Behind the picture: technical description (Mar. 28/14)

john king photo
A technical breakdown of this photo reveals a close up shot using maximum shutter speed.

To get this shot, I placed myself on the inside edge of a large racing track just around the bend of the first corner off the starting gate. I did this because the sun was out, it was midday, so I was dealing with the glare from snow as well as really bright conditions. 

I realized the two main obstacles in my path to achieving the result I wanted, was the sun and the speed of the racers. But I also wanted good focusing on the subject. So do to this I used a 50 mm lens, dialed the shutter speed up to its fastest setting and then dialed down the aperture just enough to get decent depth to the photograph. I shot with the sun at my back, and that's evident from the shadowing in the picture itself. 

The leader pulled ahead of the pack the first turn, and this is what I was able to get as he pulled around the bend ahead of everyone else. He stayed in first position throughout the race, and ended up earning top spot in the series. While ice motorcycle racing is loud and fast, I thought about all the times when I enjoyed riding the dirt bike I had as a child.

In those times, the loudness and fastness was muffled by not only the helmet I wore, but because of my concentration as well. It is the calmness and precision on the part of the racer that I wanted to convey.

The technical aspects of the photo are as follows:

Model: Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XTi
Date-Time: 2/9/2014 – 12:19:47 PM
Shutter Speed: 1/3200 sec
Exposure: Manual
f-stop: 3.5
ISO: 200
Lens: EF 50mm f/1.8

What is photo gazetteer?

The story behind the photograph is just as important as the photograph itself. This is a blog that will look at the stories behind the photographs shaping our world, everything from the small and mundane, to the big and spectacular. Feel free to comment on photos and share your own.