2015_12_12_Lancer_Winter_Rig-1
Jan, 2016Views
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Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken in the current city where I live, Calgary Alberta. More specifically, it was taken on a road leading to a popular park in my neighbourhood.Time
I will never forget this photo. It was taken on December 12, 2015 at around 2:00 pm. It was a beautiful Saturday after a long school week and it had just finished snowing from the night. Anyone that lives up here will understand how beautiful everything looks the morning after a fresh snowfall, so I had to take advantage of the scenery, not to mention the temperature was not terribly cold!Lighting
I had this shot in the back of my mind for a while, but I had to wait for the weather conditions to be just right. Winter days do not last long in Canada. With the shortest day of the year coming up, the sun does not really get high enough to create the harsh light we would get during the summer. So, 2 o'clock in the afternoon was a perfectly acceptable time of day to shoot. The sun had reached its peak and just began to go back down, so the sunlight was already beginning to become a tad softer. The sky was clear and with all the fresh, white snow, all of the light from the sun was being reflected in all directions. No shortage of light and the snow on the ground helped reflect light back up on the car to reduce shadows.Equipment
I used my old Canon T2i for this shot (I now mostly shoot with a Fuji X-Pro1) with the Sigma 10mm-20mm F/3.5. To cut the amount of light, I used a Tiffen variable ND. To continuously shoot photos while being away from the camera, I used an eBay intervalometer. In order to achieve this look, I used a home-made rig to mount the camera off a 12 foot boom from the hood. By using a rig, I am able to shoot long exposures of around 1-2 seconds to blur the background, while keeping the car in focus as the camera moves at the same speed as the car. Keep in mind the car is moving less than 5km/hr! I usually push the car in neutral, but it was only myself shooting ;) The rig consists of: -Two 5 foot sections and one 2 foot section for the boom -Two Manfrotto Avenger Pump suction cups -Three Manfrotto Super Clamps -One Manfrotto Magic ArmInspiration
This was my first car I purchased for and by myself. I bought it around my high school graduation since my other car that was given to me by my older sister was stolen - but that's another story. At the time I wasn't all that interested in cars, but since I had to choose a car to buy, I wanted to get something I would really enjoy. Take it back a few years to the movie 2 Fast 2 Furious. That Lancer Evo 7 caught my attention and come time to buy my own car, I wanted an Evo. Unfortunately, Evo's of that generation were not available in Canada, not to mention the fact I couldn't afford one. Me being me, I decided I had to have the closest thing to it. Fast forward to December 2015, I had been enjoying bombing around in my car with the snow. So, I thought it would be awesome to create an image that will remind myself of doing just that. I was also inspired to take this photo by combing two things I really enjoy in my life - my car and photography.Editing
Automotive rig photos require a ton of post-processing! Sometimes I find it hard to decide whether or not I enjoy it or not. But first things first, I import all of my photos to Lightroom. I go through and make sure I take the best possible image out of all that were shot. Since composition is almost identical in each, I mostly consider sharpness of the car and motion blur of the background. Once finding the best image, I made white balance, exposure, and tonal adjustments to cool the image for that cold wintery feel. Next step was to take it into Photoshop to clone out the rig. This process has taken me anywhere from one hour to one week to do, depending on the shot. Once the rig is cloned out, the image really starts to stand out. More tone adjustments were made to add contrast and make the car pop. At that point, I felt there was one last thing that was needed to complete to image. I created a new layer to create some "flying snow". I masked this layer to make the snow look like it was flinging off the tires. A much needed addition in my opinion were those rooster tails! I think it adds that extra bit of flare to the overall image.In my camera bag
For automotive shoots, I will mainly shoot my Fuji X-Pro1. For lenses I bring along the 18mm F/2, 35mm F/1.4, and Canon FD 85mm F/1.8 with adaptor, or the Canon FD 135mm F/2.5. The 18mm is an awesome wide angle for automotive photography, and the 35mm is a perfect lens for almost anything. I bring along the long lens Canon FD lenses for when I want that really shallow depth of field. Manual focusing is much easier with that focus peaking feature! I make sure to bring my Manfrotto 190 tripod and some spare batteries just in case. If I plan to do any rig photos like the one shown, I bring all of the rig equipment stated above. It's also essential to bring along glass cleaner and a bottle of quick detail spray wax. That way I can clean any panels that the suction cups will mount on. The spray wax is also used to restore a layer of wax, since the suction cups strip the wax, creating a light circular mark after removing.Feedback
There are a few key points I'd like to make: Always bring a variable ND filter with you. It is a MUST! A neutral density filter is essential for taking long exposures at any time of the day. A variable ND will help you adjust your exposure for constantly changing light. On top of that, you can arrive earlier to your shoot and make sure that you don't run out of light if you are shooting in the evening. If you are making a rig photo yourself, I think the image looks best if there is a vanishing point within it. In my experience, it makes the motion blur more directional, for a much more visually pleasing photo. Last, I'd like to say keep moving forward. Don't get discouraged if your images aren't turning out the way you want. Get feedback from others, photographers or not. Learn what will make it better and don't stop there. But most of all, have fun and enjoy doing what you do regardless of what others think!
