Mountain Biking - Any photographers?

It may be really hard to describe this picture I will be taking tonight, but I will do the best I can:

I found a rock quarry with a 25 foot cliff sorrounding the entire perameter of the quarry. There is lots of good free ride stuff, etc. Anyway, There is a section coming down the side of the cliff. Its almost a strait drop, but sloped enough that you can ride it. The cool part about it is that w/ a camera, and the right angle it would look really amazing. Its mostly sand and its about 15 feet high, so it goes about half way up the cliff, then the cliff continues up from there. There is only one spot to ride, and its about 3 feet wide. One side is the cliff, the other side is super soft and drops off into a hole in the ground. My problem is that, I don't have a very good perception of where best to show the skill of a rider in the picture. And, also I will be riding, so I am going to have to show the person where the best spot would be. Any suggestions?

-I though about on top of the cliff looking down, behind me
-At the bottom of the hill looking up

I just don't know right now...

well I am not a pro by any means but what you want to show is the extreme angle of the drop, right? That won't be accomplished from "in front, at the bottom of the hill" But it may, possibly, if you can get a pic from the top, over the edge, as you descend.

But the best pics would be from the side... Just remember, level ground is related to the perspective of the pic, so as long as the camera is level with the ground, the drop will look like the most extreme angle.

help any?

Thanks, I will def. post a a couple different picks tonight, and you guys can vote on your favorite one. I am planning on printing them out of glossy photo paper and giving them to friends. Hopefully it turns out really well. I get out of school early today so 4 hours from now, should having me at the rock quarry...

(Sweet!)

lol.

Try a very wide angle lens if possible. In 35mm terms, a 20mm lens or less. This give a very dramatic shot.

I don't have that kind of equipment.

Wish I did...

I am using a FugiFilm fine pix 7500. I kind of want a digi cam so I can look at what I have and see what is best. yet I still want some idea of what to do, incase I can't figure anything out. (Its a long way up there...)

How much are you looking at spending?

Getting close with a wideangle is usually more dramatic than far away with a telephoto. Use the widest angle of your zoom lens.
Try out some shots from below, pointing up.
The problem with digicams is the slow response time from pressing the button to capturing the pic. You may have to experiment with anticipating the shot. Also, if you have a manual focus option, pre-focus on the target spot.
Flash can be used to freeze action. Flash in daylight can give you shots with combinations of frozen subject (from the flash), and dynamic blur (from the daylight).

I find fish-eye lenses the best for all sporting events. Biking being no exception.

Can get the whole scene in!

They always look good, even if you suck at photography (I don't! Just saying!!!) and if you stare at the pics for ages afterwards your eyes go like WHeeeeeYYYY. Its almost trippy ;P But not as good as the real thing! But costs less!

Simon

Without any special lenses, just try to zoom in on the rider, use a lower shutter speed, and try to match his speed down the slope. The background should blur slightly (if you use 1/125th or so), and if you do the camera motion well, it'll look alright.