HOW I SHOT THIS.
Here is a quick little tutorial on what I did to get this shot.

*Important safety tips.  Be sure to check with the event managers and ask about access to the track. Only go where they allow you. Wear bright clothing. Don't get in the way. Look both ways before crossing the track. Look both ways before crossing the track. Be aware of your surroundings- don't get caught up with the camera viewfinder and fail to notice the rider heading right at you. Pay attention. If a rider goes down, your camera should go down also. Help the rider.

I was using a Nikon D700 camera with a 24-70mm f/2.8 zoom lens. The zoom setting was a 48mm.

The basic camera settings were 1/800 of a second at f/10. ISO was set at 400.

The camera settings were for exposure and getting a fast enough shutter speed to freeze the action. I usually try to shoot at 1/800 or faster to freeze the riders. You can experiment with shutter speed for different effects. A slightly slower shutter speed would have kept the bikes and riders sharp and allowed some motion blur on the spinning tires. This would have provided a more dynamic image by implying "speed" in a still photograph. By slowing the shutter speed even more and panning the camera with the movement of the rider, the background would blur and the rider and motorcycle would have remained fairly sharp. Try experimenting with the shutter speed the next time you get out to the track.

Your position on the track relative to the rider and the light is probably the most important factor. This allows you to get to best light on the rider and motorcycle. If you have hard light with deep shadows and burnt highlights, no camera settings will capture all of the detail. This image was shot in bright, hard, sunlight as you can see by the shadows under the riders. The shot was taken at about 2:00 and the light was nearly overhead. Not the best lighting situation. I usually look at my own shadow on the ground to determine where I will position myself on the track. I did manage to get on the lighter side of the riders. If I would have been on the other side of the track the riders and motorcycles would have been in deeper shadow. Lighting is the most important factor in photography and moving to the right spot gets you to the best light. If your shadow is behind you as you face the subject, you should probably move.

On overcast days or when the sun is behind a cloud, the light is diffused and the shadows are not as hard. These conditions allow the photographer more leeway for positioning for the shot. Again, experiment with location to get the lighting you want.

Shooting up close with a wide angle really puts the rider in your face. Up close and personal. In this image the front tire looks larger. A wide angle lens up close will emphasize this effect and bring depth to the image. This is where you really need to pay attention to the action around you. Don't get your eye stuck to the viewfinder and become an accident waiting to happen.

This image was also adjusted in Adobe Photoshop Lightroom. That would be a post in itself.

Learn your camera settings and learn to shoot in shutter priority, aperture priority, or manual. Your images will benefit from it.

So move into position, get the best light, and be safe.

See you at the track.

Dana

Viewing Sharptail Grouse on the Lek.

Spring is in the air and so is anything that can be lifted by 30 mile per hour winds. North Dakota is wonderful. 
This spring I finally made it to the sharptail grouse viewing blind managed by the Long Lake National Wildlife Refuge.  I have been there three times and hope to get there one more time this week.  If you have never been there I suggest going.  Reservations are required and can be made by calling the Refuge.  Refuge information here   http://www.fws.gov/longlake/ 

I will offer a few tips from my trips to the blind.

• Arrive at least 45 minutes before sunrise. The Refuge staff recommend 30 minutes, but I like to be there at least 45 minutes early.
• Locate the blind during daylight hours before you try to find it in the dark.
• Bring a small flashlight and use it sparingly.
• Bring a pad to sit on.  There are two lightly padded folding chairs in the blind but remember you will be sitting for a few hours.
• Bring something that will also record audio/video.  The sounds the birds make are interesting also. I shot video before it was light enough to shoot stills with my DSLR.
• Bring a tripod. There will be lots of opportunity to shoot images and your arms will get tired if you are holding your camera all the time. 
• Waterproof footwear. There are a couple low areas (ditch and very small "wetland" area) that had water in them when I went. The ditch was fairly obvious, the small wetland wasn't. Fortunately I found the wetland during daylight hours on my way out from the blind. There may also be frost or dew on the long grass that will dampen your feet and shins. Avoid wet feet.
• Pack out whatever you pack in.

The low light level at sunrise requires shooting at a high ISO, wide aperture, and a long but manageable shutter speed. To avoid fumbling around with your camera in the dark, adjust your settings the night before.  For my first images of the day, I started with an ISO of 2000 and lowered it as light allowed.  For some of these early shots I was able to get by at an aperture of f/8. I was shooting in shutter priority at the fastest speeds I could manage. Some of these early morning shutter speeds were a second or more. (The birds occasionally sit still.) This is where a tripod is an essential tool. These early morning (just before sunrise until about 15 minutes after sunrise) shots really tax your ability to gather enough light.

When the sunlight actually strikes the lek, you can start to move your ISO back down. It seemed like every 2 minutes after the sun had risen I was able to lower my ISO or stop down my aperture 1/3 to 1/2 stop.

This light is better anyway because it brings out the yellow "eyelashes" and purple air sacs on the birds.

The first first image in the article was after the sunlight had hit the lek. This next image was before the sun had risen.  The lighting is flat, and I had to bring up the colors in Lightroom. On my third trip, when the light was like this, I shot video.

The birds are very active right about sunrise. You may hear the birds before you can see them and all of the sudden the grouse seem to pop out of the ground and they are everywhere. The action will slow down when the birds start to pair off. They will squat down and stare at each other.

If the birds get spooked and flush, just hang tight for a few minutes and they will come back.

Hopefully this will help you view and photograph these avian ballerinas.

Good luck and best light.

Dana Middleton