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03/08/2005 02:27:52 AM · #1 |
Though I will probably regret this later it seemed like a fun idea to try as I go into a race weekend. I'm not a writer by any means so please cut me some slack. :)
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My life as a NASCAR photographer
As a Motorsports Photographer I wanted to share my experience shooting a NASCAR event. The NASCAR Nextel Cup teams will race on Sunday March 13, 2005 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, with the NASCAR Busch Series racing a support race on the Saturday before with additional World of Outlaw races both Thursday and Friday night. The following is a diary of sorts leading into the event weekend.
Months before the event started I started pounding the pavement looking for clients to shoot for. Going into the race weekend I have four (4) confirmed clients and three (3) potential clients. I also have a second list of clients that I will send photos to for them to review and possibly publish once the race is over.
Monday ¡V March 7, 2005:
As I made arrangements with clients I noted each person¡¦s request for a specific photo that they had in mind. Today I started putting this list in order to start making a plan that I will follow once the race starts. Using the list I will try to determine where I will start shooting from once the race starts and where I will be when the race ends.
After checking the weather for the weekend, I spent the morning confirming credentials and verifying the various methods that I will use to transmit photos to my clients. I have verified email addresses and FTP servers to make sure passwords are still correct and that servers are working as planned.
On top of the normal hectic weekend that one of these races brings, and just to torture myself a bit more¡K I ordered a new camera today for overnight delivery that I will take and hopefully use as my primary camera.
Tuesday ¡V March 8, 2005:
AS Jacko phrased it, after waiting like an impatient soon-to-be father, my new camera arrived early this morning. I will be taking my new 1Dmk2 to the races this weekend and hopefully using it as my primary camera with the 20D as my secondary camera. As situtations arise I will be switching off lenses as I see necessary. I have shot with two bodies before and I have already experienced the freedom that it gives me without limiting me to one specific lens.
The very first thing that I noticied about the new camera is that there are a bunch of buttons on it. Being a guy, I did not bother opening the instruction booklet and I dove right into testing features and settings that I know that I will use in the upcoming race. After spending a few minutes trying to figure out how to get the camera into Manual mode (which I did figure out by the way)... well, I have some reading to do tonight. I am still working full time in my real job until Wednesday when my vacation time kicks in, so I do not have a lot of time to play with the camera at work.
What free time I did have from work, I spent researching the driver appearance schedule. It appears that most drivers are doing their off-track appearances on Thursday which won't work for me (I will get to that on Thursday's entry) but there is one driver doing an appearance from 6pm to 8pm at the local Home Depot, so after work tomorrow I will head over there with my new camera.
For the remainder of the night, I will be reading the manual on the new camera and playing with various functions in an attempt to get familiar with it before all hell breaks out in a few days.
Tuesday ¡V March 8, 2005 (Late night):
You didn¡¦t think that I could end an evening that early did you? With tomorrow¡¦s first drivers appearance I am starting to list the equipment that I will use to shoot the upcoming event.
Since I have to leave right after work for the first driver¡¦s appearance tomorrow, I started thinking about what I will need to bring to work with me and what I will bring to the race. Since the drivers meeting has a more pressing importance, my thoughts are more geared to that.
Equipment that I will bring to the drivers appearance:
- Canon 1Dmk2 body
- 24-70m 2.8 lens
- 580ex flash
- Quantum Turbo Battery
Before tonight is over, I perform a quick equipment check on the items that I will bring tomorrow and verify everything is clean and operational.
Wednesday ¡V March 9, 2005:
After my 9-to-5 job today, I went over to the Home Depot where NASCAR Nextel Cup driver Tony Stewart and NASCAR Busch series driver J.J. Yeley were making an appearance and signing autographs. Talking to employees there, fans were starting to arrive and wait in line at 7am for Tony¡¦s 6-8pm appearance. I shot for approx 40 minutes and was back home by 7pm where I selected a few photos and sent them off to the host track of the race, the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
After I got home, I started packing everything that I will take to the track over the next four (4) days. This is not what I will be walking around with of course, that¡¦s another list.
The list of Equipment:
-Canon 20D w/grip
-Canon 1Dmk2
-15mm f2.8 Fisheye
-17-40mm f4 Wide Angle
-24-70mm f2.8
-70-200mm f2.8 IS
-400mm f5.6
-1.4x Tele Converter
-550ex Flash
-580ex Flash
-Quantum Turbo Battery Pack
-Battery Chargers
-Laptop with necessary hardware/software
-Misc. other junk (Lens Pen, Chap Stick, notepads, pens, business cards, etc¡K)
Now that I know what I will be bringing, I give all the equipment a final check... I verify that the front and rear elements are clean, check to see if sensors need cleaning or not, verify the compact flash cards are empty from anything that I may have been shooting at home or from another shoot.
When I first started shooting digital I got into a habit of setting up my cameras a certain way when I walk into an event. So as part of my routine I also set all my cameras to *my* default settings. I shoot manual 100% of time except for when shooting in the garage areas and when doing candid shots, so I don¡¦t bother pre-setting my shutter speed and aperature. But I do set my ISO to 100, set me color balance to Sunlight, Verify that I am shooting Large JPG in its maximum setting.
I also put all my batteries in the chargers even if I think they are charged or not and load the CF cards into the cameras.
..¡K And check weather one more time.
Photo's from the Home Depot driver's appearance.
Thursday ¡V March 10, 2005:
From here on out I will just be ¡§time stamping¡¨ my notes. With a possibly a short note at the beginning and/or end.
8:00am
After waking up, I eat breakfast and check the weather¡K.again. Double check all
batteries by throwing them all on the charger one more time, also run through a mental
checklist as I load my truck¡K did I forget anything? Oops¡K. forgot to pack some
cigars.
10:45am
Left for the track which is only 15 minutes away or so from my house
11:05am
Arrive at the track and pick up my credentials.
11:15am
Park truck and grab my walking around gear.
11:25am
Tried to check-in in the Photo Room but door is locked¡K looks like I¡¦m the first to arrive. I drop my lunch off in the Deadline Press Room.
11:30am
Walk around garage area while wasting some time talking to friends.
Noon
NASCAR Busch Series haulers enter the garage. Now since I have something to take pictures of, I wander up and down the garages taking candid shots of people.
1:00pm
Get my lunch and check Photo Room again. My mentor just arrived a few minutes ago, so we chat for a bit before I head back out into the garages.
1:30pm
Wander garages again taking more candids.
2:40pm
I get back in truck and drive around the various motor home lots looking for the more interesting NASCAR fans.
4:00pm
Go back to Photo Room and talk to my mentor some more and other photographers. Catch up on the latest news/gossip etc.
5:30pm
Head next door to the dirt track where the World of Outlaws car will be racing.
10:30pm
Racing is done for the day, I head back out to my truck.
10:45pm
While putting equipment away, a wind gust blows the key that locks my tonneau cover on my truck between the bed and cab, the key ends up sitting right on top of the gas tank¡K. Spent the next 15 minutes trying to knock it down to the ground so I can lock the cover on my truck.
11:00pm
Got key finally and I¡¦m able to leave the track.
11:40pm
Back at home, I charge batteries, download CF Cards, sort images, eat a little dinner, write this journal entry. Hopefully I¡¦m in bed by 12:30am.
Friday ¡V March 11, 2005:
6:00am ¡V Wakeup and get ready for track
7:20am ¡V Arrive at track
7:40am ¡V Park, walk to Photo Room and get setup
8:15am ¡V Photo meeting ¡V Photo Vest distribution (Which no one really wore by the way)
9:00am ¡V NASCAR Busch series practice, wander garages getting crew and driver shots
11:00am ¡V Back to Photo Room and download cards to laptop
11:20am ¡V Head to NASCAR Nextel Cup garage for Crew and driver shots
1:45pm ¡V Back to Photo Room for downloads, review photos, eat lunch
2:30pm ¡V Cover a Press Conference for NFL Hall of Famer and team owner Jim Kelly
3:10pm ¡V NASCAR Nextel Cup qualifying, head out to pit road and get photos of drivers and crew preparing the cars for qualification laps.
5:00pm ¡V Back to Photo Room, submit photos for deadline press stuff, review photos and pack up to leave to dirt traffic.
5:45pm ¡V Leave for the dirt track to shoot last day of World of Outlaws
6:00pm ¡V Get stuck in traffic.
Note : the dirt track is right next door¡K. Were talking, it¡¦s literaly just on the other side of the parking lot.
6:15pm ¡V Still in traffic
6:30pm ¡V Still in traffic ¡K I should have walked¡K
6:45pm ¡V Yup¡K still in traffic ¡K Did I mention that usually this is a 3 minutes drive, MAX!
7:00pm ¡V (SIGH) still in traffic
7:15pm ¡V STILL IN TRAFFIC DAMNIT!
7:30pm ¡V Finally at the dirt track! ¡K I¡¦m so upset at the ¡§rent-a-cops¡¨ for directing me way the hell of my way that I say the hell with it and I am driving my truck to the center of the dirt track¡K not going to walk it. So I flash my track media credential and they let me right in¡K just have to dodge the sprint cars between races.
11:00pm ¡V Done with the dirt track racers. Pack up and head home
11:15pm ¡V Briefly get stuck in traffic
11:45pm ¡V HOME¡K now to charge batteries, download pictures, clean equipment and grab a bite to eat.
1:00am ¡V Going to bed¡K.. have to be up at 6am to start this all over.
Saturday ¡V March 12, 2005:
6:00am ¡V Wakeup and get ready
7:15am ¡V Arrive at Track, park truck walk to Photo Room
8:15am ¡V Photo Meeting
¡K. This is the part where I have been standing out in the sun too long already over the last few days and my day today just ran together¡K. For the record it¡¦s 75 degrees here, yea 75 degrees may not sound like much but you try standing out in the sun carrying all this damn equipment for hours on end¡K ƺ
8:30am ¡V Go to Press Center for an announcement from Kyle Petty.
9:00am ¡V Head out to pit and track to shoot NASCAR Nextel Cup practice
10:15am ¡V Wander the Nextel Cup garage for candid photos
11:00am ¡V Go to Photo Room and download CF cards
11:15am ¡V Back to track for final Cup practice before the Busch race begins
Noon ¡V No lunch for me today ¡K head to start finish line for opening ceremonies and drivers introduction
1:10pm ¡V Start of the NASCAR Busch Series Race, the Sam¡¦s Town 300. I started ou on one end of pit lane, walked to other end stopping for photos and then to shoot on track action¡K back to other end of pit lane for Victory Lane photos at the end of the race.
4:00pm - ¡K. I think. Race is over, back to Photo Room to edit photos and transmit.
5:00pm ¡V Pack up and head to truck and then home
5:15pm ¡V Stuck in traffic
5:30pm ¡V Stuck in traffic ¡K race ended 1.5 hours ago ¡K man will tomorrow suck leaving the track
5:45pm ¡V Traffic clearing up and I¡¦m off!
6:10pm ¡V Home!
One more day to go and I still have a ton of editing and captioning to do on photos before Monday morning. I need photos on editors desks for when they come in on Monday morning¡K east coast time of course and since I live on the west coast ¡K long night for Jason.
Sunday â March 13, 2005:
5:30am â Wakeup and get ready
7:00am to 8:00am â Arrive at track and get setup in photo room
8:00am to 8:30am â Photo Meeting, get Victory Lane assignments and Pre-Race passes
8:30am to 10:45am â Wander garages for one last time and get candids. This is when it gets hard in a way, on one side of the coin the drivers and crew are a bit more relaxed because qualifying is over and thereâs nothing more to do except race⦠on the other side, this is the day that all the big sponsors bring tour groups into the garages so the garages are PACKED with people. Getting around can be difficult at any spot where the officials are doing the last pre-race inspections.
10:45am to 11:15am â Eat lunch in Photo Room
11:15am to 11:30am â Walk across infield and get to the roof where I will shoot my wide angle shot of the fly over.
11:30am to Noon â Wait for the flyover that will occur at 12:01.
Noon to 12:30pm â Shoot from roof top
12:30pm to 12:36 â Get shots from Start / Finish Line
12:36pm to 1:28pm â Shoot from the outside of turn #4
1:28pm to 2:04pm â Bum a ride on a golf cart from one of the other photographers back around track to the infield, download pictures real quick in the Photo Room then dash out to pit lane.
2:04pm to 3:25pm â Wander up and down pit lane getting pit stop shots, teams candids, etcâ¦
3:25pm to 4:14pm â Head to Victory Lane and shoot celebration shots, hat ceremony, etcâ¦
4:14pm to 6:30pm â Back in Photo Room to edit and transmit photos.
6:30pm â ITâs OVER!
Monday â March 14, 2005:
Iâm back to my ârealâ job. During any free time I edit photos for other magazines that arenât as deadline sensitive and try to take care of other potential clients that I have talked to during the race. I figure this will go on until Wednesday night.
Some pictures from Sunday's race can be seen here:
//www.jasonjenkins.com/gallery/05_nnc_vegas
Weird stats:
Pictures taken = 3,894 (not including ones that I edited in camera)
Weight of gear that I carried with me = 22 pounds
Hours Worked over 4 days = 89 hours approx. (track time, editing etc.)
Total time slept in those 4 days = 17 hours approx.
Cigars Smoked = 5
Would I do it again... hell yea!
The end ...
Message edited by author 2005-03-15 02:00:21. |
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03/08/2005 02:49:07 AM · #2 |
Very cool look into that world, Jason.
New camera? What'd you get?
(10D and 20D not enough? :p )
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03/08/2005 03:03:50 AM · #3 |
| Very interesting since I like NASCAR. Please post some pictures of the race for use to view. I like your setup on the corvette in the pictures you took using the setup. Good luck and happy shooting! |
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03/08/2005 05:43:19 AM · #4 |
Really cool! I havent yet been to a race but I will soon. My husband went last year to Bristol and used his HP camera, Pretty neat since he only points and shoots. Anyways very interesting hope you accomplish everything you have to get done.
Do you ever have help with carrying any equipment, camera bag, extra lense stuff, ect.. ?
Message edited by author 2005-03-08 05:43:36.
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03/08/2005 06:20:20 AM · #5 |
Excellent. I look forward to seeing the rest of this (and of course some photos at the end!).
Would you be able to expand on this bit? Who are these clients? How do you find them? How do you know they might be interested?
Originally posted by Jason:
Months before the event started I started pounding the pavement looking for clients to shoot for. Going into the race weekend I have four (4) confirmed clients and three (3) potential clients. I also have a second list of clients that I will send photos to for them to review and possibly publish once the race is over. |
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03/08/2005 08:01:12 AM · #6 |
I also look forward to hearing more...
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03/08/2005 10:56:14 AM · #7 |
This isn't part of the diary, just some back ground info.
I used to shoot motorsports back in 1995 to 1997. Mainly it was club stuff like the local corvette club, SCCA and other events of the same nature. I did shoot some 'pro' stuff but what I call event photography was my thing.
After taking some years off, and with the new digital SLR's, event photography became a lot easier to do and I decided to give it another try. This time I am older, more mature and a lot more serious about it. I started a small home based company a year ago, came up with a business plan and set goals for myself. Though I will still shoot club level events it's not my primary focus, I want to shoot pro drivers and sell back to race teams, sponsors and magazine.
For this race, I basically have three types of clients (at least this is the way that I see it):
1) A confirmed client who can get you access and has made a committment up front to buy from you.
2) A client that has expressed a strong interest but won't committ until after they see your work.
3) Clients that don't know your coming yet. :) These are publications/teams that don't even know you are out there, but once the event is over I will solicit photos to them.
For this specific race, I just went and researched what magazines would be interested in running photos from a NASCAR event and started showing them my portfolio and asked them if they needed a photographer for the event. Most never returned calls, some are interested but aren't or can't request a credential for me.
With help from my mentor I was able to secure credentials from one magazine and now that I have access, a few more people have stepped up and said that they would be interested. Weird how that worked out.
The magazines I am talking about are small outfits. Were not talking Sports Illustrated here, you probably won't even find 60%-70% of them at your news stand, these are regional magazines mostly.
Once something interesting happens, I'll take pics. I'm sure no one wants to see me cleaning equipment or sending E-mails out. LOL |
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03/08/2005 09:40:30 PM · #8 |
| * Updated first post with Tuesday's entry * |
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03/09/2005 03:02:17 AM · #9 |
| * edited original post for additional journal entries * |
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03/09/2005 05:38:13 AM · #10 |
Thanks for doing this. This is very cool. I shot a couple regional events last year, credentialed both times, though the first was a very small event and the second I'd made contact with a magazine with no solid commitment (had pics in GRM 3 months in a row). I'd love to get more into it this coming year, as I love the races, but it's taxing and not a whole lot of money for my time. Perhaps this can act as a bit of a tutorial for my summer race season :)
Dropping new tech into your lineup a few days before you shoot? Like to live dangerously, eh? From what I hear, that Mk2 will make a HUGE difference with its AF alone.
Thanks again and good luck.
Message edited by author 2005-03-09 05:39:25. |
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03/09/2005 09:36:37 AM · #11 |
it really is a button-fest isn't it ?
I found after about 20 minutes of playing it started to feel more natural though. I'm shooting something slightly more sedate than NASCAR at the weekend - rowing should give me an easy introduction to the AF characteristics. |
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03/09/2005 12:12:24 PM · #12 |
Jason, I've been taking pictures of Motorsports as a hobby & artistic expression since the late 60's... I love it! I look forward to seeing the results from this very well thought out and planned event. Iâm hoping supplement my retirement with Motorsports photography. I would be interested in sharing some marketing ideas with you.
A good friend and fellow DPC'er sent me this thread, it would be nice to get together with you should you get an opportunity to come to Infineon Raceway. I would be happy to provide you with a place to stay as I live 10 minutes from the track. I imagine that you saw the NASCAR photographer that got CLOBBERED a few races back... be sure to keep in mind if the car is getting bigger real quick ~ JUMP UP and Run!
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03/10/2005 01:33:37 AM · #13 |
Updated Journal with Wednesday's entry....
Hi Timothy, I saw the replay's on TV and photos on the websites, it was a bad situation. I still think shooting pro basketball is worse, I just read a story the other day where a guy broke his neck after a player plowed into him. The photographer was interviewed and he talked about early incidents with Shaq and now has a 10% loss in mobility in his wrist from it. I'll stick to NASCAR where I can stand behind a concrete barrier and a catch fence.
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03/10/2005 09:06:51 AM · #14 |
Jason, this is an interesting and fun thread. Please keep it going. I'll have some questions for you when it all over with.
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03/11/2005 03:00:25 AM · #15 |
| updated journal for Thursday.... from here on out you;ll have to excuse spelling and grammer errors. After a long day, I don't have much patience to make the journal look pretty. :) |
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03/12/2005 03:43:46 AM · #16 |
| Updated for Friday's entry. |
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03/12/2005 03:53:33 AM · #17 |
Wow looks like you are busy! How do you find time for here? Your doing a great job with the writing too, thanks for sharing it is very interesting.
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03/12/2005 09:35:30 AM · #18 |
I'm going to the race track with my camera today. I haven't had the opportunity to do this yet, so I hope to get some good photos. My local race track is one of the oldest in the country, and a lot of the past 'big name' drivers got their starts here...
//www.hickorymotorspeedway.com
They are having an open house event today. I don't think there is a race, but there will be some practice and various other things going on...
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03/12/2005 11:02:33 AM · #19 |
John, I've sorta been waiting for you to do yer stuff at a motorsports venue since I noted that you lived in the proximity of one of the sport's "historical" sites. I just didn't know if you had an interest.
I also am a fan of motorsports & its photography. |
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03/12/2005 11:06:11 AM · #20 |
Originally posted by C_Steve_G:
John, I've sorta been waiting for you to do yer stuff at a motorsports venue since I noted that you lived in the proximity of one of the sport's "historical" sites. I just didn't know if you had an interest.
I also am a fan of motorsports & its photography. |
The only motor sports i REALLY like is F1 racing, and I'm nowhere near one of those venues.. lol |
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03/12/2005 11:15:01 AM · #21 |
Originally posted by jmsetzler:
The only motor sports i REALLY like is F1 racing, and I'm nowhere near one of those venues.. lol |
Yeah, I'd like to be there when someone actually passes a competitor on the track for a significant position... Indianapolis can't be that far, yet it ain't Spa. Finances are, of course, an issue.
There are 19(!) F1 races this year!
Have fun today! |
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03/12/2005 06:05:05 PM · #22 |
I had a good time at the race track today... I hadn't been there in quite a while. The crowd was a little weak since it was just a practice session, but I had a good time anyway...
Hickory Motor Speedway (Panoramic 6 Shot Stitch)
Santa Clause Motorsports Photography
(Yes... this is the name of his business)
Tires have more than one use...
Irony at the Race Track
From the inside...
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03/12/2005 06:05:43 PM · #23 |
Originally posted by C_Steve_G:
There are 19(!) F1 races this year!
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But only one in the states :( |
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03/12/2005 07:32:15 PM · #24 |
Originally posted by jmsetzler:
Originally posted by C_Steve_G:
There are 19(!) F1 races this year!
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But only one in the states :( |
And it's only a couple hours from my house! :-)
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03/13/2005 03:10:35 AM · #25 |
| Saturday entry added......... |
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