Grace

Getting an image that captures the speed of cyclist can be a tricky thing. Canon EOS 7D EF 50mm at f/2.2 1/24 ISO 1600

I have been watching the Olympic athletes this week and I am left wondering how their bodies can move with such unstudied grace.  It is a remarkable thing to see a body that is blessed with natural talent honed by days, weeks, years of training into as perfect an instrument as possible.  An instrument for attaining remarkable speed, unbelievable height, and beautiful movement.  These athletes and their perfectly tuned instruments are a study in commitment and perseverance that is worthy of this great celebration.

This image is not from the Olympics but I am pretty sure it is an image of someone who is at the Olympics.  I think this is Tara Whitten as she raced at the Burnaby velodrome 2+ years ago.  If it’s not her let me know in the comments, I do know that she was at the event where I got this picture.  Cycling is unique among sports in its proximity to the fans.  It is not uncommon in professional road racing for the spectators to be able to reach out and touch cyclists as they ride by.  It is not quite that close in track cycling but I was able to get on the infield of this event and right into the corner.  The corners are banked so steeply that the riders are leaning in towards you and the perspective makes it appear as though the photographer is above the rider.  Light was poor in the velodrome so I was using my fast 50 and tracking the riders as they blew past.  I found a shutter speed that was slow enough to allow the wheels  and track to blur but keep the rider sharp. 

-Russell Berg

Speed

Cyclist speed past in a track event at the Burnaby Velodrome. Canon EOS XSi EF-S 17-85mm f4-5.6 at 20mm f/4 1/30 ISO 1600

Here I am, standing in the straight away as it exits the corner.  I am standing on a rickety ladder so that I can see over the top of the steeply sloped track and the sense of speed as the riders approach doesn’t really build until they are almost on top of me.  In that last moment before the first one passes by I am aware, almost too late, that these guys are moving really, really fast and then he is past and the wash of air rushes past me.  The main pack surges and goes by as well and I feel as though I am standing in a temporary wind storm.

I was in Burnaby at the Velodrome to watch some track cycling and getting a sense of the speed that is involved with a still image was difficult.  I was able to get up on a ladder that I think someone had put there for official photographers but no one was using it so I clambered up.  I wanted to use a slow enough shutter speed to get the motion blur of the rider as he went by and that worked out pretty well, the only trouble was that the riders in the background are blurred as well.  I am still trying to figure out a way to get this shot without blurring the background riders.  If you are interested in more cycling photos I have other entries here and here

-Russell Berg