It’s that time of year again, when we can finally shed all the winter clothing we have been covered in, for what seems forever.
The good thing is that with all that nice weather, comes all sorts of nice things to take pics of out and about our city.
Most cities have some sort of markets, and various events going on through the warm weather season, and if you don’t know what’s going on, I’m sure if you asked a friend or two they would be able to tell you of stuff that’s happening out and about.
I recently went cruising about town, and noticed a bunch of vehicles pulling into a local parking lot. These are cars that belong to avid hobbyists who have poured a load of money, love, and time into customizing them, and making them perform better than they may have in the original design.
These folks gather, park and talk cars, play some tunes and just show off the shiny bling all over the car, and under the hood.
For a photographer, and most people I have met, the love of a car is similar to the love of photography — we both spend a ton of money on the craft we love so much, and when you put both together, you have a fun experience all around.
So what gear do you take, one might ask. It depends what you are trying to shoot and how close you can get, plus how much light you have to deal with. Its summer, so I’m going to guess that you all want to shoot during a nice and bright sunny day.
If you’re going to these impromptu car shows, you will be able to get very close to the cars, which is awesome, and it makes the car owners quite happy to see you take interest and pics of their rides.
When it comes to my gear, I am partial to certain lenses, yes, but I would also go as far as to say, shoot with a stock lens if it’s all you have like 18-55mm. If you have a prime, like a 50mm, that, too, will work just fine, as long as you are patient and put some thought into the picture — you will get some awesome pics.
If you look at the subject you're shooting from a standing position, as everyone would, most would see it as OK, but if you get down a bit, and maybe even hone in on just a part of the vehicle, you get a different image, one that has more intimacy to the final result.
Sometimes that one part you got close to can make the picture more interesting than the whole subject.
As these vehicles are quite shiny and colourful, you get some natural sun flares showing up on various parts, and depending on skills and ability you can often cash in on these things and make your pics even more interesting and fun.
In any event, these folks put on an awesome show, it's free, fun and great camera fodder, so what are you waiting for, get out there. I might run into you. It’s a load of fun.
Chuck Swinden is a professional photographer and photography instructor at Rodenas Photography. For more information, visit www.rodenasphotography.com.
