Helmets and Overalls

It’s always in the back of your mind. In the same way that a driver must put danger to the back of his mind, you get on with your job adamant that it will never happen to you. There is an element of risk involved with everything in life. Sure, motorsport has a fair share of it, but we are all there with that knowledge, we all take calculated risks, we all have the odd close moment. How boring would life be with no element of risk?

This weekend we have seen 2 incidents where fellow colleagues have been injured in their workplace;

A photographer shooting trackside has some injuries after a GT car crashed into the barrier beside where he was stood at the Zandvoort Circuit in Holland.

And an F1 cameraman working for Formula One TV was struck heavily  by a stray wheel in the pitlane at the Nurburgring GP.

Both guys are injured, but are stable and we hope will recover fully to do their jobs again.

After 2 events such at this (preceded by a fairly dark couple of weeks in motorsport with the death of 2 drivers) there will obviously be a knee-jerk reaction. Everyone expects drivers to have the occasional brush with injury, but when members of the support crew, media and onlookers start to get injured the authorities suddenly sit up and listen!

In my view we should change nothing immediately. The pitlane and track are dangerous areas to work, but they are highly restricted areas. The people that work in these areas are highly experienced and skilled. Of course that doesn’t mean that freak accidents such as Webber’s flying wheel, won’t happen again, but it is impossible to wrap motorsport in cotton wool.

It is a fact of life (and physics) that if you have multiple vehicles trying to go as quick as they can in confined spaces, they are sometimes going to break, fly, collide or bust into flames!

I have worked in pitlanes worldwide for the past 15 years and have seen a handful of incidents. It is going to happen! But I strongly believe that kitting camera operators and photographers out with overalls, helmets and safety equipment will actually make it a more dangerous area. Helmets restrict vision and hearing and overalls restrict movement, three fairly important senses when working in that environment I think you would agree?

The F1 pitlane is restricted to about 6 F1 TV cameramen and about 6 F1 photographers during the race. The cameramen have free roam, but are in contact with their director and advised of where the action is happening. The photographers are restricted to the pitwall only and cannot enter the live pitlane. It is a hectic area, it is an area where you need your wits about you, but the limited crew working there are the best in the business at what they do.

In complete contrast (and an example that seems to be dragged up every time pitlane safety is talked about) Le Mans takes a different view. All media working in the Le Mans pitlane have to wear mandatory overalls and helmet.

But, unlike the restricted F1 pitlane, Le Mans have over 100 people (photographers, journalists, cameramen, sound engineers, directors, producers, scrutineers, bloggers  and pretty much anyone that wants to have a look....) at any one time within the  pitlane. The criteria to get in is very relaxed with no requisite for experience or actual need to be there.

Yes, we can make it safer, but start with the basics; Which is more dangerous?

The F1 pitlane with 12 highly experienced cameramen providing imagery to a world audience?

Or the Le Mans pitlane full of amateur photographers with a desire to snap a nice photo for their bedroom wall?

Get well soon guys.

Red Bull - Where has the fun gone?

There has been much talk about Red Bull in the past 7 days and whether or not they are going to recover from their current driver spat or not? I personally don’t really care. I like Mark and I feel a bit sorry for him but I also like Seb, I believe he is the best out there and he brings a relaxed and intelligent view for an F1 driver, which is refreshing. I’m sure we will talk about ‘that’ race for years to come, and who was to blame, who came out stronger and who - eventually - walked, but for the moment I think I have solved Red Bull’s issues.

The problem is: They just aren’t fun anymore.

It’s ok to win everything. Pick up driver and constructor titles. Sign big name sponsors, and be on the front page of every magazine, but if all you are really trying to do is flog some fizzy drinks then there is a bit more to it than ‘just getting to the top step of the podium!

Now, I am no marketing genius. And it may sound bonkers to be offering marketing ideas to what most people would consider the leaders in that field, but I remember the good old days.

The days where you were dragged kicking and screaming from one Red Bull party to another; where you had to fight your way through hordes of stunning models parading around the paddock for no other reason than to provide a bit of eye candy. I remember Hollywood A-lister’s, helicopters and speedboats.

And what do we have now?

A rather annoying pointy index finger.....

We have a team that win everything but have lost exactly what “made” them number one in the first place: Genius marketing with a laid back, relaxed attitude and a surf dude mentality.

Maybe they should never have got involved in F1? We all know the old Red Bull from ski events, moto-cross, air racing and skydiving; did they really need to splurge a huge part of their marketing budget on a stuffy, up-tight and arrogant sport that is exactly the opposite of where they started from?

Luckily for us though, I think we may just have a new contender heading to the top of the class at the Red Bull marketing school:

Lotus F1 Team, have for me, done it right in the past 2 years.

Do you remember in 2010 when Lotus last came back into F1, with a green team called Lotus, which had nothing to do with Lotus? Lotus then decided that Lotus couldn’t use the name Lotus and so Lotus took Lotus Renault to court. Lotus became Caterham and Lotus who didn’t want to be in the sport in the first place became Lotus F1 Team..... Keeping up?

Anyhow, forget whether they want to be here or not, and forget what they are called (right now) and where the money comes from; the Enstone mob is doing it right!

They have employed the right people to run their team under the management of Eric Boullier. Their marketing and promotion is new, fresh and open. They laugh at themselves. They use Kimi’s awkwardness in front of the media to their advantage. They hand out ice creams, give away free cd’s; they have their promotion, humour and sarcasm down to a tee.

So, Red Bull, to get back in the game forget about your current driver disagreement, don’t bother developing your 2013 car anymore, get rid of that Newey bloke and spend the spare cash on parties, girls, rock groups and ice creams!

Put the fun back in the paddock!

It’s a marketing plan that may just (not) work…..

Red Bull F1 Party - James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

Who Works in Formula One 2013

The latest Who Works in F1 Guide for 2013 is now out.

The iconic guide, now in it's 24th year provides information on all that work in global motorsport. From F1 drivers through teams, engineers, sponsors, marketing personnel and media.

2013 is a year of major change for Formula One, so to make contact with the right person or company you need the most up to date information available. 

Each new edition is 100% researched & updated!

For the last 24 years "Who Works in Formula One" guides have successfully provided the most up to date detailed information about teams, drivers, team owners, key people, crew members, car technical specs, circuits, sponsors, suppliers, engineers, photographers, journalists and many more hard to find facts.

If you want the telephone number of a team or its history, contact details for a sponsor or a supplier, the technical specification of a car, an engine, or information on a key person Who Works in Formula One has it!

600 pages to answer all your questions in one book : biographies, contact names and details, addresses, phone numbers, e-mail addresses, facebook, twitter,  etc...

Who Works in Formula One is an invaluable reference tool for both professionals and fans for use throughout the year and to keep for future reference.

By mail :

Who Works Sports Guides Limited
2nd floor
145-157 St. John Street
London EC1V 4PY

By e-mail :

To order or check the status of an existing order: orders@whoworksin.com
For information on Formula One: formulaone@whoworksin.com
For information on Classic Cars: info@whoworksin.com
For information on Motorsports: motorsports@whoworksin.com
For information on Motorcycle Racing: motorcycleracing@whoworksin.com
For information on any other sport or products: info@whoworksin.com

F1 Launches

I've well and truly had enough of F1 launch season.
This time of year has traditionally been one of the most exciting times for F1 fans, followers and the media. New cars, new liveries and new driver combos, have in the past, been welcome events after a 'slow-news' winter. But for some reason launch season 2013 has been a complete online bore-fest.

I have been lucky enough in the past, as a member of the F1 media, to attend some fairly impressive launches over the years. We have been flown around the world to impressive venues and been treated to elaborate shows and spectacles. I have arrived into Venice by gondola with Falvio Briatore and Mark Webber, partied through the night with Bollywood actors on Vijay Mallya's super yacht, I've been skiing with Juan Pablo Montoya, been driven around various race tracks in exotic machinery, stayed in swish hotels and been furnished with free gifts. We even had a private gig from the Spice Girls. Well, it can't all be glamorous....

I know what you are going to say:
We are in a World recession.... teams don't have the cash to spend on lavish trips for the select few.
Bollocks! F1 teams are on average spending in excess of $100 million each year on their activities.
They exist purely to sell stuff.
To promote brands and to give a financial return to the companies who pay to put their names on the side of each car.
F1 is marketing. It is brand awareness.
And to generate publicity that works, you need more than a handycam and YouTube!

The general idea of online launches is a good one. There is no doubt it opens up what used to be a very closed world to the public. Exactly the people that are expected to buy the products that the teams are attempting to promote.
But, my word, does it come with some risks.

And this brings me to why I think online launches do their creators no favours. Just in the last week we have seen team websites that don't work, launches that start late, unknown presenters talking utter gibberish to fill time before the launch and if the video does finally work, then the content is about as entertaining as syphilis. Where is the theatre, drama and action?


The other thing I have an issue with, is that the very nature of a 'launch' is to launch something.
What we see now is the presentation of a bastardised F1 car, created purely to distract the media and rival teams away from the bits they don't want anyone to see. The cars that we have been presented this week bear absolutely no relation to the cars that will run at Jerez on Tuesday, so what is the point? The other element of a launch used to be surprise. What surprises have we had this week? Ohh the McLaren is still grey, yep, the Ferrari is still red and the Lotus still has 4 wheels.... revolutionary!!

Even driver announcements are no longer a surprise. I would love to see Fore India have a driver launch in a week or so, and present a driver to the world through a curtain shrouded in dry ice that is a proper, genuine surprise.....

Whilst social media and digital launches have opened the spectacle to the world they have at the same time taken the spectacle away completely.

Sahara Force India VJM-06 Launch 2013. Silverstone, UK. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

The Life Of A Motorsport Photographer 2012 - Part 2

Part 2. (Part 1 of this blog can be found here: http://www.jamesmoy.com/blog.aspx)



The season continues at a fair rate. I knew that juggling my F1 commitments as well as a full season of World Endurance Championship (WEC) was going to be fairly gruelling. And that was before we even got to Le Mans!

Canada is always a welcome trip on the F1 calendar. The city of Montreal comes alive as F1 enters town. The fans are well informed, passionate and come out in big numbers. The Gilles Villeneuve Circuit provides us with some good photo spots too.
I am quite often asked by fans, where to go to take photos around each circuit and how to get access similar to the pro photographers, so avoiding the safety fences? Well Canada is a great example. I reckon 50% of my time at the Canadian GP is spent in the grandstands with the fans.
I even decided to photograph the start this year from the turn 1 grandstand. It gives a great scenic view of the circuit and the colour and drama of the fans adds to the image.

Canadian GP Start, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography - www.jamesmoy.com

This photo below was also taken at the same location. Using fairly standard photo kit, a mid-sized 200mm lens, it goes to show the type of image fans can achieve with a bit of trial and error.

Felipe Massa, Canadian GP, 2012 Copyright James Moy Photography - www.jamesmoy.com

The Canadian GP always somehow manages to clash with some large sporting event every year.
I remember 2 years ago arriving and trying to figure out why every single resident of Montreal had packed into bars to watch whatever the 'Stanley Cup' was..... in the past we have packed into team hospitality areas to glimpse a view of England yet again being knocked out of the Football World Cup, and I always enjoyed arriving on a Sunday morning to watch the final few hours of the Le Mans 24 hours.
This year however it was the Euro 2012 Football. Germany met Italy in the semi-finals and football fever had gripped the paddock. An exclusive photo shoot was set up for my colleague and a nice informal image of Seb and Nico for the German media.

Sebastian Vettel, Nico Rosberg, Canadian GP. 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography - www.jamesmoy.com

The British media however were still gripped with Lewis Hamilton. His relationship with his team mate, his girlfriend and his iPhone getting more column inches than it really needed. An emotional win however proved a point for 24 hours at least.

Lewis Hamilton, Canadian GP, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography - www.jamesmoy.com

Minutes after this photo above was taken I was on the road to Le Mans.... I had a deadline to meet. It is traditional that all teams pose for a team photo at the official scrutineering in the centre of the Le Mans town. I knew that Toyota were the last to go through which gave me until 2pm on Monday to get there. So a mad rush to the airport, a flight to Paris, pick up my car which I had already dumped at Charles de Gaulle airport and then a quick drive to the circuit accreditation centre and on to find somewhere to park in Le Mans town.
I managed to arrive with about 3 minutes to spare. The 2 TS-030 cars were just being wheeled into place, I barged my way to the front of the photographers gantry and bingo the shot was in the bag!......Toyota were back at Le Mans!

Toyota Hybrid, Le Mans, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography - www.jamesmoy.com

Toyota's story at le Mans has been well covered, but what a return, and I am sure that they will be fighting with Audi for the win in 2013.

Typical European summer weather greeted us at Silverstone, with a re-hash of the muddy field issues of previous years. Fans were turned away, those that did make it spent hours queueing to get in. As this is my home race I am lucky in the fact that I know the small back roads and never really meet any traffic difficulties, I felt very sorry for the fans but also the race organisers who were up against the elements.
Although not the most glamorous of photography I spent quite a bit of my weekend walking around muddy campsites and photographing queues of cars, as I knew this was going to be a big story of the weekend.

British GP, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography - www.jamesmoy.com

The European part of the F1 season drew to a close with fantastic events in Germany, Hungary, Belgium and Italy providing some great races.

Singapore is one of the F1 photographers highlights of the year. The tight street circuit offers us a great backdrop and the artificial lighting of the night race gives us a chance to experiment more than normal.

As usual with street circuits we attempt to get some unique views of the track offered by the surrounding buildings.

This shot is taken from the top of the Swiss Hotel, one of the highest buildings in Singapore and gives a surreal view of the illuminated track at night.

Singapore GP, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography - www.jamesmoy.com

The Singapore race is unique for us in logistical terms too. We try and stay on a European time zone, as most of the practice, qualifying and race is conducted at night. Working until around 3am, then heading out for dinner, before going to bed as the sun comes up is a welcome relief to the usual timetable.

Seb Vettel was back in dominant form and in Japan I decided to position myself above the parc ferme for the end of the race, it is always a bit of a gamble and most of the emotion is better captured on ground level, but it does occasionally pay off. This time myself and a few other photographers lucked in as we shouted down to Seb, he looked up and gave the infamous winning finger!

Sebastian Vettel, Japanese GP, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography - www.jamesmoy.com

My constant circumnavigation of the World continued into the busiest part of the year. 8 non-stop trips in a row, from Belgium, Italy, Brazil, Singapore, Bahrain, Suzuka, Fuji, India and on to Abu Dhabi.

India has become one of my new favourite races. I love Delhi, I love the colour, craziness and happiness of the local people. The circuit itself is good too. Even getting to work is part of the fun.

Paul Di Resta, Indian GP, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography - www.jamesmoy.com

Its a very busy weekend for us, with our Force India connections, and the local interest is fantastic. It's also nice to see our images used on local billboards and advertisements around Delhi.

Delhi Atmosphere, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography - www.jamesmoy.com

A few days sightseeing around Delhi provided some much needed life away from the circuit before heading to what I still regard as the best motorsport facility in the World, Abu Dhabi.
When they created this track they were not scared of out-shining their more glamorous neighbour Dubai and have thrown money and innovative design at this phenomenal track.

The stunning backdrop of the Yas Hotel combined with yachts and orange sunsets just makes this place a joy to work at. 

Fernando Alonso, Abu Dhabi GP, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography - www.jamesmoy.com

Abu Dhabi GP, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography - www.jamesmoy.com

For me the excitement of the year was reserved for Austin, Texas. Many of the F1 crews had little experience of the USA. In my case I remember leaving Indianapolis back in 2005 having let the fans down, we (as F1) failed to show America what the sport could offer. 
We knew Austin had built a great track and were looking forward to the race arriving, but nothing could have prepared me for the genuine warm welcome, the enthusiasm of the crowd, the celebrity turnout and the wonderful hospitality of Texas.

Jackie Stewart, Matt Le Blanc, USA GP, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography - www.jamesmoy.com

Austin, USA GP. 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography - www.jamesmoy.com

 And so the season drew to a close. I headed to Sao Paulo for the second time this year to cover the Championship showdown.

Brazil has been the home to many Championship deciders in my career. I love the circuit, and the South American vibe.
From a photographic point of view race day of a Championship decider is a tense moment. You have no idea what is going to happen, where the action may take place, and you have a constant felling that you may miss a very important photo. As a team of photographers we plan the race in detail, all possibilities, in the hope that we will provide the best photographic coverage possible.

No matter how many doubts you have it actually always comes together well in the end.

Sebastian won, Fernando was gracious, Michael retired and the fantastic 2012 season was over!

Michael Schumacher, Brazil GP, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography - www.jamesmoy.com

Sebastian Vettel, Brazil GP, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography - www.jamesmoy.com

Thank you so much to everyone that has been part of 2012.

The teams themselves and specifically our fantastic clients. Thanks also for the help that we get from the numerous press personnel, the friendship of fellow photographers and media, assistance of circuit organisers, and all the fans that follow this great sport.

The New year has passed and the 2013 season is around the corner. We will be on the road again in a few weeks providing coverage of launches, testing and the new F1 season.

My New Year resolution. To provide more blogs and to give the numerous followers of F1 better behind-the-scene access at each event.

See you in Melbourne!




More of our images can be viewed here: www.jamesmoy.com

Contact us here: james@jamesmoy.com

The Life Of A Motorsport Photographer 2012. Part 1

The dust has settled the champagne corks have popped, another great season of motorsport slips into the record books, but before we get stuck in to what looks like a thrilling 2013 season, we wanted to share with you some of our favourite photos, locations, events and thoughts from 2012.

The year started in true winter style. -2 degrees, freezing wind, 4 am in the morning, but there was no place I would rather be. Toyota, and more specifically TMG had returned to top level motorsport and had announced a Le Mans programme.
I hadn't covered Le Mans for a few years but following on from our good relationship in their F1 days Toyota appointed us as their team photographers.

Toyota Hybrid Testing, Paul Ricard, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

Months before they started the gruelling race, there lay many thousands of kilometers of testing ahead. Le Mans testing is fascinating, if you expect your car to last a 24 hour race with no mechanical difficulties then you have to conduct endurance tests. These endurance tests take place behind closed doors and can sometimes run for upwards of 30 hours non-stop. The image above was taken at the Paul Ricard test track in January. It was about 4.30am and I had been trackside for hours. As the sun started to rise over southern France I decided to capture a long exposure. The image combines the trail of headlights as the car flicks around the track as well as a crisp sunrise, all topped off with the crescent shaped moon, really summing up the lonely feeling of enduro-testing.

The advantage to me as a photographer with this style of testing is the incredible light that we have to play with. With stunning sun rises and sun sets it really is a motorsport photographers dream.

Here are a few more examples, all from Circuit Paul Ricard taken in January and February using the golden winter light to my advantage.

Toyota Hybrid Testing, Paul Ricard, 2012 Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

Toyota Hybrid Testing, Paul Ricard, 2012 Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

Toyota Hybrid Testing, Paul Ricard, 2012 Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

Toyota Hybrid Testing, Paul Ricard, 2012 Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

Testing continued into February and it was then the turn of F1 to show off it's new cars. February is a fascinating time for a motorsport photographer, there is the excitement of seeing the new F1 cars for the first time, new liveries and new driver combinations giving you a fresh feeling to every shot you take.

Jerez and Barcelona played host to the official F1 Tests and again from a photographic point of view it is all about playing with the winter light.

F1 Testing, Barcelona, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

This image was taken at Barcelona circuit, on the final lap of testing as stormy clouds rolled in just as a the sun poked through a break in the gloom. One of those moments where you are begging for another 10 minutes of running, as the light keeps getting better and better.

In the (cigarette, telecoms and computing fuelled) days not so long ago F1 teams used to host lavish launch ceremonies to show off their new machines, but in the current climate it is much more common for low-key unveils in the pitlane prior to testing. Although this doesn't offer us photographers as much scope for nice photos it does keep the costs down and ensure the real business of getting the car pounding round the track happens without fanfare and too much celebration.

Force India VJM05 Launch, Silverstone, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

Toro Rosso Launch, Jerez, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

As the official photography agency of the Sahara Force India F1 Team we also have the enviable job of photographing their new car in a photographic studio. This usually takes place very late at night on the evening before the car is launched. We literally have access to the car once the final parts are bolted to it, which usually means starting to shoot some time after midnight.

Here you see the VJM05 in a coved studio. We aim to capture up to about 10 different angles of the new car, working through the night, before the car then travels directly to Silverstone Circuit to be launched in front of the media the following morning.

VJM05 Studio Photoshoot, UK, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

 

It's not just the car that needs photographing. As the drivers have their time in front of the camera too. Here Nico Hulkenberg and Paul Di Resta pose for their official portraits in a makeshift studio set up in the team HQ.

Force India Driver Photo Shoot, UK, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

The start of the season comes round very quickly after the short off-season and we all head off on our first of many long haul flights of the year.
The first race of the year is always an interesting one. No matter what can be read in to testing, neither the media the drivers or the teams really know who has the best chances for the season ahead.
From a photography point of view Australia is always an incredibly busy race. There are many PR and media events prior to the season starting. This year Red Bull hosted a photo opportunity with Mark and Seb down at St Kilda beach. What this photo doesn't show you is the 100+ media in a semi-circle cowering and jumping out of the way as Mark whacked cricket balls directly at us!

Mark Webber, Sebastian Vettel, Melbourne, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

It is actually quite a relief once the track action starts, and we really start to get back in the groove for another season ahead.
The Australian GP changed the start time of the race a few years ago and it is now held in the early evening to fit in better with European TV schedules. This has made the circuit much more photogenic for us, and also provides some lovely light.

Heikki Kovalinen, Melbourne, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

And so the first race of the season finishes. Jenson takes the first victory for 2012. This image was taken around an hour after the finish of the race, and is the first time he gets to celebrate with his team members having completed all of his tv interviews and media commitments. These celebration shots have become fairly traditional now after each win, and this was a good one to start the year with.

Jenson Button, Melbourne, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

We generally try and provide our clients with a 'scene-setting' selection of images on the first day of practice at each circuit. The media require an image that says ' F1 is in Malaysia' for example.
This shot is one of those. Fernando in front of a huge Malaysia flag.

Fernando Alonso, Malaysia, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

Malaysia is one of the hardest races of the year for us to work at. The temperature regularly reaches 35+ degrees and this combined with dripping humidity makes it a tough one! We walk quite a few miles around the circuits each day whilst carrying all camera kit and wearing the FIA photographers tabard, by the time you actually come to take a photo you are normally wiping sweat and suncream out of your stinging eyes....

Here Lewis stays cool in the the garage, with 2 of his biggest fans.....

Lewis Hamilton, Malaysia, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

There was an over riding shadow hanging over the early part of the 2012 season and everyone was wondering if we were going to have a race as planned in Bahrain due to the political dramas taking place in the small country. Bernie Ecclestone was the man in demand as the media questioned his desire to go ahead with the race against strong reasons for calling it off.
This image gives you an idea as to how the media in F1 work. TV cameras, journalists and  photographers try to get a piece of the action. I knew it was going to be a big scrum around Bernie and wanted to show the pressure he was under rather than just a tight portrait of the F1 supremo, so I positioned myself behind the 'little man with big balls' to show a swarm of media thrusting microphones and cameras in his face.

Bernie Ecclestone, China, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

Bahrain wasn't the only drama in the first part of the year. Back in Europe Pastor Maldonado took his first F1 victory in dominant style at the Spanish Grand Prix. After the race everyone was in a celebratory mood as Pastor posed with his team mates and family. This was the image that we arranged in the pitlane in front of the Williams garage.

Pastor Maldonado, Barcelona, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

Moments later the garage behind burst into flames. Frank Williams was quickly wheeled away from the fire which had really taken hold of the garage. I ran back into the pitlane and was confronted with thick black smoke and a stream of mechanics running towards the fire with extinguishers.
The contrast between the joy in the photo above and the charred remains of the Williams garage in the shot below show just how close F1 was to a major disaster. The quick thinking and actions of brave mechanics and the camaraderie of rival team members assisting, saved many more injuries.

Williams Garage Fire, Barcelona, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

 
 The F1 travelling circus moved on to one of my favourite races of the year, Monaco. It is a cliche but the Principality really is a photographers dream. The access that we get trackside and the proximity to the cars, blended with the noise, glamour and colour just all come together to create a phenomenal race weekend. I will leave the photographic highlights to another separate blog, but show you what happens after the race at the Red Bull floating motorhome.

These are the team members from the marketing department jumping into the pool. Mark Webber opened the proceedings after his victory and it doesn't take long before drivers, management, catering girls and all team members end up drenched. It has also been know for photographers to end up in the pool!!

Red Bull Celebration, Monaco, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

 Away from F1 we were kept busy with various assignments around the World. One of the more enjoyable was to provide Palmersport with updated photography for their fantastic driving school at Bedford Autodrome. I have worked with MSV and Palmersport for many years now and enjoy the freedom of being given some very valuable cars and provided with some seriously impressive drivers and then being sent out to play at their wonderful facility.

These images below give you a very small example of the spins, slides, jumps and other lairy driving required to capture the images required.

Palmersport Photo Shoot, Bedford Autodrome, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

Palmersport Photo Shoot, Bedford Autodrome, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

Palmersport Photo Shoot, Bedford Autodrome, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

Palmersport Photo Shoot, Bedford Autodrome, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

Palmersport Photo Shoot, Bedford Autodrome, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

Palmersport Photo Shoot, Bedford Autodrome, 2012. Copyright James Moy Photography www.jamesmoy.com

Part 2 of our 2012 season review can now be found at the top of this page.
Or click here: http://www.jamesmoy.com/blog.aspx


More images can be viewed at www.jamesmoy.com

Any enquires should be directed to james@jamesmoy.com