This year’s Porsche Carrera Cup Asia(PCCA) at the Singapore F1 is a special event for me,
especially from a photographer’s perspective.
The Canon 1 series DSLR have always been the gold standard for any speed events around the world.
As some of you may know, I have stopped using DSLR about half a year ago. My present default weapon
of choice is the Fujifilm XT1. It is a huge shoe to fill, especially when the last camera was the Canon
1DX. The focusing and tracking will be an disadvantage compare to the Canon. Despite the technical
differences, the best camera is what you have with you; it is the man and not the machine; I hope!
I’ll be using the XT1 virgin shoot for Motorsport! Wish me luck!
My final thought; did I survive using the XT1 at PCCA? Capturing all the scenes at the paddock, grid and at
the hospitality suite; it was a breeze. It worked perfectly and beautifully. With only a view of 60 meters in
length from where I was standing and with a maximum focal length of 200mm; it was challenge in attempt to
capture a shot of the GT3 Cup car in action. So I decided to set it to pre-focus with HS, which is 8 frame
per second with the XT1.
When it comes to shooting a moving race car; one need to take note of a few things. Shooting at a shutter
speed of 1/4000 or 1/8000 one will definitely freeze the car and we really won’t know if the car is moving
or still. Therefore one need to find right shutter speed that shows the rims spinning and the car in focus. And
thus a sense of speed. For my case its 1/450 to 1/500 range. The other part is panning. WIth a bit of practice
anyone should be doing good. Lastly; what F-stop did I use? As I am using pre-focus; I need a bigger depth
of field to be more forgiving. Ranging from F9 to F11. Lastly, did i survive PCCA with XT1. I humbly let you be
my judge because my tummy is making a too much noise so I better head towards the Porsche hospitality suite.
