Almost the mile high club.....

Almost the mile high club..... · 07:58 PM

I went to watch my nephew race his dirt bike last weekend. This is his first season racing. My sister tells me that he has improved with every race. I was shocked at how much air they got and how far they sailed. I had never been to a live motocross race before. Armed with my camera, and the knowledge that he only had 2 races (4 laps each), I tossed all my eggs into one basket /location. It is always funny when you find a new subject matter. There is always some sort of learning curve. This was the best of the 8 shots I took. As luck would have it the motocross season is over. But there is always next year....

Thanks for looking,

maxwell1295 · 10-19-2008, 08:48 PM

Nice! That'll have you itching for next year.....that's for sure.

Damn Brit · 10-19-2008, 09:21 PM

Good work, looks like you got through that steep learning curve ok.

metroeloise · 10-19-2008, 09:22 PM

There was a recent posting on taking pictures at a bike race. within, someone gave some pointers. Search for it; it might help. Talked about the relative advantage of being on the inside of a curve or outside....

Today as I was making my second pass through the Farmer's Market, separated by many hours, I felt a kinship with the shaman-hunter. Feeling the flow and being where the action was. It is all about the timing. Taking in the location, the flow, the angles all with the camera and lens strengths and limitations at hand.

Sure liking this. And that is a good picture. I liked scrolling down and having it go on and on...

roentarre · 10-19-2008, 10:41 PM

wow, what happened to the rider in the end?

spyglass · 10-20-2008, 01:23 AM

Originally posted by roentarre

wow, what happened to the rider in the end?

He landed the table top jump perfectly, on the down ramp, both wheels at the same time. These kids crack the throttle, hit the jump, get almost 4 meters above the table top, and sail for 30 meters (100ft), 14 & 15 years old - fearless.

Originally posted by metroeloise

There was a recent posting on taking pictures at a bike race. within, someone gave some pointers. Search for it; it might help. Talked about the relative advantage of being on the inside of a curve or outside....

Today as I was making my second pass through the Farmer's Market, separated by many hours, I felt a kinship with the shaman-hunter. Feeling the flow and being where the action was. It is all about the timing. Taking in the location, the flow, the angles all with the camera and lens strengths and limitations at hand.

Sure liking this. And that is a good picture. I liked scrolling down and having it go on and on...

I will have to check out a few motocross magazines, check out some sources, as you have suggested to see what shots people generally take and hopefuly learn a few tricks. I think the challenge of new shooting is alway appealing. Thanks

Originally posted by Damn Brit

Good work, looks like you got through that steep learning curve ok.

Thanks Damn Brit

Originally posted by maxwell1295

Nice! That'll have you itching for next year.....that's for sure.

Yes... but it doesn't seem fair to discover a bit of fun at the tail end. I definately will go and watch a several races next season. Thanks for looking.

tcdk · 10-20-2008, 01:25 AM

I'm not sure that Mile High Club is a fitting term to use here ;-) (unless you have some seriously interesting picture you are not showing...)

Mile high club - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

marlon · 10-20-2008, 04:41 AM

tcdk, haha, my thoughts exactly.
I was expecting something completely different.

Gooshin · 10-20-2008, 04:43 AM

heh... thank god i'm not the only one that thought of that.. hahahahah

spyglass · 10-20-2008, 10:00 AM

Yes I picked the thread title with a little smile (the same smile that a fisherman wears as he baits his hook - ha ha). I always enjoy peoples titles. The ones that could have a double meaning (and let you put your mind in the gutter first are fun).

Thanks for looking

tcdk · 10-20-2008, 01:16 PM

Nice pictures BTW. What was the shutter speed?

spyglass · 10-20-2008, 08:22 PM

If memory serves me right it was 1/1600 at f5.6 800 iso, K20 body, 16-50 lens. I would pull up the information and verify it but I have a teenager that is glued to the computer playing WOW (does anyone else have that problem???)
The rear tire was spinning quite fast and the one shot I took around 1/1000 of a second was a little blurred.

Thanks for looking.

tcdk · 10-20-2008, 11:11 PM

Originally posted by spyglass

If memory serves me right it was 1/1600 at f5.6 800 iso, K20 body, 16-50 lens. I would pull up the information and verify it but I have a teenager that is glued to the computer playing WOW (does anyone else have that problem???)
The rear tire was spinning quite fast and the one shot I took around 1/1000 of a second was a little blurred.

Good enough! Thanks.

Yeah, well, the oldest is five, so no WoW, but he has his games and they work best on my computer as it's the fastest.

marlon · 10-20-2008, 11:27 PM

Hehe, if you could capture the bike blurfree, but still have the wheel blur (perhaps some panning), damn, what a shot that would make!

spyglass · 10-21-2008, 12:35 AM

Originally posted by marlon

Hehe, if you could capture the bike blurfree, but still have the wheel blur (perhaps some panning), damn, what a shot that would make!

I did try a few panned shots, landscape orientation with slower shutter speeds. I was able to get the bike frozen, background blurred, but lighting was an issue. There was just a band / section of light where the bike would be properly illuminated. I seemed to either be catching one side or the other. As the number of laps / chances dwindled away (only had 8 laps to work with) I went with the best odds (and least moving parts - the most unreliable part being me - ha ha)
One thing I do believe is that commercial images / media condition us and shape our expectation as to what a subject generally looks like. Not saying that we would not recognize or appreciate a particular subject if it appeared differently (and sometimes those are the ones that hit the ball out of the park, refreshing, exciting, new) but rather the tried and true served up tends to meet with easy approval and instant recognition. I really need to see what motocross pictures should look like. I will have to raid my nephew's stash of magazines and thumb through them. I could make a quick check list of points to try.
I like your idea about showing some motion blur with the back, and maybe the front tires as it may give a sense of energy and motion to the shot.

Thank for the thoughts Marlon

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10-19-2008, 09:22 PM	#4
metroeloise Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Washington Posts: 958	So True. Every Event has its own best practices. There was a recent posting on taking pictures at a bike race. within, someone gave some pointers. Search for it; it might help. Talked about the relative advantage of being on the inside of a curve or outside.... Today as I was making my second pass through the Farmer's Market, separated by many hours, I felt a kinship with the shaman-hunter. Feeling the flow and being where the action was. It is all about the timing. Taking in the location, the flow, the angles all with the camera and lens strengths and limitations at hand. Sure liking this. And that is a good picture. I liked scrolling down and having it go on and on...

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10-19-2008, 08:48 PM	#2
maxwell1295 Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Long Island, New York Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,703	Nice! That'll have you itching for next year.....that's for sure.

10-19-2008, 09:21 PM	#3
Damn Brit Guest	Good work, looks like you got through that steep learning curve ok.

10-19-2008, 10:41 PM	#5
roentarre Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Melbourne, Australia Posts: 11,783	wow, what happened to the rider in the end?

10-20-2008, 01:23 AM	#6
spyglass Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: British Columbia, Canada Posts: 747 Original Poster	Originally posted by roentarre wow, what happened to the rider in the end? He landed the table top jump perfectly, on the down ramp, both wheels at the same time. These kids crack the throttle, hit the jump, get almost 4 meters above the table top, and sail for 30 meters (100ft), 14 & 15 years old - fearless. Originally posted by metroeloise There was a recent posting on taking pictures at a bike race. within, someone gave some pointers. Search for it; it might help. Talked about the relative advantage of being on the inside of a curve or outside.... Today as I was making my second pass through the Farmer's Market, separated by many hours, I felt a kinship with the shaman-hunter. Feeling the flow and being where the action was. It is all about the timing. Taking in the location, the flow, the angles all with the camera and lens strengths and limitations at hand. Sure liking this. And that is a good picture. I liked scrolling down and having it go on and on... I will have to check out a few motocross magazines, check out some sources, as you have suggested to see what shots people generally take and hopefuly learn a few tricks. I think the challenge of new shooting is alway appealing. Thanks Originally posted by Damn Brit Good work, looks like you got through that steep learning curve ok. Thanks Damn Brit Originally posted by maxwell1295 Nice! That'll have you itching for next year.....that's for sure. Yes... but it doesn't seem fair to discover a bit of fun at the tail end. I definately will go and watch a several races next season. Thanks for looking.

10-20-2008, 01:25 AM	#7
tcdk Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Copenhagen, Denmark Posts: 279	I'm not sure that Mile High Club is a fitting term to use here ;-) (unless you have some seriously interesting picture you are not showing...) Mile high club - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

10-20-2008, 04:41 AM	#8
marlon Inactive Account Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Cape Town, South Africa Posts: 232	tcdk, haha, my thoughts exactly. I was expecting something completely different.

10-20-2008, 04:43 AM	#9
Gooshin Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Toronto, the one in Canada. Posts: 5,610	heh... thank god i'm not the only one that thought of that.. hahahahah

10-20-2008, 10:00 AM	#10
spyglass Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: British Columbia, Canada Posts: 747 Original Poster	Yes I picked the thread title with a little smile (the same smile that a fisherman wears as he baits his hook - ha ha). I always enjoy peoples titles. The ones that could have a double meaning (and let you put your mind in the gutter first are fun). Thanks for looking

10-20-2008, 01:16 PM	#11
tcdk Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Copenhagen, Denmark Posts: 279	Nice pictures BTW. What was the shutter speed?

10-20-2008, 08:22 PM	#12
spyglass Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: British Columbia, Canada Posts: 747 Original Poster	If memory serves me right it was 1/1600 at f5.6 800 iso, K20 body, 16-50 lens. I would pull up the information and verify it but I have a teenager that is glued to the computer playing WOW (does anyone else have that problem???) The rear tire was spinning quite fast and the one shot I took around 1/1000 of a second was a little blurred. Thanks for looking.

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10-20-2008, 11:11 PM	#13
tcdk Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Copenhagen, Denmark Posts: 279	Originally posted by spyglass If memory serves me right it was 1/1600 at f5.6 800 iso, K20 body, 16-50 lens. I would pull up the information and verify it but I have a teenager that is glued to the computer playing WOW (does anyone else have that problem???) The rear tire was spinning quite fast and the one shot I took around 1/1000 of a second was a little blurred. Good enough! Thanks. Yeah, well, the oldest is five, so no WoW, but he has his games and they work best on my computer as it's the fastest.

10-20-2008, 11:27 PM	#14
marlon Inactive Account Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Cape Town, South Africa Posts: 232	Hehe, if you could capture the bike blurfree, but still have the wheel blur (perhaps some panning), damn, what a shot that would make!

10-21-2008, 12:35 AM	#15
spyglass Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: British Columbia, Canada Posts: 747 Original Poster	Originally posted by marlon Hehe, if you could capture the bike blurfree, but still have the wheel blur (perhaps some panning), damn, what a shot that would make! I did try a few panned shots, landscape orientation with slower shutter speeds. I was able to get the bike frozen, background blurred, but lighting was an issue. There was just a band / section of light where the bike would be properly illuminated. I seemed to either be catching one side or the other. As the number of laps / chances dwindled away (only had 8 laps to work with) I went with the best odds (and least moving parts - the most unreliable part being me - ha ha) One thing I do believe is that commercial images / media condition us and shape our expectation as to what a subject generally looks like. Not saying that we would not recognize or appreciate a particular subject if it appeared differently (and sometimes those are the ones that hit the ball out of the park, refreshing, exciting, new) but rather the tried and true served up tends to meet with easy approval and instant recognition. I really need to see what motocross pictures should look like. I will have to raid my nephew's stash of magazines and thumb through them. I could make a quick check list of points to try. I like your idea about showing some motion blur with the back, and maybe the front tires as it may give a sense of energy and motion to the shot. Thank for the thoughts Marlon