Photo tip's for TOTM

[Ol'Dave]

I need some.

What time of day is best for a photo. Most of the time I end up with some glare on the best ones I have to offer. Or, refections from the surrounding scenery drowns out the detail on the car.


One point I will make though that bother's me is: Why do some leave the Bra's on the front of the car's for a submission photo?? Some of these photos are fantastic, and would otherwise win, if not for the pronounced black bra.

[02bluebird]

Dave, this is just my opinion, but I like picture taking during early morning - no direct sunshine problems. Also, and I am not a Nikon or any other camera salesman, but my wife and I did invest in a higher end digital camera with different lenses - fully automatic and idiot-proof - and the SLR digital camera with accessories cost us around $800Cdn (so that's probably around $400 US because we Canadians continue to get ripped off IMHO). But that 's another topic.

And finally, I don't take the photos - my wife is the photographer. I usually forget to take the lens cap off.

[FritsB]

Dave, in general i think a Black Bird is one of the hardest to take images of. It hardly ever does right to what you see in real life. If you wax it too good, reflections are so overwhelming it shows in the image. If sun is too bright camera makes car turn all black and leaves all detail out.

Besides that it's a matter of finding the right angle of photography. The Bird has beautiful lines, but you have to find them and catch them. It is not the same as looking at it. It works differently. The right position for that perfect angle is usually a bit lower than normal. If you are not sure, just take several pictures and lower you ramera a few inches on each shot. You will see a huge difference.

And there is the rear. Most people take shots from the front facade. But I found the rear of the car most photogenetic. And then specificly from a side angle.

Good luck.

[5bird7]

I've had my best photos on a partly cloudy day with the car in the shade of a cloud - lots of light and no sun glare.
Just a few weeks ago, had a chance for an early morning shot that came out really good.
Agreed on the distraction/distortion of lines that a bra causes. Those with black cars have a little bit less of a problem with a bra but it does show. When doing shots when the bra is on the car, I find the rear shots look the best. I'll work the angles to minimize the bra showing - or get George to remove the bra (he grumbles at that though).
Then I look the background over. Sometimes, you can have beautiful scenery but no place to position the car to show off both.

[DavidA]

slightly overcast lighting is better than bright sunlight, for sure. I think the most important thing in a good picture is framing. Never leave the subject, (car), with a lot of sky or a lit of road. It's the car that is important, not the sky etc. Fill the frame with the car. The background will still show.

When taking landscapes, try to keep something like a tree branch, plant, or something natural to the scene in the foreground. That gives the eye something to compare with the scene and gives the picture depth.

[EBird]

The Bra is on in the pictures because it has been taken on a trip to a nice location.

Who wants to take it off just for a Picture?

[Mintgrn]

Perhaps the bra stays on to keep the front end from sagging.

[luvbirdz]

I know of some better subjects to have a black bra on, and they should be in the passenger seat.

[luvbirdz]

:backtotop
What you see , is what you get.
Once you find the setting, look at the subject, the background, foreground, the look through the viewfinder and decide, is it a snapshot or a portrait picture?

[FUN X 3]

All good advice, in early morning or later afternoon, light and contrast much better when sun is low. Everything looks flat midday, washed-out color and no contrast. Fill the frame with the car as DavidA said. I would add that backgrounds are important, but don't let them be the focal point of the photo, your Bird should be the star of the pic. When looking for a background, pick one that compliments your car color. Green grass, bushes and trees look great behind the Thunderbird Vintage Blue color, some of my best pics have that going on. Avoid busy backgrounds, they take away from the photo. Make sure the light is behind the camera, shooting into the light doesn't work well.

[Ol'Dave]

A friend sent me this site. Thought I'd share.....

http://www.cobracountry.com/fototips/

[steelblue5505]

Dave,
Thanks for the link to that photo tip page. There is a lot of great info in there. I read through it once, felt I need to read it again......so much info to take in. I decided to make it a favorite link.

[Vegas Retrobird]

Another option is to hire a professional photographer. There are even ones that specialize in taking photographs of vehicles. Probably a bit pricey, but you get what you pay for.

[Ray]

Another option is to hire a professional photographer. There are even ones that specialize in taking photographs of vehicles. Probably a bit pricey, but you get what you pay for.


Entering a professional photograph is against the TOTM rules, unless the member happens to be a professional photographer.

[Mark501]

Overcast provides even lighting but bad sky if that's part of the photo. Morning light is sharp and crisp while evening light is muted and more pastel. Slight under exposure can enhance colors. Never use "Time and Date" stamps on serious photographs. Avoid dead center horizons, they tend to cut the photo in half and make it uninteresting, go with either more sky or foreground, not 50-50. Triangulate, that means compose the photo so that when it's viewed, the eye keeps moving between sky, car and ground or between objects, that makes for more interesting photos. If everything is dead center, the eye views the photo then stops.

Oh, one other thing, never show your bad photos. Sometimes it's necessary when it's all you have but as a general rule cull them.


Mark501

[Vegas Retrobird]

Entering a professional photograph is against the TOTM rules, unless the member happens to be a professional photographer.
:spank: Doh! Guess I should have read the rules before I posted! :eek:

[Peterfurlan]

I would assume most everyone is familiar with the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue.
Years ago Popular Photography did a great story on the shoot. Believe it or not these pros took 50,000 frames to come up with at best twenty-four
pictures for the issue. When I wrote years ago it was pre-digital still in the
film era. So if your looking for a winner get out there and shoot away light
angle try everything. As many others have said avoid full sun sunrise,sunset
and overcast are your best bet. Get out there and fill a one GB card with T-
Bird pictures and i'm sure you will get a few keepers.

[Sealy]

Believe it or not these pros took 50,000 frames to come up with at best twenty-four pictures for the issue.

I shoot my dogs for the ASTC calendar and for the yearbook. People ask how I get good pictures of 3 non-cooperative dogs. Digital is the only way to go. I usually have a couple of hundred shots over several days that I can get two pics I like out of. Add to that Photoshop for cropping to best advantage and removal or addition of stuff. Sometimes they have leashes on when I shoot them, but not in the final picture. Same goes for trash on the ground, people that refuse to move, light poles, etc.

Also, try to get your hands on the book Boulevard Photographer. Great book with fab-u-lous pictures. All about the early days ('50s, '60s) of automobile photography and advertising.