Some Motocross

I headed over to a local Motocross event that featured racers from all over Ireland last weekend. I spent a couple of hours there and shot hundreds of photos. It was great to try out different styles of shot.

I started out with the obvious jumping shots. Plenty of riders jumped straight through but a few made it a bit more interesting looking.

I then realised I could move around and closer to the track than I might have at a tradition tarmac/hard top course. I tried some panning close ups.

The idea is to get the featured subject as sharp as possible (though some blur is acceptable) and blur the background (and wheels) to indicate speed and movement. This is accomplished by slowing the shutter speed down. You then need a smooth movement of the camera. Your entire upper body should move as one. Stand with your feet shoulder wide apart and pointing towards where your subject will be when you get your desired shot. Track the subject as it approaches by swinging your body around your hips without moving your feet. Track the subject and start shooting as it approaches the target point. Don't stop moving when you're finished ... follow through as you would with a tennis/golf/baseball/hurling swing. This makes your movement smooth, mechanical and repeatable.

After a short while, I started to try getting shots that were more interesting than just a single rider ... anyone can get those with a bit of practice. I moved into a location where I could see bikes coming down one side before they hit a turn and a high speed jump. I was trackside and facing the end of the jump. I set my aperture to be medium sized so I had a decent depth of field. As usual, I was using AI Servo focus with custom function 4-1 enabled. I switched between centre, side and top AF points. I zoomed in and finally was rewarded with two bikes that hit the jump side-by-side. This is my favourite shot of the day.