How to Photograph Motorcycle Speedway

(All images copyright Michael Berkeley Photography - no reproduction without permission)

Motorcycle Speedway is an exciting sport.  Each race consists of 4 riders – 2 from each team – speeding round the oval track on bikes that have only one gear and no brakes, reaching speeds of about 70mph.  The main photographic opportunities arise as the riders negotiate the corners, sliding the bikes sideways and throwing up dirt as they do so.

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 200mm; f/2.8; 1/1600th sec; ISO 2000)

I had contacted Poole Pirates in the summer of 2018 and they very kindly agreed that I could visit to photograph a match against Belle Vue (incidentally, Poole Pirates won by 54-35).

After introducing myself to the resident photographer, I checked in with the Clerk of the Course and clarified where I could and couldn’t go.  And then I had a chat with the officials who start and finish the races, so that they knew that I was there and what I would be doing (see photo below).

(Nikon D500; 24-70mm at 48mm; f/2.8; 1/4000th sec; ISO 250)

It was a gloriously warm and sunny evening, and the light was wonderful for photography. At one stage, however, the sun going down over the circuit made it too dangerous for the riders as they were dazzled going into the first corner and there had to be a delay until it became safe again.  Thereafter the flood lights were turned on and the conditions for photography changed.

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 165mm; f/2.8; 1/1600th sec; ISO 3600)

There were some 15 races of 4 laps each in all, which meant that I had plenty of opportunities to try different positions from which to photograph, both inside and outside the oval track.  Overall, I concluded that the best images were to be had from the inside of the track as the riders sped around the bends throwing up the grit and dirt…

(Nikon D500; 24-70mm at 24mm; f/5.0; 1/2500th sec; ISO 1250)

This was also where there were good views of the spills, with riders coming off and hitting the padded barriers.  Although this didn’t happen often, thankfully, I managed to miss every occurrence, mainly because I was in the wrong place.  In sport, things can happen so quickly that, unless you are poised to take the photograph, the event has been and gone – and often it is simply a matter of luck, being in the right place at the right time.  One thing is for sure: they won’t go back and do it again for you! 

In most of my blogs, I make the point that it is really important to ensure that the participants are recognisable.  With motor sports, however, this is a challenge because they are wearing helmets.  Even in the image below, where the eyes are just about visible, it’s not really possible to recognise who the riders are.

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 135mm; f/2.8; 1/800th sec; ISO 3200)

This also means that the images cannot gain drama from the riders’ expression, but have to rely entirely on composition, shapes, colour and action.

As the bikes are moving at such speed, the simplest way to photograph them is to set a fast shutter speed, thereby freezing the action.  While this might be simple, this does make the photos appear very static and lacking in emotion.  In the photo below, the rider is clearly going quickly because you can see the dirt being kicked up behind, but there is no movement in the wheel.

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 120mm; f/2.8; 1/1250th sec; ISO 16,000)

On the other hand, the photo below has much more drama – it really feels as though the rider is going quickly – and it therefore has emotion.  This is achieved by making the shutter speed much longer and panning – i.e. moving the camera to follow the rider as he comes around the corner.  

It is not always easy to get a really sharp image, but by using continuous shooting and a degree of perseverance – and trial and error – the effect is well worth the effort.  This also explains why I took over 1200 images during the evening – thank heavens for digital cameras!

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 82mm; f/8.0; 1/60th sec; ISO 180)

Although I didn’t do it on this occasion, it can also help to put the camera on a tripod or monopod (particularly if using a heavy lens), because this will enable you to pan more smoothly, allowing you to concentrate on keeping the key point of interest steady. 

As always, it is worth looking out for candid shots in the margins of the races. For example, below are images of a couple of the poole Pirates riders having a chat between races, and a photo concentrating on the official waving the chequered flag at the end of one of the races. These provide atmosphere beyond the actual races.

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 200mm; f/2.8; 1/1250th sec; ISO 14,400)

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 70mm; f/2.8; 1/1250th sec; ISO 22,800)

So, did I enjoy photographing speedway?  Yes, of course!  As I said at the start, it is an exciting sport and the contest between riders on the track is intense.  But …  I find that motor sports can be repetitive and lack the opportunities for capturing human interaction and emotion because of the competitors wearing helmets.  

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 165mm; f/8.0; 1/100th sec; ISO 400)

As a result, there are only so many different shots that you can get, whereas other sports – such as football, basketball, etc – present an infinite number of possibilities, which can be more rewarding.

With special thanks to Poole Pirates Speedway.

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How to Photograph Lawn Bowls

(All images copyright Michael Berkeley Photography - no reproduction without permission)

I originally wrote this blog just after I had set out my thoughts on How to Photograph Polo, which is a particularly fast and furious sport.  Bowls is almost diametrically opposite in terms of pace, but my experience of photographing at my local Bowls Club was that it is equally – if not more – social than polo.  It also proved to be one of the most competitive sports that I have ever witnessed!

As is often the case when I photograph a new sport, I had no idea how I was going to approach bowls.  In such situations, I have a look on the internet to see what others have done and see if there is a ‘How to Photograph [Sport]’ article – maybe you are doing this right now by reading this blog!  There wasn’t a huge amount of information on bowls, so it was a voyage of discovery …

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 200mm; f/2.8; 1/2000th sec; ISO 100)

In this case, I actually went along for a recce.  Some of the Club members were having a practice during the week, in advance of the men’s match the following Saturday.  There were only a few people practising and, in the very informal atmosphere, I was able to walk on the green itself (which – understandably – was strictly forbidden on match day) and take close ups of the players.

(Nikon D700; 24-70mm at 38mm; f/7.1; 1/320th sec; ISO 250)

During the recce, I used both of my camera bodies, so that I could try a number of different ideas. The photo above was taken with the full frame Nikon D700, providing opportunities for a wider angle than the crop sensor Nikon D500, which - at the time - I used to use most of the time for my sport photography (I now use a Sony A9II).

While invaluable in preparing for the main event, the light was different in each case.  The practice session was in the early evening, which meant that there were long shadows on the green.  The sun was much higher for the match and the players’ hats cast a strong shadow, making it difficult to get a good shot of their face.  Moreover, the players on the Saturday were wearing their match kit, which was bright white, leading to high contrast.

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 160mm; f/2.8; 1/5000th sec; ISO 250)

I set out my ‘standard’ camera settings in my blog  'Getting into Sport and Music Photography'.  In the case of the bowls match, I kept the lens wide open to achieve a shallow depth of field and blur the background, as usual.  But as it was such a bright day, I had to set the shutter speed to up to 1/5000th second to compensate for the wide open aperture.  With the ISO set on ‘Auto’, the ISO readings that I was getting were in the 100 to 1000 band, which was fine.

Although I do often shoot JPEG files, on this occasion I did shoot RAW, because I knew that the lighting condition were particularly challenging and that I would therefore want to recover as much detail as possible from the shadows.

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 185mm; f/2.8; 1/5000th sec; ISO 200)

I was anxious that the sound of my camera – and my presence itself – did not become a distraction for the players who were concentrating hard.  With this in mind, I had offered to take photographs of both the teams before the match started, so that they were all aware that I was there, knew what I would be doing, and had got used to my presence. Of course, if I had had my current Sony A9II with me, I would have been able to set it to silent shooting and I would have been less conspicuous!

(Nikon D500; 24-70mm at 31 mm; f/8; 1/1250th sec; ISO 160)

On match day, I used 3 different lenses on the Nikon D500 – a 24-70mm f/2.8; a 70-200mm f/2.8; and a 200-500mm f/5.6.  As the Nikon D500 has a crop sensor, this last lens is equivalent to 300-750mm.  This variety of lenses allowed me to get very different perspectives on the action.  The 70-200mm was probably the most useful for ‘straight’ player shots (as above), but the wide-angle lens and long lens allowed me to take more imaginative shots.  

(Nikon D500; 200-500mm at 240mm; f/5.6; 1/5000th sec; ISO 500)

I took the photo above from the far end of the lawn with the long lens (note the heavy shadows over the faces – recovered as far as possible in post-production). A quite different perspective is achieved in the image below, taken from right behind the players.

(Nikon D500; 24-70mm at 48mm; f/2.8; 1/5000th sec; ISO 250)

As a general rule, I try to get as low to the ground as possible as this makes the players appear ‘heroic’ and you also feel as though you are there in the middle of the action with them - see below.

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 200mm; f/2.8; 1/5000th sec; ISO 320)

I tried to get as many shots of individual players as possible, so that they would each have a good image of themselves, but also tried to capture some of the atmosphere of the game.  This included the total concentration shown by the players, as well as the occasional messages being passed to teammates through sign language …

(Nikon D500; 200-500mm at 320mm; f/8.0; 1/1250th sec; ISO 250)

(Nikon D500; 24-70mm at 52mm; f/2.8; 1/5000th sec; ISO 200)

As well as the hugely competitive nature of the match, the players were having a hugely enjoyable time.  The contest may have been intense, but it was also sociable, both with teammates and the other team.  

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 160mm; f/2.8; 1/5000th sec; ISO 360)

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 200mm; f/2.8; 1/5000th sec; ISO 110)

Special thanks go to Downton Bowling Club, Wiltshire.  They were immensely hospitable, and I was made to feel extremely welcome. Despite repeated invitations, I politely declined the offers to have a go myself - I left that to the experts!

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How to Photograph Polo

(All images copyright Michael Berkeley Photography - no reproduction without permission)

Polo is undoubtedly a glamorous and social sport – and one where, along with other equestrian sports, women can compete on equal terms with men.  It’s also very fast, which makes it exciting to watch and fun to photograph.

Polo is played all year round – field polo in summer (4 players per team) and arena polo in winter (3 players per team).  The same principles apply to photographing both types of polo.

(Nikon D500; 200-500mm f5.6 at 220mm - f5.6; 1/500th sec; ISO 160)

With a grass polo field being some 300 yards long, you need a long lens.  I used to use a 200-500mm (f/5.6) lens on a Nikon D500 which, bearing in mind that the camera has a crop sensor, is equivalent to a 300-750mm lens.  I have now moved to a Sony A9II and use a 200-600mm f/5.6-63 lens.

For arena polo (which is 100 yards long), I use a 70-200mm (f/2.8) which is just about long enough to take images at the far end of the playing area.

(Sony A9II; Sony 200-600mm at 600mm; f/6.3; 1/2000th sec; ISO 400)

I set out my ‘standard’ camera settings in my first blog,  'Getting into Sport and Music Photography'.  For polo, I keep the lens wide open to achieve a shallow depth of field and therefore blur the background; select a fast shutter speed of at least 1/1000th second to freeze the ball in flight; and leave the ISO setting on ‘Auto’ within limits (usually an upper limit of 6400).

(Sony A9II; Sony 70-200mm; f/2.8; 1/1250th sec; ISO 500)

Two key aspects of polo photography (actually all sport photography) are to ensure that the players are recognisable, with their face fully visible, and to ensure that the background is not distracting.

As with other sports where the action moves quickly from one end to the other – such as basketball, rugby, ice hockey and football – I position myself to one side of the goal.  This means that the players attacking the goal will be coming directly towards me and I will therefore have a good view of their face. For safety reasons, I stay some way back because the hard ball would hurt if it hit you - and, more to the point, would damage your camera equipment - and the horses come towards you some speed.

On a hot summer day, with the sun high in the sky, there will be harsh shadows cast by the players’ helmet visor.  On such days, it can be a challenge to capture the action at the far end of the polo field if there is a heat haze.  A bright, overcast day is best. In this respect, contrast the 2 images below as far as seeing the riders’ face is concerned.

(Sony A9II; Sony 200-600mm at 600mm; f/6.3; 1/1000th sec; ISO 500)

(Nikon D500; 200-500mm f5.6at 310mm - f5.6; 1/2000th sec; ISO 160)

When a polo player is striking the ball, they will be looking down – exactly the same as a cricket batsman watching the ball onto the bat – which means that their face will be obscured under the helmet.  The best photo often occurs when the player looks up to see where the ball is going, as in golf.  Wherever possible, it is really important to get the ball is in a good position.

(Nikon D500; 200-500mm f5.6 at 270mm - f5.6; 1/2500th sec; ISO 220)

Unlike sports such as football, you don’t get advertising boards down the side of the pitch, but there can be horse boxes, cars, score boards etc. I have done most of my polo photography at Druids Lodge Polo Club, very close to Stonehenge.  One of their fields has a ridge along the centre line and wonderful views over the Wiltshire countryside, which means that the players often stand out perfectly against the background.

From time to time the Club runs ‘Bring a Picnic’ events during the summer and ‘Fireside Polo’ events in the winter.  On these occasions, it is quite effective photographing the players in front of the crowd - consciously providing a busy background.  These images are good for the club to use to advertise similar events in the future. In these instances, the event itself becomes the main focus of the photograph and the polo becomes secondary.

(Nikon D500; 200-500mm f5.6 at 310mm - f5.6; 1/4000th sec; ISO 400)

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm f2.8 at 110mm - f2.8; 1/800th sec; ISO 5000)

The key as always is to find the right moment to capture the action in the most dramatic way.  This is quite difficult with ‘goal-mouth’ action because there can be a lot of players in the limited amount of space (as in basketball and football).

As mentioned above, I sit near one of the goals, so that position provides good opportunities to get good shots of the players as they come towards you and compete for the ball.  If you can get the horses’ hooves all off the ground, so much the better!

(Sony A9II; Sony 200-600mm at 524mm; f/6.3; 1/800th sec; ISO 800)

(Sony A9II; 70-200mm f2.8 at 128mm - f2.8; 1/1000th sec; ISO 2000)

I always use ‘Continuous High’ to shoot in bursts and use ‘Continuous Focus’ (and Nikon’s 3D-Tracking mode) to keep the point of interest in focus as it moves across the viewfinder or towards/away from you.  Shooting in bursts like this means that you can choose the image that captures the best moment - either of the action or showing the players and/or pony in the best light - and with the ball in the best position. I will never knowingly select a photo that makes a player in any sport look less than their best.

Nikon D500; 70-200mm f2.8 at 200mm - f2.8; 1/640th sec; ISO 5000)

Nikon D500; 24-70mm f2.8 at 24mm - f2.8; 1/640th sec; ISO 5000)

One of the challenges of photographing arena polo is when it is played under floodlights. Most of the arena is surrounded by heavy netting, but there is an area either side of one of the goals where it is possible to take photos without obstruction. Sometimes the lights cause problems with White Balance, but I leave the camera on auto and worry about this in post production. The images above were some of the last taken at an evening match in November 2019 when the temperature had dropped and the steam rising was very atmospheric…

Nikon D500; 200-500mm f5.6 at 340mm - f5.6; 1/2000th sec; ISO 2800)

Nikon D500; 70-200mm f2.8 at 200mm - f2.8; 1/4000th sec; ISO 320)

Polo is a great sport for taking candid shots in the margins of the chukkas, particularly of the players and the grooms making their preparations around the horse boxes.  I don’t tend to photograph individual spectators, as I do not wish to invade their privacy.

Most importantly, photographing polo is great fun.  Why not give it a go?!

To read my article on how to photograph polo in the July 2022 edition of Polo Times, click on the magazine’s logo.

To see more images, view the Polo Gallery.

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