rally driving

[emmylou]

Hi, I have been asked to do a photography shoot at a car rally next week, I just wondered if anyone had any hints or tips, I have access to the pits, which is great, but its really composition Im having trouble with I need some ideas on how to make the pictures not just look like snaps!!! Im not being paid it is a gift for someone, but i still want to do a great job. Any links to good sites for ideas would be great, cos i cant find any i like thank you x

[veritasimagery]

Here's a great place to get ideas for dirt style rally.

Photo Gallery : Rallye-Info.com

If you are doing a road rally then just Google "Targa Road Rally" in the images window.


Kevin
Veritas Imagery NW

[RichardTaylor]

You may want to have a look at this series to see what can be achieved. There are 17 pages.

2011 Otago Classic Rally - Highlights - Ultimate and sports photography by Neil Gardner, Christchurch, NZ

Re composition.
I havn''t shot a rally however I have shot road racing,
You won't have any control; over the subject, however if you shoot a bit "loose" (in other words leave some space around the car) you have a bit of leeway to tidy up your composition when cropping.
Move around, try different viewpoints, don't just shoot close ups of the cars., show "cars in a scene" .
Take lots of memory cards and spare batteries.
When a car enters a scene never ever take your eye away from the viewfinder, just keep tracking the car. You never know what will happen.
Long lenses can make life a lot easier.
In low light do not be afraid to shoot at very high ISO.
Is the rally only on during the day or is it a day/night rally?

If shooting from non-spectator areas you may need a high visibility shirt or vest.

Lastly.
Think safety. No photograph is worth while getting killed or injured for.

[emmylou]

thank you so much for the info, the rally will be day and evening, with regards to uping the iso, i am using a sony a200 and previously when using iso any higher than 400, i get a huge amount of noise. is this a camera problem, maybe i need to upgrade, or is there a method of reducing noise. having seen others photos with high iso, some upto 1600, that are well within what i consider acceptable noise levels, there must be something affecting mine!!! Any help is appreciated and thanks for the links, i am off to check them out now x

[RichardTaylor]

I haven't used a Sony camera so I can't comment re noise for that camera.
I use a Canon 40D & 5D and don't have any problems at shooting ISO 3200, if need be, providing I so some noise reduction (usually selectively) when PPing.
I am happy using Topaz DeNoise, however I have heard good things about Noiuse Ninja.

Here are a couple of examples. (larger pics are available on my flickr stream)
All with a Canon 40D and with a lens with a maximum aperture of F5.6 (Canon 100-400)

(1) ISO 3200 (about 1/2 hour before dawn) Camera was on a mono pod.


Camera Canon EOS 40D
Exposure 0.01 sec (1/100)
Aperture f/4.5
Focal Length 100 mm
ISO Speed 3200
Exposure Bias 0 EV
Flash Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program Manual

(2) Again at ISO 3200 just before dawn.


Camera Canon EOS 40D
Exposure 0.003 sec (1/320)
Aperture f/5.6
Focal Length 235 mm
ISO Speed 3200
Exposure Bias 0 EV
Flash Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program Manual

One tip I did hear from a photographer who was shooting a lot of night rallying is that if you are using flash use second curtain synch.
------------------------------------

You may find this thread of interest (The Otago Rally photographer) as he explains how he took some of his pics.

Catch Fence Photos - Motor Sport Photography Forums • View topic - Please help - shooting a rally at night!