Clif Loc: Central Ca.

Several years ago with film and a 300 mm lens I found that getting my tripod drag on pan adjusted to just a slight and smooth drag and the level of the tripod in agreement with the declining angle, not level, of Turn 7 at Laguna Secca I was able to get some very nice photos of the CanAm cars at about 130 MPH. I did not have a fence to contend with but the panning action would seem to blur out the fence. I think I just dated myself.

stereofool Loc: NC

Glider

WOW!!! Those are some awesome pictures 8-) !

Which turn were you stationed?

General Admission lets me move my chair around the track, but I can see a real advantage to being up high.

Thanks for your input!

gessman Loc: Colorado

Man, Steve, you really nailed that second shot - caught it in mid-air and made it look like it's standing still. :shock: :-)

DwsPV Loc: South Africa

Uum, the car is on a jack in the pits?

gessman Loc: Colorado

Aww, yer kiddin' me... :thumbup:

pauleveritt Loc: Erie, Colorado

Use a slower shutter speed to get some motion blur on the background. Go out to www.nikonrumors.com and search back a couple of months. They has a GREAT article on photographing racing and some crazy good examples of what can be done. Worth the time to look it up.

Dun1 Loc: Atlanta, GA

I shoot sports also, in many instances I have to shoot thru either a chain link fence, especially to get shots of the pitcher delivering the ball, the famous or infamous "bat on the ball". I shoot those shots primarily shot with a Canon 70-200 2.8 lens. I press the lens against the fence and find a spot inside that link to focus and and take the shots. Chain link of wired fencing is far more difficult to make this work vs some of the new non metal netting. I doubt you will find anything in use as a fence or barrier in auto racing other than real wired fencing.
Panning might be a great choice if you can focus and and get the focus to lock, the problem is panning thru the fence and links might blur the individual car you wish to capture.
You can also adjust you f stop to determine your the distances of the car your wish to shoot, the location you are allowed to shoot from.
In years past prime shooting for baseball was and is of course town the first and third baselines. I shoot high school baseball now and with metal bats in play and most of the pitchers who throw in the high seventies to mid eighties the speed that ball leaves the bat is blazing. So I have found that shooting thru the net at the backstop is easier than having an additional worry, being struck by a foul ball. So I move to the dug out to capture the batter, the pitcher side view, and of course the runners on the bases.
You also might attempt to move up higher to obtain a shot over the fence, you might get a far clearer shot and be able to pan a specific car and driver.
I you shoot in the AV mode, and increase your ISO until you can capture shots at no less than 1/500 if the cars are moving, higher if the shooting conditions will allow you to increase the ISO and and shutter speed without introducing noise. When you view the photos you don't have to dull them by using noise reduction software, so that the cars appear to look like the cars are Lego cars.
Here is a You Tibe vid by that might give you some additional tips on panning to get additional movement in your photos http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DjOy2hN5NI

pauleveritt Loc: Erie, Colorado

Welcome to Duck Dodger. It is NOT yet the 24 and 1/2 century but I do have a MUST read for auto photography for you:

http://nikonrumors.com/2013/09/28/guest-post-in-motion-the-art-of-drifting.aspx/

The article speaks for itself.

greg vescuso Loc: Ozark,Mo.

Don't know how you can shoot thru the fence at the speeds these cars are going. You can shoot over the fence but your vantage point will be too high most of the time.
Here are a few I took at the Indianapolis 500 in 2010 with a canon 40d and a Sigma 105mm 2.8 and a Sigma 150-500

186mm F/5.6 1/4000 ISO 400 " 190 mph"


105mm sigma F/4 1/3200 ISO400 "190mph"




500mm F/8 1/2500sec ISO 800