Porsche 907-LH by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr




1997 Porsche 993 RSR by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr




1984 Porsche 956C by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr


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## Msteelio91

Fantastic shots in here lately


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## nateridesbikes

Stingray by nateridesbikes, on Flickr




Corvette by nateridesbikes, on Flickr




Corvette by nateridesbikes, on Flickr


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## mingxuan

it is so good, that i like it.


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## Roba

Porsche 993 Ace!


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## midgeman

So Crispy. by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr




And boom goes the dynamite. by ImidgeryByKMidgett, on Flickr


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## yella81celica

Hello.
    This is my first post. Have been browsing the forum for a little while now.  Let me know what you think. I know I have a long way to go for getting better at panning with a moving subject. These two were the best ones I liked. I need to get back out to the local track again. Yes I know my watermark is in the middle, Id rather not argue about that please.


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## DBA

A couple from a week ago in Texas.


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## midgeman

Haven't been here in a while. Doesn't look like this thread has seen much action...
Here are some recent pans. I've got a bunch of new motorsport stuff on my Flickr.




Focus through the masses. by Kenneth  Midgett, on Flickr




At the limit. by Kenneth  Midgett, on Flickr




Venomous. by Kenneth  Midgett, on Flickr




And across the line! by Kenneth  Midgett, on Flickr


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## ratssass

...from last year,trying to re-master posting shots.


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## Braineack

pretty happy with this one today:




DSC_3990 by The Braineack, on Flickr


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## Watchful

Bring out yer dead!


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## Braineack

Watchful said:


> Bring out yer dead!



we bump this thread every start of a new season...


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## ratssass




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## petrochemist

A few from the weekend's BTCC round at Oulton Park:-

Possibly the sharpest panning I've managed;



Tordoff BTCC600 by Mike Kanssen, on Flickr

One with some nice reflections on the bodywork;



Porsche 23 by Mike Kanssen, on Flickr

And one where I used a Variable ND to reduce unwanted reflections;



Simpson BTCC 303 by Mike Kanssen, on Flickr

Not much time to explore other spots as I was working at the end of most sessions.


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## edouble

This past weekend NHRA race at Englishtown, NJ.


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## KmH

Nice shots.


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