So had a family glamping and camping holiday over the past couple of weeks in Oxfordshire and Northamptonshire which included 3 days for me at MotoGP Silverstone
Struggled as usual with the limitations of the track layout including large F1 induced run off areas and high safety fencing
As a result I spent a lot of time walking around the track trying to find sections where I could effectively shoot through the fencing (where I had not shot before for some variety)
The whole infield was closed to all spectators due to restrictions caused by the COVID situation apparently
Ticket sales were apparently a sell out due partly no doubt to the imminent retirement of Valentino Rossi - restricted to 67,000 apparently despite F1 being sold to well over 100,000 ?
(Something amiss with fair play here me thinks and shows how ultimately as usual money and influence matter over other considerations)
Mixed results due to very overcast skies on Friday (FP1 and FP2) which increased ISO values and/or restricted shutter speeds the safety fencing also beiping a source of IQ limitations with reduced sharpness and contrast - many failed shots that day
Included Outside of Club Corner adjacent to the Club Grandstands
Slightly better results on Saturday FP3 FP4 Q1 and Q2
Found a spot at Aintree Corner at the entry to Wellington Straight which worked quite well for some shots but still a low keeper rate and still hampered by shooting through fencing with low and variable light levels due to on off overcast skies - although this did help on occasion to optimise shutter speeds for panning
The highlight of the two days was capturing a superb sequence of shots of #46 Valentino Rossi pulling a wheel out of one of my more usual viewpoints coming out of Stowe Corner
I had tried to get great shots of Rossi doing this over several years but had always either missed the opportunity or had the wrong (panning settings on the camera)
As this was the last time I would get the opportunity to capture Rossi and it being a priority to get it right this time I made sure my camera was correctly set at the end of one of the qualifying sessions and did indeed capture a great sequence of images
I was very pleased with these results as I’d tried and missed or failed on so many occasions - capturing only mediocre examples previously !
It was fair to say that this was the highlight of my weekend at MotoGP
Please see Images on next pages