HyVee INDYCAR Race Weekend 2023 - Event Photography Recap

HyVee INDYCAR Race Weekend 2023 - Event Photography Recap

TL;DR: I covered the full HyVee INDYCAR Race Weekend at Iowa Speedway -- paddock access, pit lane, grandstands, and race day. Edited selects delivered within 24 hours of each session, full gallery within 30 hours of the checkered flag.

Motorsport photography is a different discipline from concerts and festivals. The speed is literal, the windows are measured in milliseconds, and the stakes for teams and sponsors are high.

The HyVee INDYCAR Race Weekend brought together some of the best open-wheel racing in the world at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa. I was embedded with the event team for the full weekend, covering practice, qualifying, and race day across every accessible area of the facility.

The Event

Iowa Speedway's short oval layout produces some of the closest racing on the INDYCAR calendar. Cars run inches apart at 180+ mph, and the compact track means the action is always visible. For a photographer, that translates to more usable frames per session than you'd get at a road course or superspeedway.

Inside the Paddock

Pre-Race Preparations

The paddock is where the real stories happen before the green flag drops. Mechanics making final adjustments, drivers reviewing telemetry, engineers running calculations -- these are the moments that fans rarely see but that determine race outcomes. I spent significant time in the paddock specifically because these images have long-term value for teams and sponsors.

Pit Lane

Pit stops in INDYCAR are won and lost in fractions of a second. Capturing that requires pre-positioning, fast shutter speeds, and anticipating which pit box will be active next. I shot from multiple pit lane positions throughout the weekend to get the full range of angles -- crew overhead shots, tire changes at ground level, and the driver's exit sequence.

Race Day

Race day at Iowa Speedway is a sensory overload in the best way. The engine noise, the speed, the crowd reactions on every pass -- all of it feeds into the images. I rotated between grandstand positions, the infield, and pit lane to capture the race from every perspective. The goal was a gallery that tells the complete story: start to finish, every angle, every emotion.

How I Approach Motorsport Photography

• Shutter speed: 1/2000s minimum for sharp car-to-car action, 1/250s for intentional motion blur on panning shots

• Pre-planned shot lists for each session: practice, qualifying, race

• Dual camera setup: 100-400mm telephoto for on-track action, 24-70mm for paddock and pit lane

• Same-day selects delivered after each session so social teams can post while the event is live

• Full gallery within 30 hours of the checkered flag, formatted for web, social, print, and broadcast

Key Takeaways

• Multi-day motorsport events require session-by-session planning and delivery

• Paddock and pit lane access produces the highest-value images for teams and sponsors

• Iowa Speedway's short oval creates constant action and tight racing -- ideal for photography

• Same-day delivery during multi-day events keeps social media content flowing in real time

• Motorsport photography demands different gear and techniques than concert work, but the delivery standards are the same

Helpful Links

Event photography services

Concert photography services

How Do You Photograph Concerts and Festivals

Book event photography

Conclusion

The HyVee INDYCAR Race Weekend was a reminder that great event photography isn't limited to music. The principles are the same -- access, preparation, speed of delivery -- but the subject matter pushes you into a completely different skill set. If you need a photographer who can cover motorsport, festivals, concerts, or corporate events with the same level of professionalism and turnaround, get in touch.