I'll be making my first trip to Mid Ohio for the ALMS race and am hoping that those that went before me can lead me to the best photo locations. The dreaded catch fencing seems to be everywhere, I'd love to avoid it! Thanks for any help in advance.

inside of the track at the esses, and the keyhole are two to make sure to be at. the carosel is good and the main straigt is good also especially if viewed in the towers on the front straight. Garage access is great and you will be able to see both the indycars and alms close up and probably get to hear them being fine tuned. Oh one last spot, thunder valley is good also and since there are fewer fans there it will be easier to get good shots. The best day for photos though is friday followed by saturday because of the large crowd that will be there sunday. Honda and acura being the sponsors for the two races and the honda plant being only 75 miles away gurantees a large crowd both days, so get there early sunday.

david

The lure of the ALMS/IRL doubleheader brought me to Mid-Ohio for the first time last year myself. I agree that inside the track at the first part of the esses is a good photo spot...no fence! The only thing I didn't like is the name..."the esses," I thought, used to be called Madness, which was a much cooler name. Not that it affected it as a photo location.

Make sure you get a paddock pass, too. Well worth it, as Mid-Ohio is one of the most spectator-friendly paddocks you'll find...the permanent garages, which the Indy cars will be in, have an upstairs deck you can stand on and watch the crews from above. I tend get a paddock pass when I visit any track (other than Lime Rock, where you don't need one!), but it's really a good idea here.

Another photo location I liked was right at pit-in (which is in the outfield at Mid-Ohio, mind you). I think that's accessible with a paddock pass, although I don't remember for sure because I also had a cold pit pass last year (didn't think it was worth investing in again). You might need pit access to get there, but it's an interesting view, provided someone's heading for pit lane.

Also, there's a Sunday ALMS promotion being held in the paddock area before the Indy Car race.

This is from the St. Pete ALMS/IRL double header, but it mentions Mid Ohio and Detroit: http://www.imsaracing.net/2008/alms/bulletins/Competitor%20Memorandum%2008-01.pdf

http://www.theraceforums.com/forums/blogs/chris-clark/79-mid-ohio-photography-guide.html

I posted this a few weeks ago. Not the definitive list, but I hope it helps out.

Outside of the pit exit lane, just past the infield cross-over bridge at turn 1, as the cars head up the long straight to the keyhole. Good for close-ups, really good.

If you buy a grandstand ticket, grandstand 3, down in the esses, will give you some good overhead shots of the cars as they pass buy. Actually, I think the stands are free on Friday.

Mid-Ohio has put up a lot of catch fencing, over the years, so the fence-free zones are getting fewer and fewer. Most of Thunder Valley is lined with fencing now, except the inside of the carousel. You can shoot over the fences in some spots from the observation mounds or just run a low shutter speed to make the fencing magically disappear.

ah i forgot about turn 1, a great location, shot some great pics and video there many times, including this years rolex race.

david

Does ALMS have on-track tour buses ? A mobile location to take pictures.

http://supergt.net/supergt/2008/08gallery/08gallery.htm?0804036#

Tifosi2k2 - 05 July 2008 01:50 PM

http://www.theraceforums.com/forums/blogs/chris-clark/79-mid-ohio-photography-guide.html

I posted this a few weeks ago. Not the definitive list, but I hope it helps out.

Thank you very much for the link, I will be heading down to the race also. As for the comments to the first post I would agree with all of you. A paddock pass is a must and Friday and Saturday are definately best as the crowd is lighter. Just walk the course, keep the sun at your back and shoot away.

Great info on Mid Ohio. I am going to the ALMS and IRL weekend. I have been to Mid Ohio about 20 times , but not since 1996 CART race, so the info posted will really be helpful. I was a little nervous about shooting pics, as it looks like a lot of catch fencing has gone up over the last few years. My first visit was 1977, and I went to Can Am, Camel GT and CART races through the 80's until 1996. Taking pics there used to be easy, as they didn't have the high fences fro insurance purposes. Glad to see that I will still be able to take photos.

Great Info. Thanks for the links.

Thanks everyone for your photo tips, I found the track frustrating to photograph from but the spots that everyone suggested were very usable, except the keyhole. The height of the tire walls makes the holes unusable from the spectator section. I had to do more editing then normal but the results were very nice. Even though it was quite hot I really enjoyed seeing the track for the first time, something that I've been trying to do for the last 15 years! I shall return!