I have a classic carr group in my town who are in Desperate need of a photographer... lol... they have horrible shots of their cars... anyway what I am asking is "does anyone know any tricks to the trade?" I am thinking about Helping them, also making a little money for me. BUT Iwant the shots to POP!... Here is one I took of my Father in laws car... Aside from the background... I did not get a chance to "Move" the car... what else can I do to really make these shots something else?

<a href="http://s230.photobucket.com/albums/ee84/jdocpony/?action=view&current=DSC_4097.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee84/jdocpony/DSC_4097.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

Thanks ahead of time for the help... I know how to shoot horses and animals but Cars... hmmmmm .... But even this shot is better than anything they already have...

Shoot with the sun behind you, if you can shoot in the shade when possible. That should get the ball rolling, I am sure others will chime in.
Jimmy B

With autos, the difference between a good shot and a great one usually lies in post-production. If you're familiar with the pen tool, it should take about 10 minutes per image. Still, if you have 50 or 60 images.......

My workflow for these images is tires, lights, windshield, reflections. Darken the tires, lighten the lights, get the color tint (in this case blue, from the sky) off the windshield, and dodge the reflections to make the paint job seem glossier. You'd be amazed at the difference it makes in the overall look.

As far as actually shooting them, I don't have anything to add. I can say that the image you have here is as good or better than some of the commercial images I've worked on. I'd say you're on the right track.

- Joe U.

Thank you Medley... It helps to have those tips from others who actually know what they are doing... one of the old guys at the club (one of the worst picture offenders) ticked me off telling me what to do I almost shut down the whole Idea, but I need to find something BESIDES horse pictures, to help urn my keep... exsecially IF I ever get to upgrade from my D70...lol.. I have to justify the purchase... So I need more work... I am still really shy about going, BIG time FULL time pro... I am still at a lower level.. I know I do not have the knowledge/experience!... I just seem to have a good eye, but my technical is kinda shaky... In my opinion!... Thank you for the information Jimmy.. I took the shot with the sun behind me too... but this one was more pleasing to my eye... sigh... I forget that that is not what this is all about...lol

<a href="http://s230.photobucket.com/albums/ee84/jdocpony/?action=view&current=DSC_4096.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee84/jdocpony/DSC_4096.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

I think you're getting there. Now just take the Vette out onto a quiet (no traffic) country road and set in a nice environment and play around with with your camera angles and camera height (relative to the car). Once you have those shots with the good lighting (you've got figured out already) and a great non distracting background -- you can print a few at 8"x10" or 8"x12" for your portfolio and show them around the car club.

Every time you do a car shoot print one or two for yourself and add them until your book is filled with great car images. Then you'll be well on your way! :thumbsup:

mbb

Edit: I just saw this on Autoweek's Website:
http://www.autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080625/FREE/261277396/1528/newsletter01

I keep joking about doing a play on the word horsepower as a photo name ... If I get bigger into shooting... since it seems I shoot horses and cars the most...lol

For the best shots, I recommend some movement. The best way to do this is to find a nice country road that's very quiet and find a place where you can set up without worrying about cars coming toward you all of a sudden (flat sections are nice because there is ample time to react). Then you want to set up your camera (a digital SLR) beside the road, usually facing around 30 degrees from parallel into the road. Then, depending on the lens you chose, you'll need to select a spot where to fire your camera. Assuming your camera has a shutter lag of around 70ms, a car moving at 50mph will move 1.6 metres before the shutter fires. Thus, mark a spot on the road with chalk around 1.6 metres ahead of where you want the car to be when the shutter opens. If your camera does high speed shooting (5fps or greater) then that works too. Then, set your camera to shutter priority at 1/500s if the car is coming toward you or 1/1000 if your camera direction is more perpendicular to the road than parallel to it. These speeds ensure a slight speed blur while capturing the screen nicely. Shoot with a polarizer to get a nice deep sky; however, remember that this can remove glare from the windshield, thus exposing the driver (not always desired). Thankfully, you can darken the windshield in photoshop if you need to hide the driver.

For static shots, get a nice setting and some studio lights hooked up to a mobjile power source. Sometimes, softboxes applied to the lights outdoors near sunset hours while using a polarizer can get deep skies with enough light that it looks ambient. If not, an HDR bracket sequence also works.

For static shots, get a nice setting and some studio lights hooked up to a mobjile power source. Sometimes, softboxes applied to the lights outdoors near sunset hours while using a polarizer can get deep skies with enough light that it looks ambient. If not, an HDR bracket sequence also works.

I saw a shot and a how-to in a magazine about a guy who would shoot cars with very minimal equipment - one or two lights, but put the camera on a tripod. He'd move the light around take several of the same shots each with a different area that was lit, then combine the shots in Photoshop. I wish I remembered his name - just great shots and you'd have thought they were done with a truck-full of gear. That's beyond my level of PS expertise, and would take a lot of time to shoot, but it may be an option especially with a car belonging to someone you know pretty well. It could be a chance to learn a technique and also get a great portfolio shot.

I saw a shot and a how-to in a magazine about a guy who would shoot cars with very minimal equipment - one or two lights, but put the camera on a tripod. He'd move the light around take several of the same shots each with a different area that was lit, then combine the shots in Photoshop. I wish I remembered his name - just great shots and you'd have thought they were done with a truck-full of gear. That's beyond my level of PS expertise, and would take a lot of time to shoot, but it may be an option especially with a car belonging to someone you know pretty well. It could be a chance to learn a technique and also get a great portfolio shot.

Wasn't that in popular photo? I can't remember but I've seen the guy's pictures before and wow :eek:! It takes a lot of PS work to immitate shots with studio lighting outdoors though. An alternative is to rig a few flashes and since the nikon SLR's work as wireless commanders with some simple diffusers you can get nice lighting.

This is my personal fave: http://autodrum.com/img/media/wallpapers/porsche_carrera_gt_2006_03.jpg

Definitely some fill light on that one (diffused) and most likely some "weak" HDR to get the epic dynamic range. I'm guessing the sky was masked out and PS'd to get the beautiful cast. It also looks like a polariser was used.

First let me say I know ZIP about taking photos of cars.

In my research on polarizers I read time and time again a polarizer is good for shooting cars. It helps with reflections on the windshield and body. At least that's what I read. :D

fx101, that must be the guy - sure looks like his style anyway. There was a lot of work involved in making that shot but it doesn't look "heavy handed" with the PS work. That's not easy to do, but important for a good finished shot.

JETA, there is a common misconception that polarizers won't help with cars because (well, Corvettes excepted) they're made of metal. Since the surface you actually see is paint, they work really well. Try it, especially on a sunny day - but as previously mentioned watch the light very carefully. You don't need to do all of the work of the other guy we're talking about to get a good shot, and I'd imagine a lot of times it won't be possible anyway. Just pay attention to how the light looks - which is crucial to all types of photography - and you'll see it in your results.

Great secret number one to shooting automobiles outside:

Photograph on a 100% overcast day. This kills the shadow problem almost entirerly, uniform light that doesn't change as often meanining custom white balance doesnt' have to be reset as frequently, and the color will be more uniform.

Classic cars often have strange paint jobs and harsh sunlight can and will show every flaw in paint and body work underneath.

Great secret number two:

Remember to photograph details. What makes these cars worth photographing is the trim, the body lines, the interiors, and never forget the badges or hood ornaments.

Great secret number three: Don't get fancy. Low angles and perspective distortion is very powerful in experienced hands. You will need to shoot a lot to find out what works with different cars so plan ahead. Try shooting each car the same way. Front, rear, side, selected closeups, etc. Look at any car magazine (new or classic or hot rod or racing) and see the 'standard' shots that are used for every car. This is about showcasing the car and its special areas or comparative areas to every other car ever made! If you only shoot one or two special shots, you may miss.

There some other very interesting advice in this posting, some of which I'll warn you if not blatantly wrong, is too specialized for what you are probably go to be most successful at doing with this club.

The one other issue about shooting cars, is color. This is the most underappreciated element to succesful car photography. Restorers and collectors invest huge amount in time and money and the color in so many car photographs is off. Custom white balancing or proper film selection is absolutely a must. If you tweak anything in Adobe Photoshop or other editors that is color related, CALIBRATE!! Printing will else never match the auto.

Best wishes and feel free to ask lots of questions. Be sure to experiment to see what works well for you and your clients!