How to take a brilliant picture of your bike

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Taking a photograph of a bike is easy, but taking one to be proud of is something else altogether. Here at BikeRadar we've photographed more bikes than we'd like to think of and we've learned a thing or two along the way. With that in mind, here are several pointers that should help you to get a shot you can't wait to share.

Location, location, location

Sadly, not all of us are surrounded by scenery that's quite so picturesque

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It doesn’t matter how crisp or well framed your shot is, if the location isn’t right then you’ll struggle to get anything other than an average shot. Consider colours, lines and any objects that may detract from the important part – your bike.

Think also about lighting conditions. Harsh light is difficult to manage, can cast hideous shadows and will leave you with lot of unwanted reflections – for that reason it can often be better to shoot bikes on an overcast day than in blazing sunshine.

Getting up early or staying out later could pay off too. This is down to what photographers refer to as the ‘golden hour’ – a period shortly after sunrise or prior to sunset where daylight is softer and more red.

Play with aperture

Mad props

Move around

Stylistic pointers

• Shoot from the driveside: bikes look strangely incomplete when shot from the non-driveside, meaning the drivetrain is largely hidden from view.
• Crank position: some photographers swear by level cranks on a bike but we tend to keep the driveside crank arm so that it runs parallel with the bike’s chainstays.
• Gear choice: If you’ve got a big ring at the crank then make sure the chain is on it, and we tend to place bikes about halfway through their cassette in pictures.
• Handlebars – and therefore wheels –  should be straight.
• Clean or dirty: mountain bikes can look great with a bit of mud on them, but there’s a fine line between looking cool and looking cack. Road bikes rarely look good when unclean.
• Look out for the position of any quick-release levers – you’d be amazed at how messy it can look if there's one sticking out from the fork at a jaunty angle.
• Bike needs to stand level –, if it's leaning to one side then you’ll end up with odd-looking geometry.

You can read more at BikeRadar.com

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