I photographed the racing at the Cemetery Circuit again on Boxing Day last year. That was the fourth year I had
been to the race day, and as I reviewed the pictures I realised that the way I approach the whole thing has changed a lot since my first experience of the Cemetery Circuit in 2007.
The first year I went to the Cemetery Circuit I took loads of photos – about 1000+ over the whole day.
In 2010 I only took about 80 – yes, eighty!
When I thought about it a bit more I decided that I have developed some strategies and habits that help me to take
better photos:
- I make sure I’m familiar with the environment I’m going to shoot in – that way I can plan the best place to position myself.
- I get familiar with the shapes and movement involved. Sometimes I watch 2 or 3 races so I get an idea of where the most interesting shots will come from.
- I am patient – I’d rather take one cracking shot then 20 that are mediocre.
- I think about the next step for each image – there’s no point taking a photo that can’t be used to generate interest or income.
I’ve realised that as I become more practised as a photographer, I am become much more selective about the shots I take… before I take them. It saves so much time in the post-production process because I can focus on how I’m going to treat each image rather than whether they’re right one to use.
