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 06/02/2004 02:58:35 PM · #1
I've been shooting motocross pics for fun the last few months at the practices. There is normally a photographer at all the races that has a toy hauler with a quad, 3 computers and printers for ordering on the spot. Well, the track got ahold of my phone number and called me yesterday saying that the usual photographer won't be at the race this weekend and asked if I'd like to have the track! They just take 10% of my earnings for setting up a booth on vendor row.

I'm pretty excited about this, but nervous also - it's a night race and I've only photographed at the track during the day... I need lots of shutter for this type of shooting! Not to mention, I only have one computer and printer with limited power resources.

Anywho - just wanted to share my excitement. If anyone has suggestions, I'm open :-)

Oh, and to see some of my motocross pics go here or here.
 06/02/2004 03:05:42 PM · #2
Originally posted by tfaust:
Oh, and to see some of my motocross pics go here or here.


I like the one that says "proof" the best :)

jsut kiddin' ... congratulations and good luck (although, by the look of the shots - luck won't be a factor).
 06/02/2004 03:32:16 PM · #3
Way to go! Congratulations, and good luck. I'm sure you'll do well.
 06/02/2004 03:49:31 PM · #4
That's really great, Tina. Congrats! Can't wait to see those night shots posted! :o)
 06/02/2004 03:55:30 PM · #5
Congrats! Event photography can be a lot of fun, but hard work as well. I hope you have someone to man the computer while you're off shooting.

Enjoy it, it's still just photography!
 06/02/2004 04:02:37 PM · #6
Will you have an opportunity to "practice" shooting a night event at the track before the track is "yours"? If so, might not be a bad idea to do so to get a feel for how you'll have to change up your Digital Rebel settings, which will likely be quite a bit different from shooting during the day...
 06/02/2004 04:19:05 PM · #7
Echo Eddy's comment. You'll have to push the ISO to even have a chance unless they're using pretty strong floodlights - and if they are, you'll need to adjust the white-balance to compensate. So, it would be great to get some night shots in ahead of time so you can work out the settings you'll need. And if you don't have a fast, IS lens, you might want to see about renting ( or borrowing ) one, just for the event.
The pics you posted are awesome. Great work.
Good luck.

Ron
 06/02/2004 09:31:26 PM · #8
Thanks everyone for the comments and feedback.

Eddy/Ron - I won't have an opportunity to shoot beforehand at night. They only do races at night, practices are still during the day.

Two saving graces: Racing starts at 5:30pm and the sun sets around 7pm; and they are bringing in big flood lights.

Danny - My husband will be there with me, but the gal from the track said what the photographer normally does is shoot during the 1st set of moto's and during the second set (everybody races twice) sell the pictures.

I'm hoping I'll be able to keep the shutter fast enough at no more than ISO 400.

I do have the 100-400mm lens, but it's not incredibly fast. Depending on my shooting spots at the track, I sometimes use the longer focal lengths - it is an IS though. If I can get away with using just 100mm, I do have a fast prime.

The gal that called said the normal photographer might stop coming out to this track, so if I do well, I'm hoping she'll offer me 1st dibs at every race should that happen.
 06/06/2004 10:27:59 AM · #9
Ok, so the races went pretty well. It stayed light long enough to get through 16 out of the 20 motos. After dark I just wasn't getting the shutter speeds I needed, so instead of trying to get 1 good picture out of 10, I just went back to our booth and started downloading the pictures. I had people coming to me left and right. I was making print-on-site sales until my laptop battery died. We discovered our car power source wasn't strong enough to charge and use the laptop. That was a bummer because I had to turn people away, but they all said they would check the internet for their photos.

I have to give Canon kudos - I went out on a fully charged battery and came in hours later after shooting well over 900 pictures and still had some battery life left.

The temps were 108 (farenheit) in the shade and of course, there is no shade conveniently placed at all the photo spots. :-) The camera and lens still performed beautifully.

Thanks to everyone for your help in preparing for this event.

Message edited by author 2004-06-06 10:29:02.
 06/06/2004 10:30:46 AM · #10
Pictures???? :o)
 06/06/2004 10:43:52 AM · #11
Where are the...

Originally posted by laurielblack:
Pictures???? :o)


Can't wait to see...
 06/06/2004 10:47:37 AM · #12
so you used the 100-400?

EDIT: and the rebel cant shoot sports eh?

Message edited by author 2004-06-06 10:48:24.
 06/06/2004 10:50:21 AM · #13
Sounds like quite a production! Were you selling actual prints there (what kind?) or taking orders? Sounds like a portable power supply will be on your shopping list ...
 06/06/2004 11:17:04 AM · #14
Pictures are coming soon... I have lots to process yet, but I will post a link as soon as I get some online.

General - I was selling prints on-site using a Canon i80 printer. I sold 4x6, 5x7 and 8x10. The guy that is normally there for track photography only sells 8x10 on site and charges $5 more than I do. People really seemed to like having the choice of sizes and they liked the lower price! Hopefully I'll get some orders from the internet, but the majority of money is typically made on site. I have an adaptor that converts the power from the cigarette lighter to 110 volt, but turns out it wasn't high enough wattage - so we are going to look at our other options. If I can get the track to tell me that I'll be out there more often, I'll probably invest a little more into a power solution. I haven't wanted to spend a lot on doing this because the other guy gets first priority on track photography for races. Although, she did tell me that it sounds like he might not be coming out to this track much longer.
 06/06/2004 12:11:15 PM · #15
I loved your pics. Great qualaty. I'm shure you will be able to do a great work. I was just woundering if anyone that are seig this could help me in a doubt that I have: Since I began in photography, not long ago (a few month), my camera became my best friend and go with me everywere. My question is: if I take some shots of an sport event like this one or other, would I have to get autorization from the subject on the photo to use the photo, or can I use it (for putting in my web page for example, for portfolio) withought official permition?

Tanks in advance.
 06/06/2004 12:26:31 PM · #16
Originally posted by hsteg:
so you used the 100-400?

EDIT: and the rebel cant shoot sports eh?


Yep, I used the 100-400
06/06/2004 12:29:01 PM · #17
Originally posted by Nuno:
I loved your pics. Great qualaty. I'm shure you will be able to do a great work. I was just woundering if anyone that are seig this could help me in a doubt that I have: Since I began in photography, not long ago (a few month), my camera became my best friend and go with me everywere. My question is: if I take some shots of an sport event like this one or other, would I have to get autorization from the subject on the photo to use the photo, or can I use it (for putting in my web page for example, for portfolio) withought official permition?

Tanks in advance.


Thanks Nuno, I don't know the 'legal' answer to your question, so hopefully someone will be able to post it. I know I am able to post the pictures so people can look to buy them. If their faces show, I cannot use them for commercial purposes (advertising, as in web page, etc.) Fortunately in Motocross they wear helmets. :-)
 06/07/2004 12:56:41 AM · #18
Ok, here's a link to the pictures...

Comments/critiques wanted and appreciated. :-)

Enjoy!

Message edited by author 2004-06-07 00:57:07.
 06/07/2004 06:30:59 AM · #19
I got the impression that it was going to be dark out under stadium lighting of some sort. Awesome shots!!! You do all of us Rebel owners proud. :)

What lens do you use most often for these shots? Canon, Sigma, etc.?

Thanks for sharing! Hope you get your wish and become first prime for this track.
 06/07/2004 07:09:19 AM · #20
Hey Tina,
Great shots(of course)!
Question...did you collect sales tax...don't know about your states rules on that.
And how do you collect money? all cash? checks?
Do you have a credit card swipe?
Did you package the prints in some way?
Did you put anything on them to give your information(like stamp or sticker on the back)?

I am doing an art show saturday and any tips on selling would be great.

I would also love to set something up where I print out on the spot. How long did it take you from taking the pics to printed shots? Did you do any post processing?

edited because I can't seem to spell

Message edited by author 2004-06-07 07:09:54.
 06/07/2004 07:20:58 AM · #21
congratulations !! well done too.

sounds like fun. i used to go to alot of motocross events when i was younger, and usually had on track permission - since i was my buddies 'mechanic'.
06/07/2004 08:32:50 AM · #22
Just looked through all the shots! Great work!!! Love that last shot!
 06/07/2004 09:04:05 AM · #23
Thanks everyone! :-)

Bill - Thank You! :-) About 24 of the motos were in the dark under stadium lighting, but I was able to shoot the first 16 motos before the sun went down. After that I just wasn't getting the shutter speeds I needed (not to mention, because the lights were low, they were in just about every shot which ruined it) so I called it quits, went back to my booth and downloaded the photos to my laptop to start selling.

Terry - Thank you! :-) I just take sales tax out of the amount that I charge... it's easier than telling people I need $21.56 since they just walk up to a booth cash in hand and I don't want to worry about making change, etc. At the booth I take cash and checks. Our state has a great program through the Attorney General's office that if I get a bad check for a product or service, they take over and 1st threaten then prosecute and it doesn't cost me a penny. I don't have a credit card swipe right now. I will look into that once I know I'll be out there more often. I did just get an account with PhotoReflect. I don't want to rely on it because they take 18%, but it's a way for people to order their pictures after the races and pay credit card.

Since I didn't have a lot of notice, there was no time to order the see through photo bags. So, I just used 9x12 clasp envelopes for this time. Each person did get a business card with their purchase but I didn't stamp anything on the back of the print, though it's a good idea.

Congrats on the art show that is way cool! Selling at the track is pretty easy because people do cool stuff and want their picture, or parents with really young ones love to see their kids riding.

I spend hours out on the track just shooting, then I come back to my computer and download them all from my microdrive - took about 30-45 minutes for 921 pictures. Then the parents come to our table, tell me the bike number and race, I go to that series of pictures and we look at the ones they want. Once they decide how many of what photos I open them in Photoshop, do any quick adjustments as necessary, crop to aspect ratio and send to the printing software. All that takes about 5-10 minutes (depending on how many photos they are getting), mainly because my laptop is a little slow. I'll be working out ways to make this a smoother process, but considering 3 days notice, it went pretty well until my laptop battery died.

soup - Thank You! :-) You are lucky you were given track access. I've found all the great spots to shoot from at the sidelines, so being inside was a whole new world and I was scrambling to find my (new) favorite spots. They don't let photographers out on the track for anything but races and practice right before the race due to insurance.

Danny - Thank You! :-) lol - that last shot was almost a lucky catch - he didn't win the race, but he did the cool trick anyway. That was the only race I was able to turn around and get the finish line (due to the sun).

Message edited by author 2004-06-07 09:06:02.
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