As one of the longest-standing automotive shows ever, Top Gear is probably the most iconic of its kind, but it turns out that making fast cars look fast on camera is a difficult task.
Just recently, Top Gear director Jon Richards explained how the "essence of speed" is captured on camera, and it seems that it requires a massive amount of camera work.
According to Richards, the secret is in capturing as much movement as possible. Obviously the car is moving, but there also needs to be movement in the camera, the landscape, and other objects.
One of his favourite techniques is called "the joust", and basically mimics two cars driving at each other on the motorway. This way, the speed is doubled, and looks a lot more impressive on camera.
Adding landscape to tracking shots also helps make things look faster, as does a shaky cam from any direction.
But these impressive shots also require a fair bit of kit, and with Top Gear's budget, they go all out. Drones, robots, and other expensive equipment pieces all contribute to the impressive shots.
“One of the things I’m immensely proud of at Top Gear is that we do things for real,” he explains. “We capture speed for real and we get it in the bag as authentically as we can.”