What's this?


The following post is my photography guide to Daytona. It contains my favorite spots and some tips and tricks to get some nice shots. Is it a definitive guide? Absolutely not. The experience might vary from person to person and depends on what you are trying to capture or tell, but I'll try to have all the basics covered. All of these spots are accessible with a general admission ticket which, in some places, will get you pretty much the same shot as the credited media. Having said this, let's get started!


Get in there!


Given that the first days you can only enter the circuit through the T4 tunnel, let's start there. Right after exiting the tunnel into the infield, you'll have 2 options. You either go left, through the camping and to the oval turn 4 banking, as the cars head into the main straight and into the finish line or turn right and walk towards the start/finish line and to the garage area. If you decide to go to the garage area, you can either walk or take the tram. I highly recommend the latter as you'll be walking a lot during the whole weekend. The tram will drop you in the middle of the infield, from there you can choose to go to the garage area, go the bleachers on the Int'l Horseshoe or take another tram (or walk) to the oval T1 tunnel. Right in that stop you can choose to watch the cars on the oval T1 banking or head to the bleachers on the west horseshoe across the street. If you take the slow route (walking) from the middle of the infield to this place, you'll walk from the international horseshoe to the west horseshoe. It's a nice view as the cars roar past you and you can stop by the bleachers on the kink to catch some breath. These are pretty much all of the infield spots, even though they might seem few, there are a lot of possible shots to make which I'll get to later. There's one last spot in the infield that I haven't mentioned, and that's by the Lake Lloyd side. It's not great, but you'll be able to get some nice compositions with the cars at full speed and the billboards behind, gets better at night.

Enough with the infield. During the race you can head to the grandstands. You can access them any time through any gate on the Daytona Bvld during the race, or through the fence before the race start and after the gridwalk. The grandstands are big... Seriously big. Good thing is that you are pretty much good to go anywhere. I would split the grandstand in 2 big vertical sections. If you want to experience the cars flat out and get a good view of the pit lane, stay in the mid to lower sections. I think the best place is near the braking of point of T1, where cars go the fastest and you get to hear the downshifts (specially the Caddie). If you want a great panoramic view of the whole circuit, head straight to the upper parts. This is great, because there aren't many road circuits in which you can watch every part of the track from a single spot so I think that this is a must-do. I really enjoy watching the first and the last hours of the race from here, it's quite relaxing. It's also a good spot to watch the fireworks at around 9 or 10pm. My personal favorite spot is by the end of the grandstands where you see the cars on their run to the finish line, the braking into the infield and as they exit towards the oval again.

This is was an overview of the main viewing locations, now we'll get to every one of them in detail and what can be done from each place.


This is what we came for...

The international horseshoe


The international horsehoe is pretty much where you'll land right after you enter the circuit. It provides a lot of good viewing angles, plus you get one of the postcard shots with the Ferris Wheel in the background. Before getting into detail, here are some pros and cons of this spot:

The pros

  • You are very close to the action
  • At least 3 or 4 different compositions possible
  • Motorsport postcard location
  • Great for backlit sunrise photos
  • Good for glowing discs and backfires
  • You might get some on-track action
  • Bleachers provide a nice elevated view

The cons

  • It gets VERY crowded by the fence on either side of the turn
  • The bleachers get VERY crowded as well
  • The fence gets in the way a lot. A stool or step ladder helps. Applies to the whole circuit.


So depending on where you stand there will be a couple of different shots, they all are a couple of meters away from each other but the composition can vary depending on where you stand and where you point at. So let's start with the first spot here.


a) You can either chose to stay right by the fence or sit on the bleachers for an elevated view. This will get you a fence-free shot but, for me, the closer to the ground, the interesting the shot gets. It's also a nice place to get pannings as the cars brake for the corner.


b) Walk a little bit towards the kink and you get the cars exiting the turn and heading straight towards you. You can get some of the kerb, grass and fence on the composition. It's up to you. The other option is point towards T1 where you'll get the cars head on with the grandstands in the background. Good for pannings of the cars on corner entry. This shot works better with a long lens because T1 exit is quite far. The foreground can be distracting, the car can "get lost" in the image and the background compresses nicely. Still it's worth giving a try if you want to.


c) Now we'll go across the track. From here you'll get a nice, clean view of the Ferris Wheel. This is one of the iconic shots from Daytona, Beware that this place gets packed, but if you are patient enough you can come here later in the night and less people will be around. The night in Daytona is long, so there's plenty of time. Plan accordingly. You can try several compositions from here. You can catch the full wheel when the cars brake, you can get the cars as they accelerate off the corner to get the wheel partially in your shot (a longer lens suits this better). You can also get the cars entering the corner if you are lucky enough you'll get some nice backfires. You can also point towards the apex of the corner to get the cars right from behind, this works better during daytime and specially in sunrise. During the first minutes of the morning you'll have the sun right in your face, getting some nice backlit photos with the palm trees in the background. As the sun gets higher in the sky, the cars get some nice yellowish light on them. Have in mind that there will be A LOT of credentialed photographers on the other side of the fence. Get creative and work your way around them, because they will figure out how to walk or stop in front when you get your perfect composition.


d) This spot is pretty much right by the previous one. Walk a little bit in the direction of the racing line until you get the cars head on. I really like this spot for sunset photos, you get the orange sky and you get a lot of track behind to add some context. It's no much else you can do as this is the only nice shot you can pull. Still worth a try.

Straight and kink


This sector doesn't have many spots, although it's nice for sunset pictures. In Daytona the sun sets between the grandstands and the banking of Oval T1. As a result you get some nice golden hour photos with the sun behind the cars. It's also good to get some pannings with the grandstands behind, they provide a lot of color and context to the photos. You can also take a break at the bleachers there and see the cars going past at full speed through the kink, it's nice to see the speed difference between all 3 different kind of cars. Are there different spots here? Not too much, really. Walking along the fence between the International Horseshow and the West Horseshoe will give you an idea of what kind of photos you can make. Depending on which part you are standing the car can go at full speed, which makes it very difficult to photograph. However as the cars start braking you can get some nice glowing rotors.

The pros

  • It's a good place to take a break and rest at the bleachers. You get a good view of the whole infield.
  • You get a almost all the grandstands as background
  • Good for spotting some overtakes
  • Good for glowing rotors

The cons

  • It's a long walk
  • Not too many different possible shots
  • Not too good for panning as cars go past at full speed (specially at the kink)


West Horseshoe


So after walking a bit we arrive at the West Horseshoe, another slow right hander. Just like the Int'l Horseshoe, you get a couple of different spots here and a bleacher to rest your legs. Have in mind that it's possible to get quite close to the fence, though you'll have to go through some RV spots, so you might encounter not-to-keen people. Although that's the exception rather than the norm as long as you approach people with respect.

The pros

  • Multiple vantage points
  • Good for glowing brake rotors
  • Good for morning shots
  • Bleacher helps to get over the fence, but not that much
  • You can get here by tram

The cons

  • The bleacher is the smallest and gets packed
  • The fence is tall so it might get in the way, even when shooting from the bleacher
  • Too many RV spaces so it might be hard to get close to the fence


Just like the Int'l Horseshoe, here are a couple of different spots to get different compositions. Like before, these are just some of the shots you can make, be creative!


a) This is corner entry. Here you'll be able to make 3 different shots. The first 2 of them are on corner entry, where you can pan the cars as they brake and turn in, or get them from the back once they have turned in and are pointing towards the apex. The third shot is shooting the cars as they exit the turn on the opposite side of the track. The fence here gets quite tall in some places, but it usually isn't a problem, just beware from where the light comes. It works well at night for getting those red rotors.


b) This is head on corner entry. You get the line of cars coming towards you and the whole grandstands in the background. Choose your focal length accordingly. Also, be patient, this is also quite a popular spot for videographers and you might struggle a little bit as they get in the middle every now and then.


c) The third and final spot is by the bleacher, either on it or on ground level. If you choose to stand on the upper part of it, you can get an unobstructed view of the cars braking. The RVs behind can provide some color to the photo or they can totally ruin it if they have big bright lights. You can also get a nice view of the cars heading to the last infield corner with the grandstands as background. If you chose the lower side (or right by the fence) you can get a nice ground level view of the cars through the corner, but also a nice shot of the cars as they exit, especially if you move towards the following corner. From this last place, if you are creative enough, you can get some of the Ferris wheel lights

The banking (both of them)


In this part I will include both bankings. Even though they have similar results, they both have their things. On both bankings you can get the Daytona sign if the cars take the upper lane which is rather cool. Also panning is your only choice, I think that high shutter speed shots look dull, the background and the speed at which the cars drive through the corner do help. The light boxes will get in the middle of many of your shots so time your shutter accordingly or use slow speeds to blur them away. It's also a nice spot for morning (oval T1) and afternoon (oval T4) shots, you get nice lighting and long shadows. At night it's great if you can catch the decorative lights of the cars lighting the wall and/or the track around them.


The pros

  • It's an uncommon perspective. You don't get to see the roof of a race car in any circuit
  • You get to watch the cars at full speed, specially on the last turn
  • Pannings aren't to difficult here. The cars are turning at a pretty much constant speed
  • If you time it right/get lucky, you can get all 4 categories on a single shot.
  • Nice light and shadows during morning or afternoon (depending on which side you are)

The cons

  • Panning is pretty much your only choice here
  • Track light boxes will get in the middle of your shots
  • Oval T1 banking is in the middle of RV camping, proceed respectfully
  • You'll have to walk a lot to get to any of them. Trams are your friend.

The grandstands


So once you are finished with many of the things the infield has on offer, you can head straight to the grandstands (although the order won't affect the final product). Have in mind that the grandstands are BIG and you'll walk a lot in them. Luckily there are escalators to go all the way up (and down) to the highest point, which is over 45m (150ft) tall. The view from up there? Nothing short of great. Predictably, you'll have quite some vantage points from here, although mi favorite is by the end of the grandstands. From there you get to see the whole circuit, with clear views of the infield and the backstretch. It's also a nice place to watch the fireworks from and also great to get some rest. It's also my favorite place to watch race start and race finish. From the grandstands you'll also get a clear view of the pit lane, and get to watch the crews working on the cars during pitstops as well as hearing all of those nice bumpstarts from the GTPs.. We'll get into details below.


The pros

  • Great view of the circuit
  • Good for fireworks
  • View of the pitlane and pitstops
  • Good for getting some glowing rotors
  • Good for resting

The cons

  • Even though it's "one" spot you'll walk a lot
  • It's open from friday onwards
  • You have to go out of the infield to access the grandstands
  • Security can give you a bad eye if you are carrying a big lens or a monopod (never had any problem but got asked)


Let's get into detail for the different parts of the grandstands


a) The first part is by start/finish line. I recommend to stay on the lower part of the grandstand for 2 reasons. First you'll see the cars at almost full speed. The second is that you get a nice view of the pitlane, which is closer than you might think. You can also get a good view of the car coming towards you as they exit the last turn and head straight on. You get a lot of fences in the way so the result is less than ideal, worth a try though. If you choose to go up the view from the last turn and into the main straight is good as well.


b) Right by the braking point into T1. Is it great for photos? Not really, but I had to include it because nothing beats a car blasting by at over 300kph and hitting the brakes into a slow corner. Still you can try to get the cars from behind as they navigate the first corner.


c) Right where the grandstands end. If you chose to go to the top, you'll be rewarded with a great view of the whole circuit. Great for a good panoramic view and to try a long exposure shot for light trails as the cars make their way around. You can also get some nice glowing rotors as the cars "drop the anchor" for slowing down into T1. The run into T1 is great, it's a nice spot to get some nice panning shots using the seats themselves as part of your composition. They add some nice color into the photos. If you are lucky enough, you will be able to get some nice clear shots of the post race donuts, which is always a good thing.



garage area


If there's something that IMSA tickets are great at, is giving access without getting any special pack or something. Just GA. The whole garage area is open to the public before, during and after the race. You can get to see the crews getting the cars ready, as well as the cars roaming around as they are pulled back into garage (or to the track) at every session as well as during the race. I think it's the best place to get up and personal with the cars and if you are lucky enough you can bump into the drivers. Just have in mind that everyone is working there, so be respectful and don't interfere with their work. Also be VERY aware of your surroundings, because there are race cars moving, crews working and "golf" carts moving everything, from people to tires. Regarding photo opportunities, there's a lot and there are no special spots, just roam around and point towards what you consider interesting. Just be sure to visit the place in every session, including race even if the cars are out on track. As a plus, in this part is where autograph session is held so it's where you can get to see the drivers closely.

Conclusions


As you have seen, Daytona offers a lot of different viewing spots and photo opportunities. The track is big and you'll walk a lot, but you'll be rewarded at the end of the day(s). These are pretty much the most popular spots in the track and what can you expect from them. There are some that I haven't touched here or that I haven't tried yet, for example Lake Lloyd or the Ferris Wheel. It's also up to you to work your own magic and find that hidden gem spot or try something different at the popular ones. Be creative, enjoy the race and enjoy taking pics!

This is all for now, stay tuned for future posts and thanks for reading.


MR