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Gallery: 20 Faves from 2020

2020. What can you say? Worst year ever?

2020. What can you say. Worst year ever? No. Probably not. I mean, the last time there was a global pandemic (1918) we also had World War 1 and half the country still didn’t have running water. Worst year of my life? Probably not. I nearly died on an operating table a week after I turned 21 and then had almost 6 months of recovery while living alone.

So, with 2020 put into some amount of perspective I present to you 20 of my favorite images from 2020.

Olive in Hilton Park

Back in June Jill, Olive, and I hopped in the Honda and took a drive over to Hilton Park for a picnic. The lockdown was in full effect and we just needed to get out of the house. After lunch, we had an impromptu little shoot in the tall grass. Tall to little Olive that is.

October 13, 2020

Every year, on October 13, I photograph the Memorial Bridge in Portsmouth for Moore Fight Moore Strong, a breast cancer awareness non-profit located here in New Hampshire. October 13 is Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness day, and it is the one night of the year the bridge is lit in the official colors of MBC awareness: pink, green and, teal. In true 2020 fashion, it rained this year. It rained a lot and it rained hard. So, with my gear all wrapped up, I walked around Portsmouth in the rain, tripod thrown over my shoulder, looking for an interesting image that told the story. This was it.

The Fog of a Lime Rock Morning

Anyone who knows Lime Rock knows that its location, carved out of a valley between mountains in the Berkshires, is a favorite place for the fog to accumulate early in the morning. Getting that fog shot is a cherished chase for regular Lime Rock photographers. On this particular morning during Historic Festival 38, the fog was brilliant. This final image is made of 16 captures stitched together.

The Ultimate Driving Machine

The legendary BMW 850 CSI is one of my all-time dream cars. So, when I was offered the opportunity to photograph this car for an auction listing I was definitely excited. I immediately knew I wanted to do a light painted shot. Thankfully the owner agreed to stay a bit later and wait for the sun to go down. For the techies out there this image is made up of 10 captures and was lit with only an Ice Light.

Straight Up

The stunt flying display during the Lime Rock Park Historic Festival.

The Moment of Launch

In September I hosted a motorsport photography workshop at New England Dragway for Greater Rochester Camera Club. I had 5 “students” and I made arrangements for them to have media style access for the day. Helping someone realize what they are able to create with a camera and then watching them do it is one of my favorite things about the profession I chose. Personally, I didn’t shoot a ton that day, but I did get a few good ones.

Miata Swarm

My Dad and I always joked that a Miata race sounds like the buzzing of bees. This is a vantage point I had always wanted to get a race start from and I finally got to do it in 2020. This image is taken through the roof hatch of the spectator bridge overlooking the Sam Posey Straight. On the left is the starter stand with the green flag waving and down the middle a swarm of buzzing Miatas crossing the line.

Ryan - Class of 2021

From Ryan’s high school senior portrait session on the trails around Castle in the Clouds.

Studio Two Seven Nine 9/21/18 Studio Two Seven Nine 9/21/18

My Summer Shooting Trackside With SCDA

Back in the spring I received an email from Elivan Goulart, owner/CEO of Sports Car Driving Association (SCDA), regarding my interest in shooting his track day events this summer. After a couple of emails and phone calls I agreed to do one event with the possibility of more.

My first event with SCDA was on June 1 at Palmer Motorsports Park in Palmer, Massachusetts. It was such a positive experience that I went decided to take on as many SCDA events I could fit into my schedule. I was hooked. So far this year, I have photographed 7 SCDA track day events at 4 different race tracks, Lime Rock Park in Connecticut, Thompson Speedway, also in Connecticut, New Hampshire Motor Speedway and the aforementioned Palmer Motorsports Park. I still have 5 events to go. One more each at Palmer and Thompson and 3 more at Lime Rock Park.

What follows is a small selection of my favorite images from my summer with SCDA.

Title image: Lime Rock Park, June 28 [ 200mm | 1/640 | f/5 ]

Palmer Motorsports Park, June 1 [ 145mm | 1/125 | f/10 ]

Lime Rock Park, July 23 [ 500mm | 1/500 | f/5.6 ]

Thompson Speedway, August 25 [ 200mm | 1/125 | f/20 ]

Lime Rock Park, September 18 [ 500mm | 1/100 | f/6.3 ]

New Hampshire Motorspeedway, August 6 [ 380mm | 1/800 | f/5.6 ]

Lime Rock Park, June 27 [ 390mm | 1/100 | f/11 ]

Lime Rock Park, August 27 [ 350mm | 1/1000 | f/5.6 ]

Lime Rock Park, June 27 [ 500mm | 1/640 | f/5.6 ]

Thompson Speedway, August 25 [ 170mm | 1/125 | f/7.1 ]

New Hampshire Motor Speedway, August 6 [200mm | 1/1000 | f/5.6]

Lime Rock Park, August 27 [ 390mm | 1/640 | f/5.6 ]

Lime Rock Park, September 18 [500mm | 1/40 | f/16]

Palmer Motorsports Park, June 1 [ 200mm | 1/1250 | f/3.2 ]

Lime Rock Park, June 27 [ 380mm | 1/640 | f/5.6 ]

Thompson Speedway, August 25 [ 460mm | 1/640 | f/6.3 ]

Studio Two Seven Nine 6/18/18 Studio Two Seven Nine 6/18/18

2018 Pirelli World Challenge Lime Rock Grand Prix

Spending Memorial Day weekend at Lime Rock Park (LRP) is a tradition that extends back to my childhood and this year was no different as I spent 4 days on-site at LRP covering the Pirelli World Challenge (PWC).

Spending Memorial Day weekend at Lime Rock Park (LRP) is a tradition that extends back to my childhood and this year was no different. I spent the long 4 day weekend at LRP covering the Pirelli World Challenge (PWC) Lime Rock Grand Prix.

PWC is a little unique where each of the classes have two races at each event. Add in two additional races for the Lime Rock Drivers Club and this jam-packed weekend amounted to covering 10 races, 2 autograph sessions, 2 fan walks, hot laps, a car show, a pig roast, a surprise USAF C-130 flyover, and literally everything else that was happening around the track. This was my first event working as a staff photographer for LRP. I had to hustle and clock watch more than I ever had before and I loved every second of it. I am already counting down the days to my next LRP event: The IMSA Northeast Grand Prix July 20-21.

What follows are a bunch of my favorite images from the weekend as well as a few behind the scenes cell phone snaps I was able to grab along the way.

Friday, May 25

This was mostly a day of practice and qualifying. Not a lot going on otherwise on this day which meant I got to spend a lot of time trackside.

I snapped this photo to show the folks in the Greater Rochester Camera Club the amount of gear and preparation that goes into a race weekend.

Taken around 7 am on Friday morning.

My home base in the media center for the weekend.

My trusty steed. This perk is way bigger than you think.

Burn dust! Eat my rubber!

The face you make after getting a hot lap in the LRP Camaro

Saturday, May 26

A busy day. Practice & qualifying for the GT and GTS machines and two races each for the TC/TCA and TCR classes, plus a LRDC race.

The view from the outside of Big Bend

The long hike to get to this location was totally worth it for this shot...

... and this shot, too.

What it is all about

Shooting from the starter's stand was a new experience for me.

Sunday, May 27 (9th Annual Royals Garage Car Show & Farm to Track Pig Roast)

The weather, unfortunately, did not cooperate. Cool temps and drizzle plagued the entire day forcing things to be reorganized on the fly. The Farm to Track pig roast, which was supposed to be served on the front straight, had to be moved under the infield hospitality tent. And the awards ceremony, originally scheduled for 2pm had to be moved up to 12:30. The people who did show, however, were still in very good spirits and the day was a great success.

Not sure I ever expected to see a portable smoker along the Sam Posey Straight.

Skip Barber, legendary driver and owner of Lime Rock Park.

Monday, May 28 (Memorial Day)

The busiest day of them all. 2 races each for the two top PWC classes, GT and GTS, and the second LRDC race of the weekend. Thankfully the rain had moved out, but the clouds remained, providing beautiful, even light throughout the entire day.