If there’s ever a photographic venue that we just can’t seem to get enough of, it's cars. “Antique” cars, that is technically a car more than 50 years old, hold a special attraction for both men, women and children alike. For your information, a car older than 20 years is called a “classic” car. These are also hot prospects for automobile photography. Let’s certainly not forget the newest wheels on the block and showroom floors. Look in many magazines from sporting rags to women’s issues and teen or sports monthlies, and regardless of their feature material, you’ll frequently find car photos gracing their glossy pages. Want to try your hand a getting a few memorable, salable digital images
of a local antique, classic, hot-rod or jalopy? Why not? Car buffs around the world are suckers for getting photos of their vehicles. Here are some useful car photography tips and techniques.

 

Get Photos of Everything

You’ll need to think high, medium, low and close to get a good series of car photographs. What do I mean? First, drop down on one knee and get a series of photos starting at the front of the car – pick a car, any car – and then moving and shooting at two-foot intervals all the way around the vehicle from about four to six feet away. Next, move in close – real close, and get detailed images of features like grills, hood ornaments, emblems, trim, wheel rims, hub caps and other unique items the car may have. Move on to the car’s interior, if possible, or shoot through a window if need be. The steering wheel, dashboard, instrument panels, seats, gear shift, glove or other interior compartments, controls and interior installations are your digital image targets now.

 

Take Pictures from Various Angles

Now, it’s time to back it up and get over views of the automobile from higher up. Stand on a chair, stool, step or anything available to get your shooting eye up to six or eight feet if possible. Once again, move all around the car at this bird’s-eye height, getting all you can. That’s a good feature of digital photography, whether you shoot one or one hundred images, the cost is the same. So get all the angles and bracketed exposes that you can. Get down, and under the hood if possible. If you’re photographing a “show” vehicle, it’ll be almost "clean enough to eat off of" the engine compartment interior (but don’t you do it!). Take over view images and close-ups of parts and systems. Don’t forget to open the trunk and get a series of “inside” shots there too.

 

 

Miguel Perez Photo Vehicle Portraiture (c)copyright 2006-2010