racing

Two race cars speeding past the finish line on a racetrack, with the leading blue and white car crossing over the checkered line.

The NASCAR Camera Tech Behind a Historic 0.001s Photo Finish

So far, this NASCAR season has been one of slim margins and photo finishes. PetaPixel chatted with photographer Alex Slitz about his image of a three-way photo finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway in February, but last week's race at Kansas Speedway was somehow even closer -- with Kyle Larson winning by 0.001 second.

A NASCAR official in the foreground waves the checkered flag as Daniel Suarez beats Kyle Bush and Ryan Blaney across the finish line.

Photographer Captures Unique Shot of a Legendary NASCAR Photo Finish

The second race of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season was an absolute thrill, with a trio of cars crossing the finish line side-by-side, creating a "photo finish" and one of the most incredible endings to a race ever. Photographer Alex Slitz was at the finish line next to the NASCAR official waving the checkered flag, capturing one of the best photos ever of a photo finish.

Man Climbs NASCAR Fence for Closeup Photos of Racecars

During the NASCAR Coca-Cola 600 race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway this past weekend, one fan apparently decided that his camera wasn't close enough to the action, so he decided to climb the 30-foot-tall+ catch fence for ultra-close up photos of racecars speeding by below him.

A Camera in One Hour: How CPS Saved the Day and My Photo Job

We all plan for our shoots, we pack our kits, check it twice, and always heave a sigh of relief when we get to the job and everything is there. The airline didn’t lose anything, nothing was dropped, there are no shattered lenses and those anxious few hours is over and done with.

Rally Car Hits Photographer Standing on Outside of Corner

Photographer David LeClair was photographing rally car racing at Sno*Drift Rally in Michigan last Friday when one of the rally cars lost control, slid off the road, and violently slammed into LeClair, sending the photographer flying. The whole incident was caught on camera (warning: the video shows an injury accident).

Photographer Barely Avoids Crashing Rally Car

Photographing rally car racing from right next to the track can be extremely hazardous to your health. Here's a 1-minute video that shows how one cameraman narrowly avoided getting squashed recently by a crashing and flipping rally car.

101-Megapixel B&W Photos of Pre-War Era Racing

Photographer Rick Wenner was recently sent to Wildwood, New Jersey, to shoot a peculiar event called "The Race of Gentlemen." It's a gathering of drag racers who speed across a beach on pre-war era hot rods and motorcycles -- the "perfect event for black-and-white photography," Wenner says.

Shooting Grassroots-Level Auto Racing

The state of Wisconsin has some of the most storied and exciting short tracks in the United States, and I grew up attending many of them. I watched the greats of ASA and ARTGO battle on tracks like Madison International, Slinger Speedway and WIR. Witnessing wheelmen like Mike Eddy, Lowell Bennett and Matt Kenseth write their legacies. I became addicted to the smell of racing fuel and the sound of a wide open throttle echoing off concrete walls.

The Photographer Who Shoots F1 with a 1913 Graflex 4×5 View Camera

There are many photographers covering the hugely popular world of Formula One racing, but none of them shoot it quite like Joshua Paul of Lollipop Magazine. Instead of using the latest and greatest digital cameras -- or even a modern camera, for that matter -- Paul chooses to use a Graflex 4x5 view camera from 1913.

Shooting the Kentucky Derby with the 20fps Sony a9

When editorial journalist Nick Didlick arrived at Churchill Downs for the 143rd running of the Kentucky Derby, he wasn't toting Canon 1DX Mark IIs or Nikon D5s. No, he came equipped with six Sony a9 cameras to see what this new camera could do at one of the biggest sporting events of the year.

How NOT to Shoot Off-Road Racing

Want to shoot off-road racing from a creative perspective under a vehicle flying through the air? You should probably get permission to deploy some remote cameras. You probably shouldn't crouch in a dip on the track and wait for racers to whiz past above your head.

What It’s Like to Shoot a Major Formula One Race

We recently published an interview with motorsport photojournalist Jamey Price, who shared some insights into what it's like to photograph top events in Formula One racing. Today, we'll share some behind-the-scenes photos Price sent us that show what a day multiple days in the life of an F1 photographer looks like.

An Interview with Motorsport Photojournalist Jamey Price

Jamey Price is an award-winning motorsport photojournalist who was recently named one of GQ Magazine's '10 Best Car / Racing Instagram Accounts to Follow.' Price has had his work published around the globe by Road and Track, RACER Magazine, F1 Racing Magazine, Sports Illustrated, Motorsport Magazine, ESPN, SPEEDTV, The Washington Post, and many more. He also currently works as a freelancer for a number of commercial clients including Ducati, Audi, Lamborghini, Aston Martin Racing, Mitsubishi, Nissan, and Red Bull.

We had a chat with Jamey to see what he had to say about his career thus far, what advice he could give to those interested in this field, and his views on using social media to spread his work and obtain new assignments.

24 Hours of Le Mans in Stop-Motion, Made with 1,158 Photos

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is one of the racing world's oldest, most famous, and most grueling races. Racing photographer Camden Thrasher covered the 2015 race last month and shot over 1,000 photos over the course of the day. Afterward, he took 1,158 of the photos he shot and turned them into this stop-motion video for Audi.

Audi calls the work "a fascinating homage to motorsport in general and Le Mans in particular."

A Crazy Photo Sequence from a Crash-Filled NASCAR Xfinity Series Race

This past weekend, I covered the Alert Today Florida 300 Xfinity NASCAR race in Daytona. Following the Kurt Busch NASCAR appeal across the street from the track, I had to hustle to get to the roof for the race -- it sure didn’t disappoint.

Halfway through the race, Daniel Suarez got turned sideway and hit Regan Smith (7), which caused Smith to barrel roll through the tri-oval. It was one of the best crash sequences I have shot.

Cameraman Hit by Rogue Tire During Rally Car Race, Returns It to Its Rightful Owner

We’re all aware that photographing motor sports can be a dangerous task. Whether it’s on an oval track, a road course, or along country ravines, there’s always an inherent risk when a comparatively fragile human is photographing thousands of pounds of metal, carbon fiber, plastic and glass traveling at speeds far above what many of us have ever driven.

But as the above video goes to show, it's not always the vehicle itself you have to worry about... the pieces that occasionally come off the vehicle can be just as dangerous.