Caval Crash
The art of levitating a Pro Stock race car at 175 mph
The art of levitating a Pro Stock race car at 175 mph
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Jun, 2016Views
258
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Awards
Fall Award 2020
Absolute Masterpiece
Peer Award
Magnificent Capture
Superb Composition
Top Choice
Superior Skill
Outstanding Creativity
Virtuoso
All Star
Categories
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
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Behind The Lens
Location
I took this photo at Sydney Dragway, near Sydney, Australia.Time
This was taken at 4.33 pm in the month of March (similar to September in the northern hemisphere)Lighting
In this case the sun had gone down over the horizon and with the light getting low, I had to up the ISO to 800.Equipment
I used a Canon 7D body with 300mm EF f2.8L lens. When this lens came out it was touted as the sharpest in photography and it certainly proved to be in this case. I used an exposure of 1/500th @ f4. With the 7D's 1.6x crop factor this bought the actual lens length to 480mm.Inspiration
I was covering the race for an American web site and as just followed the car as it went down the track.Editing
No not really.In my camera bag
I have three Canon bodies - the 7D used here, a 7D2 and a 90D. I like the APS-c bodies as they give one additional focal length to telephoto lenses. When shooting motor-sports, like drag racing, you can never have too long a lens. I also have a Canon EF 8-15mm f4L fisheye, a 10-22mm EF-S f3.5-4.5 USM, a 28-70mm f2.8L, a 50mm f1.4 USM, a EF 70-200 f2.8 ISLII, an EF 85mm f1.8 USM and a 100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS USM zoom lens. I also have a Canon EF 2x and 1.4x extenders.Feedback
As I write this, it marks my 50th year of taking drag racing photos, so obviously experience as a lot to do with it. This sport is very camera friendly though as a photographer doesn't need a press pass to be on the start-line, they can simply go down to the spectator fence and take an equally good photo by shooting across track. To start with I suggest to put the sun at your back and test your own abilities by starting at a fast shutter speed like 1/1000th and slowly go down to a speed where you can safely pan like a 1/125th or 1/60th. The top end of the drag strip can see speeds in excess of 500 kph so when things go awry, as in this case, the quicker the shutter speed, the better the result will be. I hope this helps.
