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Old 02-15-2002, 07:26 PM
bbdon bbdon is offline
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Default Re: Super Car alert!

On the subject of taking car pictures, I have been trying to do this right for years and I will share what I have learned. Not that I am an expert, I am not. I still find myself making stupid mistakes and then when I get home there is a big shadow hiding the details of a car's grille or one whole side of the car. You have to learn from those mistakes. Typicly you have problems with the light. The best day for taking pictures is a cloudy or misty day, the light is more diffused and forgiving. But you don't usually have so much choice. Try to stand with the sun behind you.
I get to a show in the morning and look and see which way the sun is coming down onto the cars. Then I walk around shooting all of the cars that have the light shining on the front, and shoot from the side that has the most light. Then I go back in the afternoon and shoot all of the cars that are facing the other way. For engine and interior shots you will use the flash, and the time of day is not so critical.
Just ask for help from a car owner you will usually get amazing cooperation. For example I wanted a picture of a Camaro convertible at the last Bowtie Bash, but there was a big shadow going across the car. The shadow was nothing that would bother you looking in person, but the camera is less forgiving than your eye. I showed the owner the problem and he pulled his car out into the aisle where there was no shadow. I never hurts to ask the owner to close the hood or ask him to stand next to the car for a second or third picture. If you really need to get a good picture, sometimes you need to get away from all of the other cars. Have somebody watch the parking space and go over near all the trailers or even outside the show for a few minutes. Then you can park the car so that the light is coming down onto the front of the car.
And all that I can do is tell people that I am taking pictures for the web site, but they will do a lot to help me out. If you tell them you are taking pictures for Super Chevy they will probably do anything for you.
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