Shooting for SpeedDoug Sahlin captures high-octane action on the Sebring racetrack with the Tamron SP 70-200mm and AF28-300mm lenses. |
Article By Jennifer Gidman Images by Doug Sahlin |
Motorsports aren't for the faint of heart, but the 12-hour endurance competition held annually at Sebring International Raceway adds a whole new dimension to the racing circuit. Doug Sahlin and his partner, Roxanne Evans, attend the full-throttle tournament to capture shots on the straightaway and the tight corners, as well as to commune with other racing aficionados. "Sebring is our favorite racing event, and this year is the 60th anniversary, which makes it extra exciting," he says. |
During his yearly outing, Sahlin documents the on- and off-course activity with his Tamron SP 70-200mm F/2.8 and 28-300mm VC lenses. "Both lenses are excellent for racing photography," he says. "I like to tell a story from start to finish, which includes what happens even before the race begins. With the 28-300, for example, you can zoom out to 28mm for a shot of the crew in the pit getting a car ready, then zoom in to get detail shots, like the shot I took of a Peugeot™ driver through the window of his car. All professional athletes have some kind of ritual they engage in before getting ready for an event. You want to capture that moment when they're shutting everything else off and getting on their game face." |
Sahlin also gears up for the main event by shooting practices, warm-ups, and crowd action. "The Sebring event is very fan-friendly and accessible," Sahlin says. "If you keep your eyes open and don't allow yourself to get distracted by just focusing on getting to the grandstand, you'll get some great shots. One of my favorite images is one I took of the reflection of the crowd in a Patron™ tequila lady's sunglasses. Or, for example, last year at Sebring, the grand marshals were the drivers who won the event 40 or so years ago - if you did your homework beforehand, you could get pictures of your racing heroes." |
Preparing for a day at the track requires protection for both your equipment and yourself. "I always bring an extra battery and at least one extra memory card," Sahlin says. "I also recommend earplugs, sunscreen, and, if it's a long event like Sebring, a jacket in case it gets cold at night. Don't forget a notepad and a Sharpie for driver autographs if there are meet-and-greets." |
Also be ready for a race in the rain. "They usually won't cancel a race on a road course if it rains," Sahlin says. "I captured some images at Sebring of cars zipping past at 150 mph, throwing up huge rooster tails behind them. You just have to worry about covering your camera. There are special sleeves you can buy, or you can try to do what I did the first time I ran into that inclement weather at a race: I ran over to a concession stand and asked if I could use a garbage bag, which I turned into an impromptu rain cover." |
Safety is paramount for racing photography, although the sanctioning bodies typically do everything in their power to keep all spectators in the clear. "They have catch fencing and guardrails, and it's usually pretty safe - I've never personally been at an event where something bad has happened," Sahlin says. "But, as one driver once said, racecar driving is 95 percent boredom and 5 percent fright. A racecar driver takes the same line lap after lap - it's when you see those wheels turning the wrong way through your lens that your antenna goes up." |
The Main Event |
Planning out your positioning helps ensure the most compelling captures of the event. "If you're shooting a NASCAR™ race, for example, you're going to be in the grandstands, so you've got to figure out ahead of time what's going to be the optimum seat for the best photo opportunities," says Sahlin. "You can often check out Flickr or similar photo-sharing groups and view shots that people have taken at an event you're attending. You can look and say, 'OK, what turn was that shot taken at?' and then plan accordingly for your own day at the races." |
On a natural-terrain road course, positioning may differ. "There are grandstands on the turns, but the best way to photograph this type of race is to move from corner to corner," says Sahlin. "These racetracks often have spectator mounds, little piles of earth you can stand on so you can shoot down on the cars. With the right lens, like the 70-200 or 28-300, you can zoom in past the fences so the viewer can't even tell you were shooting from a spectator position." |
There are two basic types of main-event imagery to aim for at the track. "If a car is coming straight at you and you're between zero and 30 degrees from the car, your only chance to get a good image is to freeze the action," says Sahlin. "No camera in the world is going to have an autofocus system fast enough to keep up with that - the camera will just keep on hunting." |
Prefocusing is key to achieving this shot. "I'll generally find a spot on the guardrail or maybe a line on the track and prefocus on that in auto, then switch to manual and lock my focus," Sahlin says. "After that, it's simply anticipating: You've got to press the shutter a millisecond before the car actually gets to your prefocusing point and shoot at a fairly fast shutter speed - usually, 1/1250th of a second is plenty fast enough to take care of any operator movement and freeze the motion of the car." |
If the car is racing from left to right (or right to left) across your plane of vision, you need to use a slower shutter speed and pan with the car. "If you shoot at a fast shutter speed, the car, the background, and the wheels will all be frozen - it will look like the car is parked on the track," says Sahlin. "Instead, use a fairly slow shutter speed, maybe 1/125th to 1/160th of a second. Then make yourself like a human tripod: Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and cradle the underside of the lens with your left hand, with your right finger on the shutter button. Tuck your arms in at your side and point the camera straight at the spot where the car's going to be and prefocus on this spot. When the car comes into your plane of view, pivot your body at the waist toward that position. You're moving your camera so the car stays in the frame with you, then pressing the shutter button." |
Don't get discouraged if you don't get perfect shots right out of the gate. "You're going to get a lot of bad shots," says Sahlin. "People often look at their first couple of shots and think 'That looks horrible!' and stop shooting. Panning isn't natural at first: You might have a tendency to pan a little ahead of the car or a little behind it initially. But when you've done it enough times, you start to get the rhythm of the driver in the car and synchronize your motion with the motion of the car for a clear shot with a beautifully blurred background." |
One mistake photographers make when shooting races is that they stop panning as soon as they press the shutter button. "You have to follow through for just a millisecond to eliminate the possibility of the car not being tack-sharp," Sahlin says. "When your camera and your car are going at the same speed, you'll get all the details, like the drivers' names on the door and the colors on the helmet. But the wheels are rotating, so the wheels will be a blur, and the background is in motion relative to your camera, so the background will be a blur as well. You can practice this technique by photographing cars going down your street or down the highway." |
Finally, don't discount the inherent down-and-dirty aesthetics of the automotive action. "As time goes by in a longer event, the cars evolve from having that nice, shiny patina to picking up the dirt from the track, oil from other cars, maybe a little rubber donut on the side from where they got too close to each other," Sahlin explains. "Those types of shots simply add to the story you're telling of the entire race." |
To see more of Doug Sahlin's photos with his partner Roxanne Evans, check out their website at www.dougplusrox.com and their Facebook page. |