VSCC Cadwell Park Event 2012

Saturday the 9th of June saw the VSCC Shuttleworth and Nuffield trophies race meeting take place at Cadwell Park in Lincolnshire, Yorkshire. This was a circuit that I had not visited before, and had heard that it was one of the most picturesque circuits in Britain. It certainly did not disappoint.

I took with me several film cameras, along with a Canon 30D (borrowed while my 5D was ‘in the shop’ from the inimitable Joel Rowbottom – many thanks). These included my beloved Polaroid 103, Rolleicord 1A, Lomography La Sardina and a Canon 300v for 35mm film shots. The brands of film that I took included Ilford FP4, a roll of Fuji Superia 400 (left in the Canon 300v after my trip to Berlin), Kodak Ektar 100 (120 format), Fuji FP100-c for the Polaroid, and some trusty Kodak ColorPlus 200 for the La Sardina.

The stunning and unique GN Thunderbug lifts a wheel at Cadwell Park.

Digital action shots from Cadwell Park.

The digital camera took the bulk of the photographing duties, as I wanted to continue experimenting with panning shots. The colours from the surrounding of the environment provided great backgrounds, with lush deep greens and the white sections of barriers blurring into strips of block colour. These gave a great sensation of speed, which I think is rarely seen with vintage sports car club photography.

Super slow shutter speed experiments

The beauty of digital photography is the ability to experiment, gain instant feedback, and try again. I wanted to try using shutter speeds as low as 1/4 of a second, to see what effects that I could get. I managed to get some great results, but only after taking many rather average shots.

A Bugatti racing through the Hall Bends at Cadwell Park, taken at 1/8s.

The Bugatti photograph retained enough shape to be recognisable, but plenty of blur to create an oil painting like feel to the shot. Having the front of the car in ‘sort of’ focus, certainly made this picture, while other shots that I tried were not so successful.

This Riley shot also had enough shape to be recognisable, but heavy blurring to give a sensation of speed and excitement.

Using the environment to compose motorsports shots

I was pleased to have discovered another option and way of shooting motorsport, and wanted to add to this by shooting ‘through’ the scenery. At Cadwell Park, there was the ideal opportunity to do this with the turn into The Mountain section. I wanted to photograph cars in the context of being watched by spectators as they went around the corner. I used a wider lens, the EF 28-135mm to make this work.

The Morgan racing into The Mountain, with spectators watching to give context.

I also saw an opportunity to photograph the cars behind the armco barrier as they went down the start/finish straight. This would give a blurred background, with a sliver of the car appearing above the barrier.

The Morgan car behind the armco, with the added context of the grandstand in the background.

Polaroid 103 motorsport photography at Cadwell Park

This camera is much more suited to being used in the paddock, as the lens is pretty wide. I found several shots that would work, mainly because of the vibrant colours. The GN Thunderbug again provided a good subject, as there were several drivers stood around it during the lunchtime.

The bright colours of the Thunderbug translated well in Polaroid format.

I did manage to get a good action style shot with the Polaroid, with one of the Bugatti racing through the trees. Although not super sharp, the photograph had the feel of the circuit on the day.

The Bugatti racing through the hall bends framed with the forest sections of Cadwell Park.

Rolleicord 1A

This was only the second outing for the Rolleicord, and I had chosen to use Ektar 100, which I hadn’t used before. With 12 shots per roll, I chose to share the shots between on circuit action, scenery and spectators.

The blue Bugatti racing through the trees. I really liked the feel and colours of this shot, with it’s oil painting feel adding extra depth.

Lomography La Sardina motorsport shots at Cadwell Park

The La Sardina camera once again proved usefull when wandering around the paddock at lunchtime. This little plastic camera is great for close ups of the VSCC cars, with their bright colours and shiny, oily engines.

The closeup setting on the La Sardina, combined with a colourful subject captured lots of detail on Kodak ColorPlus 200.

Ilford FP4 Plus motorsports shot

I used my lenses on the Canon 300v to take some shots with FP4 Plus. This was a film that I’d used only once before. I developed them shots using Ilfosol 3. Many of these shots were taken in the same way that I took my digital photos, focusing on capturing movement of cars while panning with shutter speeds of around 1/90s.

FP4 in Ilfosol 3 provided strong, contrasty results. This Frazer Nash came out well, racing at speed through the Hall Bends.

Fuji Superia 400 35mm Cadwell Park photos

This film had been sat in my Canon 300v since my trip to Berlin in February. I’d avoided using it, and simply needed to get it out of my camera without wasting it! I used it mainly in the paddock during the lunch break, photographing closeups of cars. There was fairly bright sun, so I used fast shutter speeds so I could keep large apertures.

This Riley grill combined shiny chrome with a dark black grill. The Fuji Superia 400 help up well in these bright conditions.

Looking back at Cadwell Park

I had a great time at Cadwell, and enjoyed photographing at such a beautiful track. It had great facilities, and fantastic scenery. I found that slowing the shutterspeed to very slow speeds can be used to create artistic shots, even on film cameras such as the Rolleicord. The Ilford FP4 Plus also worked well, providing low noise and sharp results.

I want to continue the use of these slow shutter speeds. I also decided to take FP4 in 120 to Mallory Park for the next VSCC event, to see how the camera would work with another type of film.

Additional links for Cadwell Park

If you want to see the whole set of selected shots, visit my VSCC Cadwell Park – Shuttleworth & Nuffield Trophies 2012 set on Flickr.

I would highly recommend that you visit the circuit at Cadwell Park, as they have a brilliant facility and great access for spectators. The Vintage Sports Car Club have events throughout the spring and summer at circuits throughout the UK. Check out their site to see when and where their events take place.

Posted in: 35mm, Digital, Film Photography, Medium Format, Motorsport, Polaroid, VSCC