Professional Tips on Taking Pictures at High-Speed Events
by Erica Wright
Professional photographer Paul Webb has a passion for racing, from motocross to NASCAR to the Indy circuit, where he became racing sensation Danica Patrick's official photographer. Here you can read his story and get some great photo tips on high-speed photography
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Photography found Paul Webb on the sidelines of his older brother's motorcycle races. A surprising place to find a career perhaps, but a location that has served him well. Today, Webb is one of the country's foremost racing photographers, spending twenty-five to thirty weekends per year at race tracks.
Unlike many photographers who search for a niche in order to make themselves marketable, Webb pursued photography as means to follow racing. After two years at the Rochester Institute of Technology, Webb chose roads over classrooms. He bought a van and followed the motocross circuit. He quickly forayed into cars and has now covered nearly every form out there including rallying, Formula One, and drag racing. Webb spends most of his time on the Indy circuit where he works for LAT/USA and is also the personal photographer of Danica Patrick, the driver named the 2005 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year after becoming the first female to lead the race.
Although his work with Patrick certainly keeps him busy, she is not the only high-profile driver that Webb has photographed. In fact, his website (www.paulwebbphotography.com) has images of nearly everyone that's a household name in racing: Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt, Darrell Waltrip, Kyle Petty, and Mario Andretti just to name a few. Although Webb humbly credits luck for some of his exceptional images, there is obviously a great deal of skill and dedication in his shots. Webb is as focused on getting the job done as any of his subjects are in their slightly higher-risk situations.
Another similarity between Webb and his lively subjects is a need to be streamlined. Because each moment of a race is action-packed and contains the possibility of surprise, Webb must be ready; consequently, he eschews large amounts of equipment. Fiddling with lenses might mean missing a shot. His philosophy is to bring minimal equipment and use what he has on hand. In our interview with him, Webb asserted, "you can certainly prepare yourself to be lucky, but all the good photographs contain an element outside your control." Although he put the emphasis on luck, preparation is equally important, and Webb arrives on every scene prepared. The result is a collection of images connected not only by subject matter, but also by their ability to convey the reality—the expected highs as well as the unavoidable lows—of professional auto racing.
Bakaca, the tips are under "Related Links" - "Click here to read Paul Webb's Photo Tips on Taking Pictures at High-Speed Events..." There, they are laid out in a tip by tip format.
