When I decided to go to Sears Point for the AMA races in May, one of the first things I did was look on Andrew Wheeler's website, AutoMotoPhoto, to see if his schedule showed him attending that event. I really enjoy Mr. Wheeler's photographs and when shooting cars or motorcycles I try to emulate his work as best as my level of experience allows.
Turns out he was there, though I didn't know it at the time and didn't recognize him on the Saturday I attended. I've been looking through his pictures from that event and boy, it's pretty humbling to see what a pro came up with looking at the same subjects I had before me. True, he almost certainly had the orange ribbon that I wanted so badly and thus was able to get much closer to the track, but it's really his photos in the paddock and pit lane that I like the most. You can see them here. Enjoy!
While watching the latest F1 race on TV recently, I was noticing how pro photographers on the pre-race starting grid are not shy at all about taking pictures of people. They just get right in the drivers’ faces and click away. When I was at Sears Point in May, I had good access to the paddock and saw many of the riders. I got a few good ones of Ben Spies on his near sprint to the pit lane. Matt Mladin stood around talking to people for half an hour, though, and was an easy target for photographers with more guts than I. Even though I’d rented the big lens that day, in my heart I was just an amateur and a poser and was too shy about getting close for the pictures I wanted.
I suppose that photography, like driving in Sicily, is a situation where fortune favors the bold. I hope I can do better at Laguna Seca!
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