Le Mans 24h - the race (many pictures)

[menos]

Well, these are even more impressive if you didn't have credentials. I have shot motorsports events in the past, and it's very difficult if not impossible to get decent photo opportunities without media passes....kudos!

Thank you very much - I really wish, I will have a chance at some point, to get real about this. There is so much love for this sport and shooting these events get's less and less satisfying, nailed behind bars.

Security is ever raised every season, especially at Le Mans since last years horrifying high speed crashes of the Audis.
This years high speed accident of Anthony Davidson in his Toyota Hybrid showed again, how important these safety regulations are (there are not only people close to the track, who have awareness of how dangerous the area close to the track actually is, but a lot of fans, partying the night through …).

It is quite gutting, to read Anthony's thoughts during the accident, if you have also seen the car crashing:

http://www.anthonydavidson.com/

Here is one shot of the beautiful Toyota Hybrid during this years Le Mans 24h event - it showed great speed and a surprising level of performance, going the speed of the top in it's first 24h race:

This is the #7 car, that unfortunately smashed the Delta Wing out of the race after a restart with Kazuki Nakajima at the wheel.
The car later had to stop the race due to engine failure.

 

[menos]

very impressive. i wonder how you managed to shoot at such fast moving objectives with tele-lens even with high iso....

Haha, Ray, as we are among RFF friends, I'll disclose all two secrets, I have about this:

1) I am using every single minute, I get, to train shooting moving subjects out of moving cars (riding a lot of taxi in Shanghai really helps training your focussing muscles)

2) When out and shooting, I just always use the chance and do some panning shots on whatever moves around me. These are mostly trivial shots, but you really have to do this a lot, to keep your feeling in shape.

This can be anything, as slow, as a human, walking by or as fast, as a race car, just make sure, you challenge yourself with slow shutter speeds and find your own borderline, which you should push:

I am also finding myself shooting a lot in low light (that's when I have time for shooting and happens to be most interesting to me anyway):

Just try to prevent, to shoot prefocussed, as so many suggest - it's bad for your quick focussing skills - much like pushing a button on a P&S camera.

I also always try out new things, to push me, for example doing, what I am not good at - shooting verticals, lens wide open and panning + focussing, …

It's all a game and I absolutely love the ergonomics and simplicity of the Leica M, as it makes this all so easy and fun.

Everytime, I touch a DSLR now, it just feels alien.

 

[menos]

Dirk--
It is nice seeing your shot from the prior year. Can you offer any personal insight on the final image for you own shooting whether film or digital?
What software do you employ to convert your Leica DNG files to B&W, or do you use the in-camera B&W option?
Thanks,
--Steve

Hey Steve,

I shoot film and digital parallel - digital, as long, as the light is good enough, pushed TriX, once the light goes off or dynamic range of digital simply isn't enough to handle.

I develop and archive all my shots exclusively with Adobe Lightroom.
After many months of experimenting with several plugins and software, I came to the conclusion, that live is easier, to properly learn Lightroom's secrets and process just with one tool instead of futzing with all the other stuff available.

I don't use plugins or profiles but develop each shot individually form raw files.

I don't bend the files, but use individual lenses, that give a basic look and just fine tune from there.

I am not a fan of outright black and white smashing contrast shots, but like to have some tones as well - exactly, what not overcooked TriX looks like like @ 1600 or 3200 in D-76.

I don't have any restrictions to either medium (a friend recently asked me, if I would work on a series of photographs to publish with one killer limitation: all shots must be done exclusively with shooting film :bang🙂

Bummer, I don't like such limitations, as that's not, how I choose digital or film.
I treat digital M bodies the same as film bodies, shooting almost exclusively in B&W, there is not much difference for me between them.
Film has a clear edge in low light and high contrast scenes, digital has the convenience and speed in good light …

I didn't shoot film at this years Le Mans, as I am completely fed up with the zombies at CDG airport Paris, handling film.
Not as a surprise was my very first bad inter-human experience exactly 2 min after leaving the airplane @ CDG with a group of service personnel.

This is, how I choose between film and digital - what is available and works better …

I would love, to shoot more bigger formats (6x6 and 4x5), once temperatures allow schlepping heavy gear again in Shanghai.

One of my dreams is, to shoot motorsports with a 4x5 rangefinder - if I could get close enough and would be sure, my film is handled respectfully.

I scan all my film for final print with a DSLR on a light table, preparing the raw files in photoshop.
Quick pre scans are done with a Minolta scanner (35mm - love the thing to death, best scanner ever) or with one shot scans from a DSLR on a light table (medium format and large format).

I don't let any lab scan or print, what I can handle - it's a hassle, to get the quality, you expect.

 

[robert blu]

Interesting to read about your process, thank Dirk to be so open.
robert

 

[menos]

Dirk--

Thanks for sharing. I always find it enlightening to understand another's process. I find if an image grabs my attention that eventually I start analyzing how the image was made.

😉

--Steve

Interesting to read about your process, thank Dirk to be so open.
robert

You're welcome, it's those kind of exchanges, that make people think and learn. I have learned so much from people in photography message boards, I have asked and asked about the strangest things. One really should share all of this …