How to Photograph Track Cycling

(All images copyright Michael Berkeley Photography - no reproduction without permission)

Photographing track cycling was a very different challenge for me because I am primarily used to photographing sport outdoors - cricket, football, polo etc - or, if indoors, with consistent light, such as basketball and ice hockey. This was altogether different - and very exciting!

My experience of track cycling comes from 2 visits to Lee Valley VeloPark on Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London in 2017 and 2018.  I had been given a photo pass for the Six Day London event and this gave me access to the photographers’ positions at the end of the finishing straight and also trackside access.

The Six Day Series website promises high octane action: 

“The lights get turned down and the music turned up, as Six Day Cycling combines the very best in track cycling with an incredible party atmosphere. Expect the action to come thick and fast as our track centre DJ keeps the party going before, during and after the racing.”

(Nikon D500; 200-500mm at 200mm; f/5.6; 1/320th sec; ISO 12,800)

There is plenty of variety too, with events including the Madison (cycling in pairs); the Elimination (last one out); the Derny (each cyclist follows a moped); the 200m time trial (head to head); and the Keirin (all behind a single moped).

There is a great atmosphere and the audience is whipped up to a fever pitch of excitement. The party atmosphere is partly generated by the dramatic lighting, which of course makes it all the more interesting for the photographer.

(Nikon D500; 18-55mm at 55mm; f/5.6; 1/60th sec; ISO 2800)

I set out my ‘standard’ settings in my blog Getting into Sport and Music Photography.  A high proportion of my sport images use a wide-open aperture to give a shallow depth of field, in order to separate the action and point(s) of interest from the foreground and background.  While I did of course do this at the cycling, I found panning a more fruitful technique (see my blog on How to Photograph Speedway for more information on panning).

(Nikon D500; 70-210mm at 70mm; f/4; 1/80th sec; ISO 1800)

I used a Nikon D500 on both visits and I had a Nikon 200-500mm f/5.6 lens at both too.  In 2017, however, I had an 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 lens and a 70-210mm f/4-5.6 lens.  In the challenging conditions, these struggled to get enough light into the camera. When I returned a year later, I was better equipped with a 24-70mm f/2.8 and a 70-200mm f/2.8.

One benefit of an event like this is that there is plenty of opportunity to try different positions, angles, settings etc.  The races last for some while and there are therefore a large number of laps.  Although the basic premise is the same – riding around the track in the same direction in every race – the different disciplines bring different characteristics to capture.

(Nikon D500; 70-210mm at 70mm; f/5; 1/320th sec; ISO 11,400)

In the Madison, for example, riders competing in pairs use a ‘hand-sling’ to catapult their partner forwards when they are handing over the turn to race – see photo above. 

This is very different in character from the Derny, where the competitors ride in the slipstream of a motorised pacer (incidentally, the 6 Day Series website describes the expressions of the derny pacers as ranging from ‘inscrutable’ to ‘very inscrutable’).  In the image below, the emphasis is on the derny riders, rather than the cyclists, in order to convey the character of this race.

(Nikon D500; 200-500mm at 200mm; f/5.6; 1/320th sec; ISO 8000)

And in the Sprint …  Racing is highly tactical, with the 2 riders vying for position, occasionally leading to both of them executing track stands – i.e. not moving – in order to make the other go first (see below).  This is trying to ‘tell the story’ of how the 2 cyclists are highly competitive and trying to get one over the other – by doing nothing.

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 150mm; f/2.8; 1/80th sec; ISO 1600)

As I mentioned at the start, the majority of my sport photography tends to be outdoors and during daylight and, where I have photographed sport indoors, the lighting has been constant.  It was very exciting therefore to photograph an event where the light show was all part of the atmosphere.  The races themselves were conducted with the stadium lights dimmed and the track itself lit, providing great opportunities to play with shadows.

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 98mm; f/2.8; 1/400th sec; ISO 800)

At the end of each race, spotlights followed the victorious rider around the track on their celebratory lap – see below.  

(Nikon D500; 200-500mm at 200mm; f/5.6; 1/320th sec; ISO 7200)

While the photographers’ positions at the end of the finishing straight gave a perfect view down the track, the images were taken from higher up, which meant that it was more difficult to see the riders’ face, even when they were at the far end of the track.  

By getting down to track level, it was possible to get much closer to the action and, by crouching down, almost to look up at the riders as they went past.

(Nikon D500; 24-70mm at 24mm; f/2.8; 1/100th sec; ISO 1100)

The photograph above was taken with a wide-angle lens, and the rider was only feet away and travelling at speed.  The shutter speed of 1/100th second was enough to provide motion blur, whereas a faster shutter speed would have made it feel more static.  Moreover, taking the image directly into the bright light – on the third – draws the eye to the rider’s face and bicycle … The photo below was taken with the same lens but zoomed in. Again the shadow comes into play.

(Nikon D500; 24-70mm at 70mm; f/2.8; 1/100th sec; ISO 1400)

It is always tempting to lose concentration when the main action is over, but this is often when there are interesting photos to be had.  It is always worth keeping alert – and resist the temptation to review the photographs that you have already taken!

The image below shows the celebratory victory lap and the connection between the rider and the audience.  It brings together interesting lighting, the curves of the track side, and the rider’s colourful clothing to produce an atmospheric shot. 

(Nikon D500; 200-500mm at 240mm; f/5.6; 1/320th sec; ISO 5000)

Both my visits to Lee Valley VeloPark were hugely enjoyable and the photography was extremely rewarding.  As I am not used to photographing in such conditions, the main challenges were to exploit the dramatic lighting to best effect and also to convey the variety of cycling spectacle that is the Six Day Series.

With particular thanks to Six Day London.

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How to Photograph Ice Hockey

 How to Photograph Ice Hockey 

(All images copyright Michael Berkeley Photography - no reproduction without permission)

I love photographing ice hockey - it is fast, exciting and a spectacle.  I first contacted Swindon Wildcats back in autumn 2017 and they kindly allowed me to photograph the match against the Hull Pirates; and I have been back on 3 further occasions.

Ice hockey isn’t a sport that I know a huge amount about, so I did some research on Google before my first visit to Swindon to find out more about the sport and to see what sort of images other photographers were getting. I found out that some rinks have a ‘photographers’ hole’ – which is a hole in the Plexiglas big enough for a camera lens to go through, thereby providing an uninterrupted view of the action – but I have seen a video where the puck was hit through the hole and injured the photographer badly, so I wasn’t too enthusiastic about that!

(Sony A9II; 70-200mm at 200mm; f/2.8; 1/1000th sec; ISO 1600)

As it happens, there isn’t a hole at Swindon, so my first task was to find a suitable position from which to shoot.  Following my practice at other ‘end to end’ sports such as football, rugby, polo and basketball, I positioned myself at rink level, on the corner.  This afforded good views down the rink, as well as of the goal – while ensuring that the view through the Plexiglas was not too oblique, as that would have created unwanted reflections.  I also checked that the Plexiglas in front of me didn’t have too many scratches or smears so that the images were as clear as possible.

As I didn’t have a dedicated spot, I ensured that I arrived early to reserve my space before too many spectators arrived.  This proved more of a problem for the ‘local derby’ against Basingstoke on New Year’s Day 2020, as there were many more visiting fans than for the game against Hull back in 2017.  

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 122mm - f/2.8; 1/1000th sec; ISO 280)

Also, as a match has 3 periods of 20 minutes each where the teams alternate ends, it is worth positioning yourself at the end that ‘your’ team is attacking in the first period, as you will then have 2 periods where they are primarily skating towards you on the attack.

I used the general principles for camera settings set out in my blog Getting into Sport and Music Photography.  This meant that I set the lens as wide open as possible to reduce the depth of field (normally f/2.8 with the lenses I have); set the shutter speed to a level where I reckoned the puck would be frozen, even when hit at speed (so, at least 1/1000th sec); and put the ISO setting to Auto within max/min limits (although, as the light levels were constant, I reckon I could have set the ISO to one particular level).

(Nikon D500; 18-55mm at 18mm - f/3.5; 1/1000th sec; ISO 900)

I have experimented with a number of different lenses over the 4 games I have covered and, on balance, the 70-200mm zoom is the most versatile if using only one body (I find it difficult swapping bodies at speed, considering how quickly an ice hockey match unfolds).  As far as focussing is concerned, I used continuous-servo AF on the Nikon, with 3D-tracking, which worked well with the fast-moving skaters.

The image above was taken with an 18-55mm lens, however, and the wide angle gives a dramatic perspective when the action is so close.  Note the reflection in the Plexiglas on the right of the image, because I was shooting obliquely through it.

Ice hockey is of course played indoors under lights and this adds the complication of getting the white balance correct, which isn’t such an issue with sports outdoors.  I haven’t found this too much of a problem, especially with the Sony A9II, so I leave White Balance on Auto and I work on this while reviewing the photos on Lightroom back at home.

(Sony A9II; 70-200mm at 200mm - f/2.8; 1/1000th sec; ISO 2000)

With ice hockey, the action moves at high speed from one end of the rink to the other, and there is often quite a crush around the goal, making it difficult to isolate the action in a photograph that doesn’t have a crowd of players displaying more backs than faces. It’s very similar to basketball in this respect.

In the image above, the camera has picked up the player that I wanted to focus on, even though other players have moved in front of him, so this illustrates how difficult it is to get an uninterrupted view of the player you want to photograph.  I quite like the position of the puck and the sticks, but I am not sure that this is a ‘keeper’.

The easiest time to grab ‘stock shots’ of the players is when they were moving from one end of the rink to the other, because they are facing you, and also they often don’t have opposition players obscuring them (see below).

(Sony A9II; 70-200mm at 200mm - f/2.8; 1/1000th sec; ISO 2000)

I aim to get a recognisable face, the puck and the stick(s) fully in the picture if possible.  As with other arena sports, the background can be distracting because I am shooting from rink level and the adverts and the spectators therefore come into play.  

In the image below, I have darkened the image in post-production to obscure the spectators.  Maybe it’s the wrong image to use (too much empty space top right), but I find the lack of spectators weird.  As a principle, I feel spectators provide context and atmosphere, although it is good to blur them as much as the lens will allow – hence the importance of making the depth of field as shallow as possible by having the lens wide open.

(Nikon D500; 70-210mm at 70mm - f/4; 1/1250th sec; ISO 560)

Having photographed players moving from one end of the rink to the other, the next challenge is to capture the goal-mouth action.  As previously stated, this can be tricky with the number of players involved and the speed with which everything happens – but it is not impossible.  Using continuous shooting is also helpful, because that increases the likelihood of capturing the precise moment you want.

As always, the better you understand the sport, the easier it is to anticipate what is going to happen – whether it is shot on goal or when a fight is brewing, which is a part of the game that is immensely popular with the spectators!

In the image below, the Wildcats player in red is facing the camera and the puck is in a good position in relation to the goalie.

(Sony A9II; 70-200mm at 121mm - f/2.8; 1/1000th sec; ISO 2500)

Part of the challenge is also to capture the emotion of the players - the highs and the lows. In the image below, the concentration and determination on the face of the Wildcats’ attacking player in red is contrasted with the frustration of the Bisons’ defenders who cannot get to the puck. This provides a tension in the picture and starts to tell a story.

(Sony A9II; 70-200mm at 70mm - f/2.8; 1/1000th sec; ISO 2500)

Ice hockey is a very physical game, often involving hits and altercations between the players – this is just part of the spectacle (see below).  Sometimes these can happen right in front of you, so close in fact that it is not possible to capture them.  

(Sony A9II; 70-200mm at 200mm - f/2.8; 1/1000th sec; ISO 2000)

Also, there are some good images to be had when a player stops quickly and his skates throw up ice (see below).

(Nikon D500; 70-210mm at 70mm - f/4; 1/1000th sec; ISO 720)

As always, I am on the lookout for pictures that provide atmosphere, such as the goal celebration and player shots below.  Celebrations in any sport reflect emotion and success, so they are firm favourites with the club involved.

(Sony A9II; 70-200mm at 120mm - f/2.8; 1/1000th sec; ISO 2500)

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 200mm - f2.8; 1/1000th sec; ISO 450)

I would jump at the opportunity to photograph ice hockey again.  It is high octane fun – and a challenge photographically to capture images that make artistic sense when the play appears fairly chaotic.  If you get a chance, I would strongly recommend that you give it a go!

With special thanks to Swindon Wildcats.

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How to Photograph Climbing

(All images copyright Michael Berkeley Photography - no reproduction without permission)

The challenge of photographing climbing is different from any other sport I know.  The main difficulty is finding a suitable place from which to take the photographs.  

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 86mm; f/2.8; 1/4000th sec; ISO 250)

It is easy to find a position on the ground below the climber, but you get a (generally unflattering) view of their backside (see below).  I imagine you could get some dramatic shots from above, looking down the rockface, but this would mean that you have to be harnessed up and on the rockface (crag) yourself.  

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 200mm - f/11; 1/400th sec; ISO 125)

This is not impossible, but you would have to receive some training in climbing and it would have the added complication of handling camera equipment whilst hanging from a rope.  The risk of dropping equipment, dislodging rocks onto a climber below or of getting into difficulties while trying to manage both climbing and camera equipment suggest that this option is for the serious climbing photographer only.

I was lucky.  A photographer friend – who is also a very experienced and expert climber – offered to take me down to the crags of Portland in Dorset and to show me where the best vantage points are.  Without him I would never have found the places we went, and his knowledge of climbing was invaluable in explaining what I was seeing.

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 70mm; f/2.8; 1/6400th sec; ISO 100)

As I was unsure what we would encounter, I hedged my bets by taking 2 bodies – a full-frame Nikon D700 and crop-sensor Nikon D500 – and 2 lenses, a 24-70mm f2.8 and a 70-200mm f2.8.  These gave me a range of options to try different combinations, depending on what I was trying to achieve.

We started on the eastern side of the peninsula and later in the day we followed the sun round to the western side.  These locations provided different perspectives and therefore variety to the photography, and exploited the light at different times of the day.

I applied the general principles and camera settings that I set out in my blog Getting into Music and Sport Photography.  I also tried to take account of the two key aspects of sport photography that I have mentioned in almost every blog that I have written: (a) getting the person’s face in the picture so that they are recognisable and (b) avoiding distracting backgrounds.  In the case of climbing, however, the backgrounds were less of an issue, because there were none of the advertising boards that you get at football or cricket grounds!

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 200mm; f/6.3; 1/4000th sec; ISO 500)

Our first location – on the east of the peninsula – only really allowed photographs to be taken from ground level.  This made it very difficult to capture the climber’s face and, if zoomed in on the climber, it was hard to give a true impression of how high they were up the crag. The climber in the photo above was only a couple of meters off the ground – the image gives no idea of scale or context.

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 70mm; f/3.2; 1/6400th sec; ISO 220)

While the photo above provides scale and context, the climber is a long way and he is not therefore recognisable.  Moreover, the climber is not actually climbing as the ropes are holding him as he rests, so this is not the most effective action shot.

We followed the sun west and went to a different location in the afternoon.  The crags here were more challenging for the climbers and the scenery more spectacular.  Moreover, it was possible to find a promontory to stand on which afforded views along the rockface that was on a level with the climbers.  This was ideal because it gave the illusion that we were on the crag with them.

(Nikon D700; 24-70mm at 24mm; f/8; 1/1000th sec; ISO 450)

The photograph above – looking south – suffers from some of the problems that the previous images have.  Although you have context and scale (in abundance), it is impossible to see the climber’s face.  Moreover, the grey clothes he is wearing are similar in colour to the rockface, meaning that the climber merges into the background and is therefore almost totally lost.

Turning round from the same vantage point, the view was equally dramatic and the climbers were even closer to us on our promontory.  We were also in luck because one of the climbers was wearing a bright orange top which stood out strikingly from the colour of the rockface.  The 2 photographs of her below were taken from the same position but with very different techniques:

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 112mm; f/2.8; 1/4000th sec; ISO 100)

The image above was taken with the lens wide open at f2.8, thereby making the depth of field as shallow as possible and blurring the background.  Although there is not much space below the climber, the blurred background gives a feeling of height.  Taken with a Nikon D500, the crop sensor made the 112mm focal length equivalent to 168mm, meaning that it was possible to focus on the climber’s face and therefore the concentration needed.  A fast shutter speed was required to compensate for the wide-open aperture.

On the other hand, the image below was taken with a full-frame Nikon D700 with a wide-angle lens set at a focal length of 42mm.  This gives a completely different perspective, setting the climber in the context of the dramatic scenery.  This certainly provides a good idea of the scale of the climb, but it lacks the personal impact that the facial expression in the first image.

(Nikon D700; 24-70mm at 42mm; f/8; 1/1000th sec; ISO 320)

It is impossible to say that one is better than the other – they are just different and equally valid in what they are trying to achieve.  Having said that, my own preference is for the close up, because my interest in sport photography is in the personal aspects of individuals striving to push themselves to the limit and facial expressions are key in portraying that.

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 200mm; f/2.8; 1/4000th sec; ISO 100)

The image above is another example of using a long lens – in this case the 200mm focal length equated to 300mm on the crop sensor camera – but, again, I feel that the climber is slightly lost on the crag, even though she too is wearing a colourful top.

(Nikon D500; 70-200mm at 130mm; f/2.8; 1/4000th sec; ISO 400)

All in all, it was a fabulous – and photographically challenging – day out.  So what did I learn?

·      You can either photograph the climber (with recognisable face, straining muscles etc.) OR the crag (dramatic scenery, climber providing perspective).

·      To the climbing fraternity it’s far, far better that the climber is ‘leading the climb’ – that is, the rope is being held by somebody on the ground below, rather than from above – because the image contains risk/edge.

·      Climbers love having their photo taken – not only were they willing subjects but they were keen to receive copies of the shots taken!

Yet again I came away overawed by the skill, dexterity and strength of the people I met and was grateful for their permission to photograph them.  And, of course, I was particularly grateful to Paul for showing me the ropes …

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