Yes, I know the obvious answer to the topic title. Racing! Duh!

What I mean is, what happens when a spectator goes to a circuit?

Reason I ask is that I'm determined to get to Croft this year (it's only 40 mins drive away) with my camera to do some motorsport photography. But once you've paid your gate fee, are you just free to wander around behind the armco on the banks and hillsides? Obviously the press and agency photographers have press passes and the best locations (along with pit and paddock access, lucky buggers), but what about the amateur? How much freedom is there to move around the trackside and get where you want to be - or are you typically limited to the stands and pathways between them?

Only time I've been to a circuit is Silverstone for the GP when I was a wee lad, and I can't remember any such details. So I'm trying to get an idea of how things are around the track.

F3 is at Croft in April and it's only £12 on Saturday and £15 on Sunday. A booklet I had also said the British GT was on the same weekend, which I'd be far more interested in, but Croft appears to have since been dropped from the GT schedule altogether.

from what i remember when i went to brands 10 years ago (i was 10 ) once you were in you could go wherever, walked from the main straight to a nice spot up by druids when i was there.

It depends on the event being hosted. At Silverstone for the GP a basic ticket gets you access to the grass/gravel banking around the circuit perimeter, but not into any of the grandstands or seated enclosures.

At the smaller meetings (British GT/F3, VSCC, etc...) you can usually go anywhere you like, even into the pits. I even stood on the pitwall for the first lap of a VSCC race. I doubt I would have been allowed to do this for the GT/F3 though. Actually, I probably wasn't allowed to do it for the VSCC, but nobody stopped me!

The photographers usually have access to the area behind the armco/tyre barriers but in front of the spectator fencing, presumably so they can take pictures without the fence in the foreground.

Unless you have a media pass (i.e. are a professional photographer or have a sufficient portfolio to convince them you are serious) then you are restricted to public spectator areas.

At club races this is most places inside of the metal wire fences, which are themselves a few metres behind the armco - further in places. You will also have access to most paddocks for free (Combe is an exception, and there are others, but most have open paddocks and garages).

Pitwalls are usually out of bounds, even for race teams, during starts so don't except to be next to the grid as the lights go green. Sometimes you can avoid the marshalls for long enough, but don't count on it.

Some tracks (I don't know about Croft) don't even have stands as such, just grassy raised areas (not even banks) to stand on, but it does allow viewing (and hence photography) from most points around the track.

The other thing to worry about is catchfencing - horrible to take pictures through, and hard to avoid. A few circuits have catchfencing you can see over from some places, and others have convenient holes to poke a lens through. You won't get into the track side of the fence areas without a pass, and often you are stuck in one spot for the duration of a meeting, which limits creativity.

Good luck. I'm not going to Croft this year, but I hope you enjoy the circuit!

As mentioned, it depends on the venue and the event. At Mosport you can go just about anywhere within the fencing, including the paddock. At some places you can't go anywhere. I know le Circuit Mont Tremblant has pretty restrictive spectator areas. I'm not sure exactly where they're limited to there as I had press passes for that event so I got to stand on the rockface at the inside of Namerow corner during the classic F1 car race

I'd imagine that Croft is similar to Mosport in the regard that you have a lot of freedom to move about; especially if F3 is the headlining event.

Cheers guys. Sounds promising that I'll be able to pick some spots as I choose. Croft isn't exactly a massively developed circuit - see FlashEarth for the circuit. It's cool that google's satellite image was taken on race day - there's cars going round the track!

I always carry a high-vis jacket in the boot of my car so maybe if I put that on and put the longest lens on my camera, there's a chance I'll get better access to somewhere a bit closer than spectator areas! Maybe it's worth giving them a ring beforehand to enquire about media-level access for non-commercial photography, just for that added bit of flexibility.

This is all assuming it's not pissing it down in April of course, as my camera gear isn't weather sealed.

Big bag, duct tape and some ingenuity sort that out. My brother did that for my race meetings. He looked a pillock pointing a bin bag at racing cars, but got some nice shots doing so

Very good point, I usually carry a black bin bag and swiss army knife in my camera bag. Time to add a roll of electrician's/insulating tape which is usually sticky enough for such things. Fortunately my tele-zoom lens has a massive hood - keeps the front element clear and provides plenty space to tape bin bags to.

You can get proper raincovers for DSLRs with long lenses (they seem to be designed for photographing birds, although I don't see how they would help me outside a sixth form college) but the tank of fuel and gate fees will be quite enough to spend for a day out.

Quote from STROBE :

see FlashEarth for the circuit. It's cool that google's satellite image was taken on race day - there's cars going round the track!

Here's a daft little thing to have a look at if you've got MS Virtual Earth.

You have to follow these instructions to the letter otherwise this won't work:-
Pull up Virtual Earth and go find Brands Hatch.
Then when you're over the circuit put it into Hybrid Mode.
If you know the circuit, find the pit straight, and pan north and you should see a big field with marks on it like it's been used for a dirt bike track.
There's one such track that stands out the most (near some buildings) Zoom into that.
Then go into Birds Eye Mode.
Pan down till you see the track. When you see the cars lined up on the starting grid, zoom into them, but don't pan too far down.
Now follow the full GP circuit, but try to keep only one section of the road in view at a time (in places it doubles back on itself, so try to keep to the route of the circuit without seeing other sections)
Be careful at the far end (over by "DIngle Dell") sometimes it trips you back into road mode. (if it does trip out just nudge it north a tad till you can go into birds eye view again)
Then when you return to the pit straight...
Go past the start finish line again....

It's nowt amazing so don't complain, it's just one of the daft little quirky things that amuses me.....

Quote from STROBE :

Cheers guys. Sounds promising that I'll be able to pick some spots as I choose. Croft isn't exactly a massively developed circuit - see FlashEarth for the circuit. It's cool that google's satellite image was taken on race day - there's cars going round the track!

BTCC from the last few years it looks like (cant tel which year, maybe 2006 or 2007)

I went to the pickup truck event last year (May time), and the only grandstand was on turn one. Around the rest of the track it's just pure grass banking. Croft is a good track if you've got the lens for it.
My 55mm would be piss poor.

If you've never been to a race event, you'll love it. The noise and smell gets me going everytime.

It's quite easy to get to the paddock area at croft. Especially when it's anything from Forumla Renault downwards. If you've got a team pass you can go up onto the pitwall. That was great fun, I'm sure mkinnov8 will agree.

Croft should be fine for photography, Brands and combe are where you can get really close to the track without too much fencing in your way. best place for some snaps at brands it over the carlube tunnel and into the middle. Wish i had a camera for the night race there it looked spectacular.

Quote from tristancliffe :

Pitwalls are usually out of bounds, even for race teams, during starts so don't except to be next to the grid as the lights go green. Sometimes you can avoid the marshalls for long enough, but don't count on it.

Photography and spectating is also banned from pitwalls so don't expect to get away with a long lens.

at the club events I can go and walk wherever I want, but at DTM I had to spend 20 euro on a ticket to be able to go to the paddock, even if I got a gold card

Quote from STROBE :

Obviously the press and agency photographers have press passes and the best locations (along with pit and paddock access, lucky buggers)

Depends where you go, Snetterton has always had an open pitlane/paddock whenever I have been, certainly was for the BTCC last year.

Quote from ajp71 :

Photography and spectating is also banned from pitwalls so don't expect to get away with a long lens.

people saying that you have to be a proffesional, etc, to get a press pass. im not, and i managed it a few times now.
photography does depend on how good you are, etc, but its getting increasingly into who you know, or who you contact.