Toronto Photography Meetup Group

Well in truth I let quite a few get by that I'd otherwise trash. Most of the static shots make me want to puke. I've handed my "B" camera to a complete novice, in my preferred A mode settings, and have gotten far better results from her.

I used to keep stuff that would need cropping, as I had caught something unattractive in the frame, but now if I don't like the looks of it as it comes out of the camera it gets deleted. I have had a few slip by that when I viewed at a later date, I asked myself " Did your coffee wear off, as your eyes must have been closed during final editting"

I rarely do any candid type shots, as its just not something I can wrap my head around and get in to. I really should, and probably will if they let me into the sprint car track this season.

Still awaiting a reply on that one, and as each day goes by with no reply, it makes me think I will be shut out there too, although I have heard rumblings that they are regretting their choice of new track photographer.

Racing shots are for sponsors and posters. Candids are the ones the racers will want to look at in 20 years.

But these days tons of people are walking around with some form of DSLR and are able to take those kinds of shots themselves.

Joe Average doesn't see the things we do in a photo, like depth of field, composition, bokeh etc

But putting it all together in a book, gives them a collection of those they raced with. Of course, cost of the book, and making a profit for your time, is the deciding factor.

I get somewhere around 25 views of my books a week, and zero sales through Blurb......can't figure out if I should be paying people to buy them or what.......LOL

The difference between us and the others walking around with their own cameras, even those with DSLRs, is that what they usually get are shots of people mugging for the camera. When a long-time acquaintance and industry fixture died, a couple of years back, It was a shot I got of him just being himself around the track that people were looking for; cigarette hanging out of his mouth around race gas.

Look at the shots on that site you linked. Without exception, the pit shots are a bunch of people facing the camera with either blank looks or cheesy grins on their faces. By way of comparison....



It's far from perfect. There are distracting elements. It's under exposed. Ultimately that doesn't matter, because it was the moment that was important.

If they let me into the sprint car track I'll be working away at nailing those kinds of shots weekly. If it was up to the track owner, I'd be in for sure, as he becomes a little kid when he sees my books. But its not his call, as he has nothing to do with the day to day operations of running the track.

The funny part is I have a couple guys that work within the series that want me there, as they know I crank out great stuff, but, its politics that is shutting me out at many tracks.

Well in my world a "crew" wristband gets you damned near everywhere that a press pass does. Just sayin'

I fired the first salvo in letting people suffer poor quality at snowcross by cancelling my rooms for this weekend, and awoke feeling better then I have in weeks.

When its no longer fun, even if it is a job, then its not worth the stress to one's health.

And I have always found that when I am having fun, either shooting races, or racing myself, I am at my peak.

I had started a project 365 and was having a blast, and it all stopped when I found those images on the sides of trailers, and everyone made me out to be a bad guy, but now they will learn.

It's kind of like the concept of a wedding day. Would you want crappy images of one of thee most significant days in your life, or killer shots?

As sportscar photographer John Thawley once wrote " Would they sit through 200 nice shots? Probably not. But give them 20-30 killer shots... you've got their attention."

Thats the way I operate, but thats just me.

I would like to operate that way. Believe me. The market I work in mandates otherwise.

If you'd like to try your hand at motorcycle roadracing this season, let me know. There are some good sightlines at Mosport and Shannonville, even from the spectator areas.

I might just take you up on that at Mosport this summer....THANKS!!!

I had to make a choice between this affecting my health, which it was, or standing up for what I believe in, and for the last three days my head has been crystal clear, and my intestenial system is getting back on track to no longer bothering me.

To show you how screwed up things are anymore with everyone and his brother being a "photographer" I had an e-mail from a dirt track requesting a couple photos for a flyer they are putting out, because what they had from their "photographer" was all fuzzy in their words.

I had met with the PR person about doing a book covering that tracks season and was met with the reply "We don't want to upset our photographer as she has been really good with us"

If she was so good, the photos wouldn't be fuzzy now would they?...LOL

Don't you think the racers are getting hosed with inferior product by a lot of these people anymore?

If you're feeling better about things, then that's all that really matters.

What it comes down to, from the clients' side, is what they're willing to put up with in "the product." If most of them are willing to take soft, out-of-focus shots, or motion blurred shots then they'll be happy enough. If they need better for their promotional shots, then they're hosed. If it's web graphics that they need than, as Stylz once said here after I took him to the races, "I'm a hero at 800X600." If they're looking for something good enough to blow up to 40X60 and slap on the side of a toy hauler, well then good luck to them.

The truth of the matter is that you'll likely continue to get requests for past materials, which will increase your overall profit margin on those old shoots. You may well get requests from your better clients to come out on their dime too. If so, then you know that you only have one or two teams that you need to get stuff for, and the rest can (as we say back East) go pound sand.

I can tell you, from past experience, that the stress levels definitely drop when you're only required to pick out 2 or 3 competitors each lap. While the opportunity for truly great shots is reduced, the ability to get good, workmanlike images that those people will appreciate goes WAY up.

I actually feel great and haven't felt like this since before I discovered the images in question.

I can spend the spring cleaning up around my mothers farm, as she has leased the land for ginseng, and that will help me clear my head more, and recharge me for when the Sprint car season starts up.

I have already witnessed what happens when people blow up shots for the sides of trailers, that looked just fine at 800x600.......LOL

Thats exactly what got me into this was the realization that after a dozen years of racing, I only had a couple really good photos of myself.

I already have an ATV racer begging me to return to that series, and in time I would guess they will all beg after getting burned numerous times.

Sometimes you have to be cruel to be kind (Sounds like a great song title)

Don't forget the part that says, "In the right measure"

LOL......I think I have oldtimers disease, but cannot recall if I do or not?