Motorsport Photography Tips..

[Justin]

I'm sure there are a few photography masters on here, just wondered if anyone could help me out.. i have a classic car/sprint day on sunday which i fancy goin to, but need some tips!?

the camera i will be using is a Sony DSC P200 as i cant afford an SLR just now, but wondered what settings i should be having my photos set at? like the ISO? Focus etc, for a taking moving shots..

the camera seems to have 4 photos taking settings, which are 'SCN' 'M' and 'P' and a picture of a camera, whats the difference with these? if anyone fancies helping me out, it would be much appreciated! cant find my manual

 

[Justin]

not the best pic, taken with my phone, but these are the settings i was on about!?

 

[Justin]

i take it using the multi burst function would be a good idea to catch a moving car?

 

[derv]

i have the same camera, if you are not sure on setting things manually then put it on the setting with the little green camera, thats automatic mode so its set exposure etc itself, best way to get decent shots is just to practice! lol, try getting the car you want in view and pan along with it, half press the shutter to get the focus then fully press when you are ready, hopefully you should get some good shots

 

[Justin]

ok thanks mate... so you think it would be better to use the automatic settings? or would it be better to put the settings in myself? heard the multi burst idea is good aswell?

 

[dk]

this might help with the losing manual issue

http://www.docs.sony.com/release/DSCP200.pdf

as for motorsport settings, on my slr i use 200 or 400 ISO and have it set on the shutter speed control which sets the appeture automatically.

If you want motion blur then i go for something like 1/250th of a second, if not and you want it crisp and like its standing still you need to go for something over 1/1000th second.

hope that helps

 

[Justin]

Spot on mate, thanks very much

 

[Jays172]

go stand on the motorway and practice

 

[al]

go stand on the motorway and practice

I did!

 

[ukaskew]

I'm using a regular camera with similar settings so hopefully I can help.

Basically for panning shots, set it with the manual settings to about 1/250th, then follow the car from the side and fire away at the desired position, best to turn on the burst mode to increase your chances of a good shot. Play around with the speeds until you get acceptable results basically. If you are struggling try varying the speed at which you pan, you usually find a balance eventually. Also remember to half-hold the button down whilst following the car to focus, it should lock focus quite nicely even though it's moving and allow a nice clear shot.

This is at 1/160th...

Compare this to this on automatic settings, which just captured the car frozen...

I manage to go to 1/50th although it becomes very hard work at these speeds, the results are slightly better though.

Above all it's just practice, so if you are talking about a one off event that you really want to get pics from it may be best to play it safe with regards to panning and not worry about it too much, as at the end of the day you will have lots of useless photos and a hopefully a few good ones but that's it.

As for head on shots, you will probably find you get acceptable results using automatic mode, however if you use manual speed bump it up to something like 1/1000 (or maybe even slightly higher if it's really sunny) and then just literally point and shoot, this is at 1/1300...

Page 24 of the manual posted earlier will show you how to adjust the shutter speed, I wouldn't worry about ISO or anything else for now. As for focus, the camera should be able to handle everything, I've left mine on auto before and it seemed to work really well.

 

[Rich]

For me for head on shots I dont like to use anything over 1/400 , 1/320 should still allow you to get crisp cars and show some wheel blur.

For side on pans as chris says 1/250 is a good starting point the more practice you get, you can go down to 1/160 and 1/100 or less and increase the background blur, just means you need to practice you techique and hold the camera steady. Best advice for pans is to follow through the camera even after the car has gone by.

As for ISO on a brighty day 100 should be fine on duller days bump it up so it is giving you and aperture value of at least f8 (providing this is where you camera/lens seems sharpest)

 

[ukaskew]

For me for head on shots I dont like to use anything over 1/400 , 1/320 should still allow you to get crisp cars and show some wheel blur.

Someone else has told me this before when I mentioned I was at 1/1000 or more. I've tryed it and still not managed to get a good shot at a slower speed though! I just get overexposed and/or blurry shots. Must try harder.

 

[Justin]

Thats spot on guys.. thanks alot

 

[Justin]

Can anyone tell me what Apeture Value is? and how should i have it set?

 

[Rich]

http://www.photoxels.com/tutorial_aperture.html

As to what to set it to depends on what you want your picture to look like.

f8 is a good choice to aim at for track work.

 

[Justin]

cheers Rich.. will have a look now

 

[jonnyboy]

I have an s9000 but I struggle to get the shutter speed down to 1/150 as the arpeture wont close enough

 

[Rich]

Increase the ISO?