We love this exciting image of Canadian Ferrari driver Gilles Villeneuve on a straight portion of the Long Beach Grand Prix track. To capture this moment, we used a 300mm Nikkor on a Nikon F2 camera fitted with a motor drive and transparency (slide) film was used. Panning, especially with film cameras, requires practice, experience and timing. At least with today’s digital cameras you can see what you’re doing and check your exposures constantly. You don’t have that luxury with film, or with manual exposure and manual focus. Shooting low percentage shots, like panning, because not every image will be a keeper, can get expensive. You can’t just delete the bad ones, you had to have the film developed and then, with a loupe and a light box, choose the winners. Formula One cars have come a long way, and so has photo gear. I do think that having done this type of work with film cameras makes me a much better photographer now that the cameras do so much more for us.
Location: Long Beach, CA.