What a year it has been.

A photo in Sports Illustrated. Two magazine covers. Five published with Autosport. Regular assignments with two local magazines. Five weddings. One Indycar race. One NASCAR race. Three American Le Mans series races. The Breeders Cup……

I could go on and on.

But really, it was a year of building. The publications are important, but the people I met really made this year special. I can’t begin to list all of them, but I have many to thank for the success I had in 2011.

The photos below are some of my personal favorites from the last year. Though far from representing everything I’ve seen and done, these are the ones that to me, highlight what 2011 has brought me.

Happy New Year! See you in 2012!

Bow ties are the attire of choice for young men at the Carolina Cup. An annual spring ritual celebrated by a day of horse racing in Camden, SC. This was a photo essay I did that has almost 50 unique photos in it of all types and varieties of bow ties. I foresee big things for these photos (hint hint hint **publication** hint hint hint)

Speaking of Carolina Cup, though some may never know it…there is some fantastic horse racing. Sunshine Numbers romped away with the feature race of the day, the G1 Carolina Cup. Sadly, this was the last time any horses would run over the big natural brush fences that are so iconic to American steeplechasing.

May brought the world's best swimmers to Charlotte for the Charlotte Ultraswim Grand Prix. Michael Phelps had an unusually poor weekend. But hell, it's still Michael Phelps. 16 (and counting) Olympic gold medals is nothing to turn your head away from.

May also brought me my first taste of NASCAR as a working photographer. I was contracted by an English based wire service to cover Kimi Raikkonen's (2007 F1 World Champion) stock car debut. But this isn't Kimi. This is Kasey Kahne during sprint cup practice for the All-Star race.

The 24 hours of Booty is a charity cycling race I've been involved with for several years. This was a nifty shot I took close to midnight during the event. A little strobe to the left and a very slow shutter speed did the trick.

A stunning afternoon at Mid Ohio quickly turned wet in a hurry. Here, a BMW GT car struggles in the downpour. Let's just say I had no rain gear for me or my cameras. But the MacGyver in me found a trash bag and in using my belt, I made myself a ghetto rain cover for the rented 400mm 2.8 lens. And yes, it worked quite well thank you very much.

My dream has always been to be a professional Formula One photographer. And while Indycar isn't F1 in any way shape or form, it's a good start. The Baltimore Grand Prix gave me a chance to have a little fun and network with some amazing photographers.

Tired of car racing yet? Me neither. The #16 Dyson Racing machine made for a nice subject during the waning minutes of the inaugural American Le Mans series Baltimore Grand Prix. Holy unbelievable light!!!

This photo was taken right before the pitlane walkabout at Petit Le Mans. The national anthem was being played and you don't often get a clean photo of the Audi factory team next to their car. It was a stunning cloudless day and the blue sky really makes the uniforms and the car stand out.

I once again chased the American Le Mans series around the country to their final stop of the season outside of Atlanta, GA for the 14th running of Petit Le Mans. It was a grueling 10 hour day but I made some images I'm very proud of. Did I mention I'm a massive Ferrari fan?

The light got really good as the sun set behind the trees at Road Atlanta during Petit Le Mans. The colorful Aston Martin really popped. I think the sun set about 30 seconds after I took this photo.

This one was pretty special to me. I shot this on a Wednesday morning before the Breeders' Cup in Louisville KY. Friend and editor Scott Serio (Eclipse Sportswire) submitted it to Sports Illustrated, and they took it. It ran the next day in their "snap shot" web gallery. Lot's of leading lines going on in this photo. I count 7 of them. It's nearly leading line perfection…..

I think I'll end with this one from the Breeders' Cup races. I wasn't shooting for a publication so I could play a little bit. This is a technique that yields a low catch rate, but sometimes you hit the lottery. I like it.

I am very pleased and honored to announce that my book “CHASING: Racing Life in England and Ireland” is available to purchase HERE.

This is a 78 page hard cover (with dust jacket) collection of my favorite photos from the incredible 5 months I spent riding out in jump racing yards around England and Ireland.

Tony McCoy, Noel Fehily, Paddy Brennan, Sam and Willy Twiston-Davies, Hello Bud, Master Minded, Imperial Commander, Cheltenham, Aintree, York, Catterick and many others are just a few of the names, faces and places that grace the pages of this book.

I am extremely biased when I write this, but this collection is something special. Most racing photographers are simply racing photographers. They miss the behind the scenes, the day to day grind and the love that the lads have for their horses. That is something I strove to capture because I lived it on a day to day basis.

Like I said, I am extremely proud to be able to share the things I saw with others. Many of the images have never been shown to anyone prior to this publication, and each is a memory of mine that brings back fond emotions.

The eyes of the world were on Louisville this past weekend. Well, the eyes of anyone who cares about horse racing, anyway…

The annual Breeders’ Cup World Championships for flat racing once again returned to Churchill Downs. Nestled in the heart of Louisville, Kentucky, this two day racing extravaganza brought big names from around the world to this iconic track known best for hosting the Kentucky Derby each May.

The racing could not have been any better, and with plenty of warm, sunny Kentucky afternoons, neither could the weather.  The light was stunning throughout the weekend which made our lives as photographers pretty easy, and the gorgeous sunrises made for some stunning shots.

Thanks to Getty Images’ Rob Carr and Matt Stockman, Eclipse Sportswire’s Scott Serio, The Breeders’ Cup itself and of course Churchill Downs for a fabulous weekend. 

All images © Jamey Price, 2011. All Rights Reserved.

Sometimes as a photographer, you have to find something outside your norm that pushes you as an artist and a journalist. When I found myself with nothing better to do on a Friday night, I decided that a local rodeo was the perfect assignment to point my lens at.

All Images © Jamey Price, 2011. All Rights Reserved.

Road Atlanta, a gorgeous circuit in the rolling hills North of Atlanta played host to the biggest and best sports car teams from around the world for the 14th annual running of Petit Le Mans on October 1, 2011.

The rivalry between the factory Peugeot and Audi teams is one that every race fan knows well. They respect each other, but do not like one another. When these two goliaths meet, you know on track fireworks will be shortly behind.

Sports car racing is a test of endurance, will, character and bravery. There will always be a winner and a loser. And as all the drivers said in one fashion or another, “you have to beat the race before you can beat your competitors.”

So at 11:30 am, nearly 60 cars took to the 2.5 mile circuit. What played out over the next 10 hours was not the battle to the finish that everyone hoped for, or expected between the Audi’s and Peugeot’s, but there was plenty of action that kept everyone on their toes.

Enjoy the photos from the 2011 Petit Le Mans.

Special thanks to Road Atlanta for hosting an amazing weekend with amazing weather and amazing light for the photographers to play with. 

The Indycar Grand Prix wrapped up an eventful weekend on the streets of Baltimore on a hot Sunday afternoon. With vendors selling delicious local crab cakes and cold beer, the ethanol powered cars revved up their engines one more time for the weekend’s racing finale. Penske’s Will Power dominated the brand new street circuit with ease despite a lengthy yellow flag period.

Racing will return to Baltimore next September, but in the mean time, enjoy these unique images from a fun filled race.

My last adventure with the American Le Mans and Indycar circuit was a much different one to what was running in Baltimore this past weekend. The mid-atlantic city has been mired in a traffic nightmare with construction efforts underway for months, all in preparation for a weekend of racing the likes of which the city has never seen before. Despite some very serious and frustrating growing pains early on in the weekend, Baltimore can be proud of their weekend in the racing lime light.

The changing track surface, fast and slow corners, passing opportunities and a sell out crowd surely made this one of the most unique weekends on the calendar for both series and was certainly a favorite among those of us in the Media room.

One thing is for sure, I am excited to get back up to Baltimore for the 2012 Grand Prix.

Tucked away in the rolling hills and corn and soybean farmland of Ohio sits the Mid Ohio Sports Car Course. A rolling, sweeping. twisting, turning 2.4 mile track that was the center of attention this past weekend for the American Le Mans series and the Indycar circus.

It was my first adventure into the world of ALMS and Indycar as well as my first time to Mid Ohio. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by all three and what they gave me. The racing was great, I enjoyed the different noises coming from the back of the different cars and made some images I am genuinely proud of.

The weather was stunning all weekend, until Saturday prior to the start of the ALMS race when a threat of rain had me scampering to find a trash bag and make a ghetto looking lens cover with the bag and my belt (I admit,  I was not prepared for the weather).

The Mid Ohio Sports Car Challenge kicked off at 330p under sunny skies and hot, humid temperatures with the Lola B09 Mazda powered P1 category car leading the field from a well earned pole position. Half way through the race, hoping the weather had passed us by and I had dodged a bullet, I took the make shift trash bag off my camera and continued about my business. Then the clouds rolled in. Then shortly after, the heavens opened a bit and rain put a nice sheen on the track to make conditions treacherous for drivers but interesting for the photographers. I wasn’t too bothered yet because I had put the trash bag back on the lens and went along happily shooting the action. Not 10 minutes later, while I was shooting cars cresting the hill at turn 5, the rain came down harder with each passing second until the cars were literally unable to stay on the circuit even with wet weather tires. There was not a dry fan, photographer or marshal to be found on the property. It was miserable but made for interesting photos.

Despite the race not being able to run to the end, it was a fabulous weekend which I enjoyed thoroughly and I look forward to covering many more ALMS races.

Special thanks to Chris Clark and the other photographers I pestered asking advice about how to shoot this track all weekend. Also many thanks to ALMS, IMSA, Mid Ohio, Indycar for putting on a spectacular show and of course Sam Tickell.

I owe much to the 24 Hours of Booty. As an intern photographer at the Charlotte Observer back in 2009, I made 24HOB my personal photo essay for the summer. I developed a very deep and lasting relationship and love for this event from my experiences covering the charity ride.  24 hours of booty is demanding. It is exhausting. It is fun. It is colorful. It is emotional. I love it.

In short, 24 hours of Booty was started 10 years ago by local lawyer Spencer Lueders, who had a crazy idea to bike for 24 hours around the 2.9 mile booty loop in Myers Park to raise money for cancer. Well his idea stuck. And 10 years later, the event is nationally and internationally recognized and has two other rides in Atlanta, GA and Columbia, MD. Riders of all ages,  shapes, sizes and skill levels bike for as long or as little as they want around the original booty loop that Spencer biked back in 2001. But instead of 1 rider, 1400 riders showed up for the event this year and raised over $1.25 million benefits cancer research through a variety of charities. As an event, they don’t get much better than this for photographers or journalists to cover.

Though I wasn’t able to attend or shoot the 2010 event (because I moved to England), I was happily able to cover this years event. And what an event it was! Though I wasn’t able to stay all night, I did shoot about 10 hours of the total 24 and the above photos are some of my favorites. Congrats booty riders. It was another great year.

This easily goes down as one of the strangest assignments I have ever been given and certainly one of the strangest things I’ve ever seen.

Now do not for one second think these things are the same lawn mowers you have in your garage. No no. These would be the souped up racing cousin to the old thing you have lying around that cuts grass. These are bred to race. And this tiny clay/dirt track in Ellerbe, North Carolina is their playground. This was an assignment for the Observer back in the summer of 2009 and I thoroughly enjoyed my evening with the Ellerbe Lion’s Club lawn mower racing. Essentially anyone with nothing to do on a Friday night came out to watch this strange motorsport and with a croud of a thousand or so, the action did not disappoint. Drivers throw these monsters around at close to 60 miles per hour using their weight and a lot of car control to make the turns. Insane.

Oh, and did I mention how loud they are??? Enjoy! (I really need to go back to one of these).