Turn 5 at Laguna Seca

Excellent shot, and nice to see a motorsports image picked as the POW. People who suggest that anyone can do this with the proper equipment obviously haven't actually tried it. Talk is cheap.

 

To me this photo has mild dramatics, I can't tell if he's racing or just taking a practice lap. I've seen these guy's leaning alot deeper than this and in my opinion had he been doing so this would give the photo a little more energy.

Wow, you can hold a 400mm image stabaliser steady. What a shit bunch of photos, give up mate

For the second week in a row, the harshest criticisms seem to come from those who don't display their own work. Coincdence?

Very nice shot. I don't know squat about motorcycling, being an open-wheel fan, but this is a strong image that would not look out of place on the cover of a magazine, imho.

Vuk, if I were offended by anonymous posters on Photonet, I would have quit long ago! If I dont get abuse in public, people send me personal hate mails. Rest assured that I wasnt offended by your insolent remarks.

 

I dont get what people mean by saying the rider looks like he is falling over to the right (of the photo); even now when I look at it with that in mind. The balance looks pretty perfect to me.

 

...philistine punters... Vuk Vuksanovic

 

Someone needs to call the moderators in to rid up the garbage on this page...

 

We are not your clients and, as the weak ratings of your "winning" shot suggest, we seem to have much higher standards. Vuk Vuksanovic

 

Or maybe we just arent capable of understanding anything but art? Or maybe the categories arent useful for rating a non-artistic photo? Either way, I laugh at your implication that Photonet has high standards! This site doesnt even pretend to be for high and mighty artsy folk anymore. It has degenerated into a circus of hopefuls who shoot E10s part-time for newspapers. If things were run for those of the artsy mould, there would be no nature, wildlife or, you guessed it, sports photos. Take those out of todays Photonet and what is left? These disciplines only rarely fall into art, and are never interesting to the same degree as pure art. But those who pull the strings have decided they want to turn Photonet into a playground for anyone with a camera, and I respect their decision and play by the rules, hence have commented on this photo for what it is (not as a piece of art). The direction the site is taking is totally against my instincts, but that wont stop me commenting on images that are more functional and less artistic. Photography is a little more complex than listening to your Oracle floatable-type turntable with 10 lb platter, Vuk, and it sometimes requires more acceptance of alternative forms than youre probably used to on your high-end audio sites.

 

All photography is art. Joshua Calvi

 

That is, without a doubt, the most ridiculous statement I have ever read on Photonet. Sorry Joshua. I really wonder what you meant by that.

 

For the second week in a row, the harshest criticisms seem to come from those who don't display their own work. Coincdence? Mark Bentley

 

Quite possibly. Photonet isnt exactly an inviting place to upload your photos. I have multiple reasons for not doing so, but none of them are because Im afraid my work wouldnt cut it. Anyway I wouldnt call Adam Vans comment criticism. Gibberish under the influence of alcohol is more like it; I hardly think Darron is trembling at the knees because of it.

 

Darron is selling images, and seems to fall back on this fact as an excuse for deficiencies in the photograph. For example, with the blue tape, he says there is nothing he could do about it (and of course he couldnt as the rider has to obey rules). But the subject is an important part of any sports photo -- if it isnt just right the photo will suffer. We who view the photo cant simply ignore problems and write them off as unfortunate. We have to view the photo as is. Which leads me to question the reasoning of those who are saying this was a hard photo to get. I dont care how difficult it was to take! Its the image that Im looking at, not Darron spending hours in the sun with a far too heavy camera and the unrelenting scream of big bikes going far too fast through a chicane.

It's an extremely satisfactory photo Darron.

Can't be faulted technically but isn't this just like every other photo you get in glossy bike mags? BTW wish i could take photos like that!!

Why do I have the vision, that the POW, on this address, turns into a funny institution?

Samuel.

 

You're a very touchy and defensive fellow aren't you? It now appears to have led you to grossly misrepresent/overstate what I've written and that's extremely underhanded. I suggest people look over my original posts.

 

In response to a couple of your points, I am not posting "anonymously" (this is my real name) and I never suggested you were "offended"--though it seems more than a bit adolescent to go out of one's way to make a point about how one wasn't. As for standards, I remarked only that those of photonet were much higher than Darron's motorbiker clients' and I actually agree with you about their low level in a broader or more absolute sense, in particular with certain types of photography. In fact, we seem to agree a tremendous amount: what you wrote at the end of the messages echoes pretty much what I've tried to get across about the photo under scrutiny.

 

Vuk.

Sharp and technically sound picture. Just doesn't hold my attention though. Perhaps what really turn me off is somehow this picture almost carries with it an advertising sales tone like that seen in motocycle magazines. POW status as a technically good picture is understandable; but as an piece of photographic art - it is very questionable. Personally, this is the kind of pictures that I wouldn't mind seeing less of.

I have seen alot of these kinds of photos in calendars. That's where they should stay. I mean, it's a pretty picture, but how hard is it with a Digital camera?

well, my two favorite photographers on this site, kiet vuong and tony drummet, disagree almost bitterly, i guess if you guy's put your heads together you wouldnt make some sort of superhuman photographic genius, but would rather cancel eachother out. i wonder what Miguel Mealha, Dan Heller, and Daniel Bayer have to say about this!

im with tony on this one, i think its boring, regardless, much respect to you all.

I like this photo better than the other photo you uploaded. The colors are popping a little more and the composition is right on. Good job! Must have been hard to catch the riders at the right time at the speed they were going!

I like this shot. Would have preffered a slower shutter speed though.

Here's a shot from my first attempts at panning bies. I wouldn't put it in the same class as this shot but would you believe he was probably only doing about 15mph? Larger version here.

I have a D 30 adn the same ens used here in your photo. I love the color and saturation the D 30 produces. But after shooting an EOS 3 for a year. I sure did miss the autofocus and eyecontrol. I very seldom use my D 30 for any sports. my compliments on your skill with the equipmant at hand.

I bet nobody will read this, but I find there is a trend to the snotty higher than though approach here. if its not a landscape, portrait or other wholly set up shot, its' going to get torn to pieces. People have begun to think of good photographs as being only those still ones that focus solely on things hard to grasp and that are entirely what they consider to be 'artsy.'

 

I love shooting sports, but am not that good at it since I never have the chance to do so. Occaisionally I'll get a shot I'm proud of. Technically this is an excellent shot, and is very sharp. It's well taken and composed. The tight composition makes me think of speed and give me the impression that he was moving fairly quickly.

best example for the sense of rating system.

Also you can see that a wide range of ratings can be a commendation for an interessting/orignal picture.