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The Ford Mustang of Jeremy Cooke and Michael Dowd approaches Druids Bend, Brands Hatch, UK, in September 2015. Lens: Pentax DA 300mm f4...
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The Ford Mustang of Jeremy Cooke and Michael Dowd approaches Druids Bend, Brands Hatch, UK, in September 2015. Lens: Pentax DA 300mm f4
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Mar, 2017Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
The shot was taken on the approach to Druids Bend at Brands Hatch, Kent. It is one of Britain's best-known racing circuits, located about 25 miles south-east of central London.Time
Shot taken fairly late in the afternoon (circa 5pm), but the ambient light was less relevant than the Ford Mustang's flame-throwing routine. I suspect the car would have done exactly the same thing at 5am, if local noise restrictions didn't prevent the circuit being used at that time of day...Lighting
Nothing of great significance. I was shooting at f4.5, so almost wide open, but then I do that at most times of the day when photographing racing cars or bikes from a head-on angle. I like to reduce the depth of field and separate the subject from the background as much as possible. Although this was a late September afternoon in the UK, there was a reasonable amount of usable light. I had cranked up to 800 ISO, mind, to be on the safe side.Equipment
Pentax K-5 IIs with Pentax DA 300mm f4, hand-held. This was one of my last race meetings using a full Pentax set-up (I borrowed some Nikon gear very soon afterwards and found it suited my needs slightly better, in terms of focus speed and accuracy rather than IQ). I did retain some Pentax equipment, for the simple reason that I like it (particularly the K-5 IIs). I should also point out that I am regularly accredited to cover race meetings, so this was taken from in front of - rather than through - the debris fencing.Inspiration
The flames, pure and simple. They were extremely visible and the car was emitting them consistently, so I moved to an appropriate spot and kept an eye out for this Mustang every time it approached. I managed several similar photos, but like this one best.Editing
It's a battered old cliché, but I like to get things as close to correct as possible in the camera - mainly to save time. I sometimes use the 'autocorrect' button in PS Elements (I'm on PSE14 now, but can't recall which version I'd have been using in 2015). Often this gives the image a slight boost, but occasionally it makes things worse (to my eye, at least). Using the 300mm allows flexibility for cropping and composition, so I will have done some of that.In my camera bag
At the time I had Pentax K-3 and K-5 IIs, plus assorted lenses (Pentax 300mm f4, Tamron 70-200 f2.8 and Pentax 17-70mm f4). Today I carry Nikon D800 and D700, with Nikkor 300mm f4, Sigma 70-200mm f2.8 and Sigma 24-105mm f4. I use the latter quite a lot, because I like wider-angle shots that provide a sense of location. I am perplexed when I see photographers spending all day shooting with a 500mm lens at a photogenic circuit - there is much more to motor racing than simply the cars. I have a Manfrotto tripod I use for urban landscapes at night, but cameras, lenses, SD cards and spare batteries apart, my most important accessories are two Storm Jacket rain covers - light, space-efficient and very effective.Feedback
Keep your eyes open. Don't glue your finger to the shutter button as soon as cars hit the track - I only ever shoot one frame at a time, probably force of habit as my Pentax Spotmatic didn't have a motordrive back in 1977 - but watch them for a couple of laps to take heed of their body language. Are any of them emitting flames on the over-run? Do any of them lift an inside wheel turning into or exiting the corner? I'd like to think such details can create a more engaging image.
