Ron McQueeney is an Americansports photographer. He served as Director of Photography at theIndianapolis Motor Speedway starting in 1977 until his retirement in 2011.
Ron McQueeney was born inDenver, Colorado. He was raised inPlainfield, Indiana.[1]
McQueeney started working at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) as a part-time photographer in 1972.[2] He became Director of Photography at the IMS in 1977. Until his retirement, he annually photographed theIndianapolis 500,Brickyard 400, theUnited States Grand Prix (when it was in Indianapolis), and theMotoGP. He also managedIndy Racing League's traveling photography staff starting in 1996 until his retirement. He also managed the photoarchive at IMS which has over 4 million images in the collection.[1]
He is credited with moving the IMS intodigital photography. The first digital photography shot at the track was in 1998 with aCanon that cost $20,000. In 2003, the track stopped using film.[3] He managed photography at other events, including allTeam Penske owned race tracks and theDetroit Grand Prix andDallas Grand Prix. McQueeney has spoken internationally about photo safety at racing events.[1]
McQueeney's work has been used inIndyCar video games.[4] His work has been published in and/or used byNational Speed Sports News,Indianapolis Monthly,Motor Trend,[5]USA Today,[6]Street Tech,[7]Today,[8]The Birmingham News[9] and other publications and books.
McQueeney is responsible for staging many legendary photographs at the track. In the winter of 1983, he received permission from then IMS track superintendent Charlie Thompson to bringGordon Johncock's winning car from the1982 Indianapolis 500 to the track for a photo shoot at the track in snow. In 1989,Emerson Fittipaldi became the firstIndy 500 winner to win more than $1 million. Two days after the race, McQueeney set up Fittipaldi's winning car on the track with theBorg-Warner Trophy and had more than $1 million in cash piled upon the car to celebrate the win. The piece has been nicknamed "the money shot."[2]
He collectsCorvettes and in 2007, McQueeney was named an honorary member of theChevrolet CorvettePace Car Registry.[1]
He lives inIndianapolis, Indiana and is married.[1]