Poll Position • Macro Tools on the Race Tracks

What a surprise for us today!

The manager of a cultural centre where I often take photos invited my sons and I
to his place for a good time.

This guy, with his academic credentials and thick glasses, is a race car freak!
When ever I thought of him, I saw this skinny man in the 70s, reading some
literature in a very clean house and… Well, the house is very clean. Even the
basement where one whole room (the largest) is occupied at 80-85% by a table
on which spread 62m of racing tracks!

By some strange coincidence, I had some gear in the car!





More photos here:
http://www.kodiakmedia.at/petersracetrack/

Nice, but a little too dark to pick out much detail for me.

Oops! really? I don't understand this!

Hi Coyote,

There are two points here:

​First
Second

I do not think that the pictures are too dark. They are very dark but no too dark!

Black cars on black tracks in the black of night!

Please, look again! …I was pretty happy with these shots =\

​

Hello everyone,

A private message is asking me for the technical details of that shoot:
camera(s), lens, setup etc

These questions I will answer. The other questions: how do I work, etc
I will not! My privilege.

Camera: Nikon D3S
Lens: AF-S VR Micro-NIKKOR 105mm f/2.8G IF-ED

Flash: None, only available light (a crazy blend of quartz, diodes and incandescent!).

Tripod: Handheld(with elbows on the table)

Metering: Matrix
Mode: A Priority
ISO: 12,800
Aperture ƒ8, ƒ11
Shutter: 1/80s to 1/360s

File Format: RAW

My idea of sharing is with everybody! Any other thing is a private lesson.

​Enjoy!

Hello Mr. Kodiak,
As I said they're nice but a little to dark to pick out much detail, I feel (and please understand it's just how I feel)
I would have liked to see a well light static display of the cars and whole track before the night/dark racing begins.
In 2010 while over in Germany playing in a couple of European Tour golf events. I visited The Nürburgring just south
of Cologne and attended a 24 hour type race (I only stayed about 6 hours) and left when it got too dark to see much
other than head/taillights and hear the engines screaming on the cars as they speed around in the dark. I don't believe
I would be a very big fan of underwater submarine racing either as I much prefer to clearly see the machines as they
fly around the track/course.

Wiley

Coyote,

I got your point!
No problem, I will post, later on this thread, some "better lit" photos of some section of track!

For now, I have to finish something.

CU

Just Kodiak, would you! On a forum, respect is shown through courtesy, coolness… and passion!
…and I love your malicious but tenacious avatar!

Those are "slot" cars, correct?

Not sure what they call them today, or in your country but back in the '60's when I was a kid we had small plastic cars with tiny motors in them driven by a grove (e.g., "slot") in the track with an electric circuit. The "drivers" had small remote controls.

Yes! Well, that's what you may call it when you don't want to call them by a trade-mark!

Hello cat,

There is an enormous gap between the posted tracks and the tracks a "normal" parent
would buy the kid(s).

The posted tracks allow speeds over 35 m/h! and may be dangerous in given situation but,
again, this level of racers this guy belongs to do not play with toys! A car, before tuning,
may cost 200, 400, and up to 500$ he told me. One may double or triple that after tuning.

Too bad for you cat, at these speeds, you will never catch one!

Have a good time!

PS: He told me that there is only one place in the world where he buys tires for his cars…
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The reason he gave me I did not get. …as long as HE knows why!

LOL

Thanks Kodiak

I like the effect myself. It made the cars look closer to full size race cars in my opinion. The only thing I didn't really like was the michelin sticker on the hood of one car. I think it detracted a bit from the cool styling.
The sticker seemed a little over sized for the car is all.
Thanks for sharing the shots and the info my friend. I got a "lot" to learn for sure. lol

Hey Bill,

The only things that really mattered to me were…

• I've never been so close to one of these tracks before, just like I've never been
to F1 real event neither, …a "première"!

• I always say that when every one else goes back in the bag, it's time to get the
D3S out of it. This fantastic camera is always the last one seen on the battlefield!
…as if I needed to prove it to myself one again, …a challenge!

• This time, it was for real! my new macro lens at work, …a discovery

• Since he always "admire my work" like he said, I thought that I should show some
interest in what he is doing. I was fascinated! Me asking the permission to take some
pictures made his day. When he saw these "night time" photos, …an emotion!

• You are right when it comes to the sticker, but I was like the little boy inside him:
my toy looking at his toy, …a relation!

• He was having a good time, with my sons racing with him, and everyone enjoyed
greatly this moment together, …a passion!

So Bill, when you tell me that you like the "night time" effect, you just make my
pleasure last longer, …a treat!

Thanks for the comments,

Ok Willey Coyote, this is for you!

These shots permitted me to fine tune my camera setup and test my new macro lens.

So this is what was to be seen briefly before the lights went off:

Have a good time!

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