There’s nothing quite like bagging that all important shot that captures the very essence of your bike

And while sometimes chucking your bike against a wall and grabbing a quick snap on your phone is okay, if you want to capture your pride and joy in all its glory you’ll need a little more preparation. Here’s our guide to perfecting the art of the bike shot and making everyone online jealous that it’s your bike and not theirs.

 

Background

Keep it simple. The focus of the picture is your bike, and if the background is super busy or overcomplicated it’s going to give the picture that same feeling. A nice, simple background works in your favour and helps to make your bike pop, especially something that juxtaposes the colour of your frame or a simple, consistent pattern like a wall or fence.

Be careful, though, it’s easy to wash the bike out if the contrasting background is too strong.

 

Angle

One thing you’ll have noticed recently is how manufacturers have started to show off their bikes from a three-quarter angle. This is all well and good if you have access to a studio and a magic stick (aka a clear Perspex rod to prop the bike up with) but for the majority a wall will have to do and if that’s the case then a classic side-on shot will do nicely.

But don’t be afraid to play around with angle, and if Photoshop is your thing then removing any props used to hold the bike up won’t be all that difficult.

 

If you want some tips on bike photos, you can do a lot worse than checking out what the Podia.cc guys do. Those chaps can take a mean picture even if their crank angle could use some work...

Gearing

It should go without saying that your bike needs to be in the big ring (unless you’re running 1X and don’t have a choice) but the rear is a more contentious issue. It used to be convention to have it in the smallest cog at the back, but that can give the chain an odd angle which ruins the neatness of the shot.

We reckon that an equal distance between the chain and chainstay works best, and on most bikes that’s as simple as dropping the rear mech into the fourth or fifth sprocket, giving a nice, crisp look. Again, though, it’s definitely worth playing around with gear selection and if you’re shooting from an angle other than side-on, you might want something different.

 

Details

When it comes to the details there are quite a few things to think about.

Let’s start with the cranks. They should be level, with the drive side crank at 90 degrees. Why? Because it looks neat, to be honest. Some people do slightly dip the crank in order to follow the line of the chainstays, but we’re big fans of the 90 degree rule and we’ll be sticking with it.

Tyre valves and wheel logos are another one. So easy to forget but whether or not you have them done well will make a noticeable difference to your picture. One thing’s certain though, the wheel logos should be arranged in tandem, that is both pointing in the same direction.

With some wheels (like the DT Swiss PRCs shown here) the visible silver logos make things easy as you simply line both up so they’re not upside down.

If your wheels don’t have logos, then both valves pointing in the same direction is your second choice. Some people even choose to have the valves hidden inside the chainstays, which is an interesting shout, but we don’t think they’re messy enough to warrant that sort of extreme behaviour.

The all-important photography

For most of us, this one is pretty straight forward. 99% of people will use their phone, and with the quality of most modern phone cameras, you can a really smart, high-resolution shot with minimal effort.

Framing the bike is very important though. For best results, squat down so that the camera is a low as the top tube of the bike, then move backwards until you have about a finger-width gap between the edges of the tyres and the screen. Borders always work well and add a sense of perspective.

You also want to make sure that there aren’t any stray shadows/branches/garden furniture or whatever sneaking into the shot.

When you’re happy with how it looks – shoot away. Always take a few shots, that way if one doesn’t come out just how you fancy you don’t have to set everything up again. After that, you’re on to Instagram filters which is probably another feature all on its own…

 

When to break the rules

Well, whenever you like, really. None of these are actual rules, more points to get you thinking about those small details that can make a good shot into a great one, or ruin an otherwise perfect picture.

You don’t always have to have the whole bike in shot, for example, picking a section of the bike, frame or component can make things far more interesting, especially if you can illustrate something most people see every day in a new or interesting way. Have fun, and show us your best shots.

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