8/4/2020
Ransomville Speedway
Staff Profile: Photographer Tom Stevens
You see his work on social media and the Ransomville Speedway website as well the Ransomville Laps program and in racing trade papers, but do you know the man behind the camera? Tom Stevens has been chasing a passion for motorsports photography since 2009, and that passion led to him becoming the Ransomville Speedway track photographer in 2018.
Stevens started out as a race fan, attending races at Ransomville and Merrittville with his family. He eventually started bringing a camera with him to the track. With his dad showing him a few pointers, Stevens began taking pictures from the grandstands. The only challenge with shooting pictures from that side of the speedway is having the catchfence between you and the track. Stevens tried to get around that obstacle by taking different angles of the race cars from through the fence.
In addition to the pointers he received from his dad, Stevens also taught himself plenty as he learned the ins and outs of his first digital SLR camera.
Eventually, the practice he got while shooting from the stands paid off as Stevens started taking pictures at Ransomville for Dirt Track Digest. This allowed him to shoot in the pits and from the infield during racing, which gave him an unobstructed view of the action. It also gave him the opportunity to work alongside and learn from other race photographers, including Alex Bruce who has been a fixture in the Ransomville infield throughout the years and served as the track’s official photographer.
Being right in the middle of things is something that Stevens loves about his role. “I'm lucky enough to have one of the best seats in the house,” said Stevens, “I get to see how everything is run and see a lot of the work the drivers put into their cars in the pits.”
Just like his predecessors behind the camera, Stevens has now become a fixture of the Ransomville racing community. You can find him in the pits before the races getting shots of teams working on their cars as well as candid shots of drivers, crew and staff. He also takes photos on Thursday nights during go-karts, and even during the offseason at car shows, banquets and race parties.
One of the most memorable moments Stevens has caught with his camera is an actual photo finish between Erick Rudolph and Danny Johnson in 2015. While Johnson’s car is the main thing you see as they approach the finish line, a closer examination of the image shows Rudolph’s front nerf bar just barely ahead of “The Doctor’s” #27J.
While electronic timing and scoring have become something we almost take for granted in racing these days, there’s still no better judge than the human eye or camera lens.
Submitted By: Dave Buchanan