Hey Buckeye:
Can you give me some tips on the night shots? I've never been able to catch a good one.
Uh... well... my only advice is get really damn lucky. I just got my first SLR for Christmas last year and Sebring was my first time using it. I took about 8 rolls of film and ended up getting some good shots just by playing around with different settings. Mostly trial and error. I think on the second one up there I actually had the camera mounted on a tripod and just panned with the car. Hence the more fluid nature and clarity of that shot. I don't have a flash other than the pop up one on the camera itself. I was standing at the entrance to turn 3 on the outside. The lighting is mostly coming from the trackside lighting. I also use the manual focus more than auto focus. While taking photos at Eldora Speedway (dirt track here in Ohio), I learned that the auto focus would usually have enough of a delay to miss the exact shot I wanted. Then I realized that if I focused in manual mode on a rut in the track, or a spot on the wall where I wanted the shot to be taken, I could then pan with and follow the car until that exact spot where I wanted the photo to be taken. Then take the shot without the delay from the auto focus. I'm very much an amateur at this stuff, so I'm probably not the best person to ask. Actually my best advice is to keep your eyes open on message boards and stuff. I've actually emailed a few "real" photographers and asked a few simple questions and they've always been very helpful.
