I’ll start by saying you are asking a lot for under $800.00. But it’s possible, if you’re willing to compromise a little. I shoot Canon gear so I’ll stay with them. Nikon probably has similar combinations. First off, shooting motorsports requires a camera/lens combination that is both fast and has a long reach. Unless you can get credentials at the racetrack, you are going to be far away from the action. As such, you want a camera that has a crop sensor (APS-C), not full frame. Don’t worry about the terminology right now, just make sure you get a crop sensor body. I have found that a zoom lens with a minimum of 300mm is required, with longer length desired. You don’t need the pricier lenses with f/2.8 or anything as you’ll usually be shooting in daylight.
A basic starter kit might be the Canon EOS Rebel T5i DSLR Camera with 18-55mm and 75-300mm Lenses from B&H Photo (http://www.bhphotovideo.com …_eos_rebel_t5i_18_55.html
). It is currently $748.00 after rebates with free shipping and is tax free in California. The camera has 18 megapixels, 5 FPS and is a good entry level camera. This combination will not tolerate rough handling and the image quality of the lenses, although acceptable, is the big compromise.
You could try to find a better camera and/or lens on the used market, but its very buyer beware. A used Sigma 150-500mm lens for a Canon mount on eBay is going to be $550 -$700 alone.
You will not need filters for most motorsports shooting. And don’t spend any money on a tripod or monopod, you won’t use them and they just get in the way for panning shots. For reference sake, I use a Canon 7D Mk II with a 100-400mm Mk II lens for all my motorsports action shots. But that combination is $3,600.00.
A couple of suggested information sites are below.
http://www.the-digital-picture.com …News-Post.aspx?News=17530
http://www.learn.usa.canon.com …otorsports_lefebure.shtml
Below are some tips I give new motorsports photographers for autocrosses.
1. Use a long telephoto zoom lens. 70-200mm is the minimum and usually not long enough from the course perimeter. APS-C sensor bodies are preferred to help with reach.
2. Try to shoot with the sun at your back or side to minimize reflections.
3. Shoot using continuous shutter bursts as fast as possible. Use AI Servo AF on Canon or AF-C on Nikon for all action shots.
4. For stop action shooting, set ISO to 320 – 400. Higher values will only be needed if it’s very cloudy, raining or dark. Shoot in Av/A at f/5.6 or Tv/S at 1/1000 or faster for best results. Head on or ¾ shots are best so the car doesn’t look parked.
5. Try to use a shallow depth of field (f/5.6-6.3) to minimize background distractions and highlight the cars.
6. For panning shooting, set ISO to 100, shoot in Tv/S and start with 1/125 – 1/160. As you become more practiced, drop the shutter speed to 1/80 – 1/100. Focus on a specific spot on the car throughout the pan. The best success will be with the car’s direction perpendicular to your shot. ¾ views are more difficult and will result in part of the car being more out of focus the slower the shutter speed (physics is not always our friend).
7. Photographing motorsports is difficult even for the best photographers. You are going to get bad panning shots. Do not worry about every shot being perfect. It will not happen.
8. Back button focus is preferred for any motorsports shooting.
9. If your camera has custom shooting modes, (C1, C2 on Canon or U1, U2 on Nikon) set up one for your baseline stop action shooting and another for the baseline panning. This makes it very quick to switch modes on a fast moving car.
10. Try to shoot low occasionally as the perspective allows views of lifting wheels and suspension changes that add to the sense of action and speed. If it is hot, beware of heat waves off the pavement that will degrade the image quality.
11. Watch the cars and memorize the track layout. You can usually see specific locations (bumps, dips, heavy braking areas, tight corners leading to a straight, etc.) that are better than others for unusual shots.
