Indianapolis 500 Bump Day

[kansascityshuffle]

Not the best equipment for racing, but I couldn't help it. 5D and 85L. I had to pan from pretty close with 85mm on full-frame, so I'm thrilled with the first one. 200+ mph from less than 20 ft away is pretty difficult. ;)


Nice day though...A bit chilly, but the sun was great.



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I had to use the combo in its element at least once...

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[DC Fan]

Not the best equipment for racing, but I couldn't help it. 5D and 85L. I had to pan from pretty close with 85mm on full-frame, so I'm thrilled with the first one. 200+ mph from less than 20 ft away is pretty difficult. ;)

There's absolutely nothing wrong with your equipment for motorsports. There are a couple of places at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway where a 5d and an 85mm lens would work very well, such as the spectator areas on the inside of the third turn, or at the end of the main stretch, either on the inside of the track or in the elevated penthouse seats. But, as you encountered, there are no low-level seats at the Speedway without a fence in the way. The only way to get a clear view from down low is with a credential.

By the way, your location was more like 80 feet back from the cars, since the track is 60 feet wide at that point. If you had been 20 feet back, you would have been standing on the track in the middle of the turn. :)

[kansascityshuffle]

There's absolutely nothing wrong with your equipment for motorsports. There are a couple of places at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway where a 5d and an 85mm lens would work very well, such as the spectator areas on the inside of the third turn, or at the end of the main stretch, either on the inside of the track or in the elevated penthouse seats. But, as you encountered, there are no low-level seats at the Speedway without a fence in the way. The only way to get a clear view from down low is with a credential.

By the way, your location was more like 80 feet back from the cars, since the track is 60 feet wide at that point. If you had been 20 feet back, you would have been standing on the track in the middle of the turn. :)


I disagree. If anybody in their right mind was going to shoot motorsports for anything other than their own fun, they wouldn't be using either the 5D or 85L. Both pieces of equipment are at the completely opposite end of the spectrum from having fast focus.

[dmayesjr]

I think your lens would have been perfect for any of the turn one penthouse seats. On my 40D with 100-300mm, 100 was a little too long.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2329/3538400985_e656c1795f.jpg
This is not cropped at all. 5D might not take a million shots a second, but the colors on your shots are fantastic.

[RadAL]

i thought no one was allowed by the fence (at least at daytona) to take photos without security being over you?

[kansascityshuffle]

I think your lens would have been perfect for any of the turn one penthouse seats. On my 40D with 100-300mm, 100 was a little too long.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2329/3538400985_e656c1795f.jpg
This is not cropped at all. 5D might not take a million shots a second, but the colors on your shots are fantastic.


You have to remember that your 100mm is 160 on that 40D. The 100 f/2 or 135 f/2L would be the money setup from there on full-frame. If I would have had a 135L with me, I'd have taken a lot more than the 75 shots that I did. :cool: I did try one or two from the E penthouse...Worthless. Just way too far away.

The shot of Andretti's Venom car is pretty close to a 100% crop, and I was shooting from row 5 or 6 in E stand in turn 1.

[kansascityshuffle]

i thought no one was allowed by the fence (at least at daytona) to take photos without security being over you?


From the penthouses atop some of the stands, you can see well over the fence. See how his POV is looking down over the car? He was way up high for that shot.