Discussion
Get yourself a website and get down to tracks for race days at the weekends and take a s
t load of photos. Some traditional, some using your imagination.
Then photoshop the fk out of them until they look the dogs bks and put those on your website.
E-mail everyone who you get amazing photos of.
Then hope you get noticed by someone.
That's what I recon.
Cheers
The Moose
t load of photos. Some traditional, some using your imagination.Then photoshop the f
k out of them until they look the dogs bks and put those on your website.E-mail everyone who you get amazing photos of.
Then hope you get noticed by someone.
That's what I recon.
Cheers
The Moose
Better still take shots that are good enough that you don't need to Photoshop them! Most of the other motorsport photographers I know do minimal photoshopping on them. When you've got severla different clients all wanting several photos straight after a race weekend there just isn't time.
The most important thing to start with is practice, as much as possible. To stand out these days you need to be very very good. There are huge amounts of people taking competnent photos. Then get as much of your good stuffonline as possible, so people can see your work. Don't put anything rubbish on (or even anything nearly good, I.e It would have been good if it wasn't for that persons head etc!) as that will detract from the decent stuff.
The big problem is though, there are now so many people doing it or trying to get into it, that making any money at all, nevermind enough to live is just about impossible. A few agencies/Photographers have the lucrative well paid work and everyone else just struggles on what's left. I know of several photographers who have said they are thinking of giving it up due to the difficulty of making any money and several others I know already have. There are very few motorsport photographer that do it as a full time job, most of us have a weekday job and use that to help pay for the weekends!
It's very, very tough indeed to get a job doing it full time. Your best hope if you want a full time photography job is to find a News photographer job and use that to get some motorsport stuff but even then you'll have loads of competition.
The most important thing to start with is practice, as much as possible. To stand out these days you need to be very very good. There are huge amounts of people taking competnent photos. Then get as much of your good stuffonline as possible, so people can see your work. Don't put anything rubbish on (or even anything nearly good, I.e It would have been good if it wasn't for that persons head etc!) as that will detract from the decent stuff.
The big problem is though, there are now so many people doing it or trying to get into it, that making any money at all, nevermind enough to live is just about impossible. A few agencies/Photographers have the lucrative well paid work and everyone else just struggles on what's left. I know of several photographers who have said they are thinking of giving it up due to the difficulty of making any money and several others I know already have. There are very few motorsport photographer that do it as a full time job, most of us have a weekday job and use that to help pay for the weekends!
It's very, very tough indeed to get a job doing it full time. Your best hope if you want a full time photography job is to find a News photographer job and use that to get some motorsport stuff but even then you'll have loads of competition.
here are some ideas. pick a series, follow it around the coutnry, make a record of the season.
pick something other than the same old formula that are done to death. no one wants to see another picture of btcc or f1, why not try club sidecar racing, karting, truck racing or trials. try something like the exeter trial or the edinburgh trial and see what results you get. unfortunately, get ready for long hours on motorways and heavy expenditure on eqpt and memory cards....
pick something other than the same old formula that are done to death. no one wants to see another picture of btcc or f1, why not try club sidecar racing, karting, truck racing or trials. try something like the exeter trial or the edinburgh trial and see what results you get. unfortunately, get ready for long hours on motorways and heavy expenditure on eqpt and memory cards....
If you're good you then shouldn't have too much of a problem. As a club competitor I typically spend about £10 per meeting on photographs, so there's money to be made! 
One of the things with motorsport is that it costs thousands to do, but you're left with very little afterwards other than memories, so photographs are good to have.
You'll need a photographers pass to some club meetings (I've no idea how you get this, but others here can help I'm sure) so that you can stand without a fence in your way. Then you'll need to turn up at a test or race day and take loads of photos, and then upload them to a website for people to view and buy. I'd make up some cards with the web address on to give to the drivers too. Far too many photographers seem to survive on competitors doing a google search the week after a race to see if anyone was there - which is ridiculous. If you gave out cards with the web address on it'd be a lot easier.
The only other bit of advice I'd give is to ensure that you get action shots of cars in corners, and even better if they're taking a bit of apex kerb, perhaps with a little opposite lock on etc. Some photographers just take pictures of cars going down the straights, which doesn't interest most drivers.
One of the things with motorsport is that it costs thousands to do, but you're left with very little afterwards other than memories, so photographs are good to have.You'll need a photographers pass to some club meetings (I've no idea how you get this, but others here can help I'm sure) so that you can stand without a fence in your way. Then you'll need to turn up at a test or race day and take loads of photos, and then upload them to a website for people to view and buy. I'd make up some cards with the web address on to give to the drivers too. Far too many photographers seem to survive on competitors doing a google search the week after a race to see if anyone was there - which is ridiculous. If you gave out cards with the web address on it'd be a lot easier.
The only other bit of advice I'd give is to ensure that you get action shots of cars in corners, and even better if they're taking a bit of apex kerb, perhaps with a little opposite lock on etc. Some photographers just take pictures of cars going down the straights, which doesn't interest most drivers.
RobM77 said:
If you're good you then shouldn't have too much of a problem. As a club competitor I typically spend about £10 per meeting on photographs, so there's money to be made!
You'd need a lot of drivers at £10 a meeting to actually make enough money to live on 
, especially as most circuits charge for a pass that enables you to sell photos. The outlay on equipment is pretty big, then you have travel, accomodation (if it's more than one day.) and food and refreshments (Although many media centres will supply drinks.) In theory if you have pass from working for a media organisation only you aren't supposed to sell photos. (Although I know many do anyway.)As for the angles etc, I've had drivers who want the opposite and want photos of the car side on on the straight (For best exposure of the sponsors) and haven't been so bothered about the action stuff. so it's best to get the cars with as many angles as possible. If you're working for someone regularly you get to know the angles they are after.
Marc W said:
RobM77 said:
If you're good you then shouldn't have too much of a problem. As a club competitor I typically spend about £10 per meeting on photographs, so there's money to be made!
You'd need a lot of drivers at £10 a meeting to actually make enough money to live on , especially as most circuits charge for a pass that enables you to sell photos. The outlay on equipment is pretty big, then you have travel, accomodation (if it's more than one day.) and food and refreshments (Although many media centres will supply drinks.) In theory if you have pass from working for a media organisation only you aren't supposed to sell photos. (Although I know many do anyway.)As for the angles etc, I've had drivers who want the opposite and want photos of the car side on on the straight (For best exposure of the sponsors) and haven't been so bothered about the action stuff. so it's best to get the cars with as many angles as possible. If you're working for someone regularly you get to know the angles they are after.
I didn't mean to infer that it would be easy to live off the income as a professional photographer at club meetings, and I realise that my wording wasn't too good there!
If your looking to sell photo's it might be worth contacting some of the smaller clubs.
I recently did a sprint at North weald where there were a couple of young photographers who'd set themselves up with a website and were selling prints. I assume with the permission of the club. Their photo's were ok but far from great, but they were good value at £2.50 for a Jpeg and they were the only photographers there. With 100ish competitors even if only a half bought a single image it's still £125 in the pot for equipment or in your pocket.
I think you'll find places link Brands hatch quite difficult to get trackside access to although there will be far more knowledgable people who will be able to inform you on this, I also think there's issues with selling photos from the larger tracks as a member of the general public.
If your in Essex what about heading down to Lydden for the SEMSEC club meets?
I recently did a sprint at North weald where there were a couple of young photographers who'd set themselves up with a website and were selling prints. I assume with the permission of the club. Their photo's were ok but far from great, but they were good value at £2.50 for a Jpeg and they were the only photographers there. With 100ish competitors even if only a half bought a single image it's still £125 in the pot for equipment or in your pocket.
I think you'll find places link Brands hatch quite difficult to get trackside access to although there will be far more knowledgable people who will be able to inform you on this, I also think there's issues with selling photos from the larger tracks as a member of the general public.
If your in Essex what about heading down to Lydden for the SEMSEC club meets?
Edited by andye30m3 on Thursday 8th July 15:37
http://sitebuilder.yola.com/sites/S3/D3a2/D0b2/D4f... im gonna add some more to it later
i carnt go up there ive gott help the old man clean the garage also pack for the holiday but next time your racing at either brands or lyden hill ille come and see ya.
what car do your race ?
Canvey Island near southend
cheers for looking at the website
i carnt go up there ive gott help the old man clean the garage also pack for the holiday but next time your racing at either brands or lyden hill ille come and see ya.
what car do your race ?
Canvey Island near southend
cheers for looking at the website
Gassing Station | UK Club Motorsport | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff