| Down the stretch! Know your damn camera!!! There are more features than you can imagine that, simply stated, will allow you to make pictures you've never imagined possible. This image started with a conversation about trying something different at the 2005 Kentucky Derby. Anne, the Chief photographer of The BloodHorse magazine, was talking with me about shooting positions where I asked if I could take myself off the beaten path and try something different. She agreed and asked if I wouldn't mind covering a postion that only a few other shooters were allowed to go, just above the Winner's Circle on the roof of the pagoda. I jumped on the opportunity. |  |
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| The key was to be sure to study the position carefully and look for the trouble spots. What could potentially go wrong? What will the light be at the time I'll be shooting there? What obstacles, such as security, may hinder the postion I'm trying to take? Who can I make friends with to minimize the potential problems that will leave me with no pictures? If you don't ask yourself many, if not all of these questions and more, your asking for disaster to strike. It's been said that "luck is nothing more than preparation meeting opportunity." I've alway thought luck was just plain luck. I'm not sure what to believe but as long as it's good and not bad, luck can play a part of any good picture I make, anytime it wants to. Combine that with the High-Speed Crop mode of the D2x which allows for the camera to shoot at 8 frames per second with a 2x crop of any lens I use, so the 400 2.8 AF-S II (my lens of choice) effectively shoots with the angle of view of an 800mm with an aperture of 2.8. That's friggin cool! With the stars aligned and my ducks in a row, it all worked out in the end with a nice two-page spread in The Bloodhorse.
the idea: Come to the Derby with an open mind and look for an opportunity. After about 10 years of shooting the Derby it was time. the motivation: To find a postion away from the pack and do something different, using technology to my advantage. the challenge: Doing my homework and looking into every aspect of what could make this shot work. After researching the position, the biggest challenge was knowing that the horses coming down the stretch would be out of sight and I calculated approximately 2-3 seconds to make sense of what was happening, who was in the lead, and lock on the pack. The pagoda tower was all I could see to my right. Talk about an adrenaline rush! the key to making it work: Following the commitment to solve any problems that could potentially kill the shot. Making frequent appearances at the pagoda and making friends with some of the nicest law enforcement people I've met, the Louisville PD, the Churchill Downs security and others that can't be mentioned. It was important to get my timing down by shooting some of the preliminary races and select the best focusing setup that would accomodate my needs. With no large TV screens I actually followed the cheering of the crowd as the horses passed in front of them. It was almost like following fans doing the wave. As the horses passed by the crowd would scream louder and I could hear the audible wave coming my way. The ultimate compliment: Bill Luster, Mr. Kentucky Derby (the Godfather of the track) called me to tell me that was one of the best images he'd ever seen from that position in his 30 something years of being there... To see more end result images from the entire shoot, click here the gear: camera: Nikon D2x D-SLR lens: 400 2.8 AF-S II Nikkor (in the cropped mode it was the angle of view of an 800) accessories: monopod and the guts to pull it off |
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