Looking back at 2023, it’s hard not to feel grateful for how much happened over the course of the year. What started as another season of motorsport photography quickly turned into the busiest and most rewarding year I’ve had behind the camera so far.
From club events to some of the biggest endurance races in the world, 2023 gave me the opportunity to travel, improve my photography and videography, capturing some incredible moments in motorsport.
Porsche Testing – Silverstone
Early in the year I headed to Silverstone to capture photos and video of Max Coates testing his Porsche Cayman GT4 ahead of his first season in the championship. Pre-season testing days are always interesting to shoot, they offer a more relaxed environment than race weekends and give the chance to experiment with different angles around the circuit.
GT Cup Media Day – Donington Park
Another early-season outing was the GT Cup Media Day at Donington Park. Events like this are a great way to reconnect with teams after the winter break and capture fresh content ahead of the racing season.
Nürburgring – NLS Rounds 1 & 3
In March and April I travelled over to the Nürburgring with a clear goal in mind, to learn more of the circuit and eventually work towards covering the Nürburgring 24 Hours.
At the time, I didn’t necessarily expect that to happen in 2023, but I wanted to start building knowledge of the track and the best locations around the Nordschleife.
For NLS Round 3, I was able to attend with media access for the first time, which opened up new opportunities around pit lane and the circuit itself.
Nurburgring 24hr
After ten years of working toward the goal, I finally achieved something I had wanted to do for a long time, covering the Nürburgring 24 Hours.
It was a huge milestone for me, and I’ll save the full story for a dedicated post soon.
Teesside Autodrome & Karting
My work with Teesside Autodrome continued throughout the year and, as always, it was incredibly varied and a lot of fun.
The highlight was attending the Le Mans 24 Hour Kart Race with Lewis Thomas Media. Alongside the race itself we managed to tour the famous Circuit de la Sarthe, visit the museum, and even grab pizza from a vending machine at 4am.
The race itself was intense, teams competing for 24 gruelling hours in the heat, providing plenty of great moments to capture.
Across the rest of the year I also covered 9 karting championship rounds, the British 24 Hour Kart Race and several drift events
MBKC Gold Cup – Three Sisters
Another event I really enjoyed this year was the Manchester & Buxton Kart Club Gold Cup at Three Sisters Circuit.
It’s quite a challenging circuit to photograph compared to places like Teesside, mainly because there are fewer obvious angles at each location. That challenge makes it interesting though, and it forced me to think more creatively when composing shots.
I’m looking forward to returning there for more events in 2024.
Spa 24 Hours
ttending the Spa 24 Hours had been on my bucket list for a long time. Many of the races I want to experience are the major endurance events around the world, and this year I finally ticked this one off.
It was also one of the few trips where I wasn’t working, just travelling with a group of friends to enjoy the race.
Spa is an incredible circuit and, with a bit of exploring around the spectator areas, there are plenty of great photographic opportunities. I’ll be writing a separate post soon as there are far too many images to include in this year review.
Powerboat Racing
One of the unexpected highlights of the year was discovering powerboat racing. Kev Bennett Imagery introduced me to the sport and after attending a couple of club meetings we teamed up with Lewis Thomas Media to cover the OSY400 and GT15 World Finals.
It’s very different from motorsport but equally exciting to photograph, and I’m looking forward to shooting more events in the future.
British Endurance Championship & Britcar Trophy
I also spent another season working with teams competing in the British Endurance Championship and Britcar Trophy.
Some of the highlights included:
Dragonsport winning the overall Britcar Trophy Championship
Multiple podium finishes across the teams I worked with
Another competitive and entertaining racing season
BTCC – Croft Circuit
A fairly last-minute opportunity came together to head up to Croft Circuit to cover the British Touring Car Championship weekend.
I spent most of the event filming the Graves Motorsport Minis and photographing the Porsche Caymans of Max Coates and Ethan Hammerton at their home race.
Croft might just be one of the best circuits in the UK to photograph with media access. It was an incredible weekend and hopefully one I’ll get to cover again in the future.
Between chasing content for the teams I was working with, I still managed to watch a couple of the BTCC races, although I missed most of the practice sessions while running around the paddock.
DriftMatsuri – 10th Anniversary
This year marked the 10th anniversary of DriftMatsuri at Anglesey Circuit, and as usual I was there covering the event.
For some reason this year’s event felt even better than usual. I can’t quite put my finger on why, perhaps the atmosphere was a little more relaxed, or maybe the paddock just had an especially strong selection of cars.
Either way, it was another brilliant weekend and I’m sure I’ll be back for the 11th DriftMatsuri in 2024.
Roger Albert Clark Rally
To finish the year I attended the Roger Albert Clark Rally, this time purely as a spectator, with very little experience photographing forest rallies. I researched the stages using Google Maps, came up with a rough plan, and set off to follow the rally.
Over six days and more than 1,100 miles, I chased the event across Wales, Scotland and the north of England. It was an unforgettable experience and I met so many great people out in the forests along the way.
I’m already looking forward to the next running of the rally in 2025.
Looking Ahead
2023 has been an incredible year, one that pushed my photography further than ever before. From achieving long-term goals like covering the Nürburgring 24 Hours to discovering entirely new disciplines like powerboat racing, it’s been a season full of new experiences.
And hopefully it’s just the beginning.
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