Gordypix (or Any Other Photography Guru)...

[Caz SR]

With Japshow and JAE coming up, I know I'll be taking lots of car pictures this Summer and the 'Arty Pics' thread in Yaris got me thinking.

I quite enjoy taking pictures of our cars at meets etc and I was wondering if you could give some advice on how to acheive the best car shots?

Any help would be appreciated! Thank you

[Karma Supra]

Funny that Moffmo and I were just talking about photos and lighting..... but it wasn'ta car in the pic

I am by no means an expert, and I only have a cheapy digital camera

A small element of it is walking around the car and working out what angle looks best......

-recently I have noticed a lot of my mk3 supra pics all look pretty similar, its because I find the angle that pleases my eye the most!!!!

With digicams quite often lines are not picked out, you can catch the light so it empthasisas a line or contour, that would otherwise be missed!!!!!

For clean car pics try to avoid pictures under trees as the reflection distracts from the lines of the car!! I'll see what fave pics I have taken I have uploaded :)

[gordypix]

TIP 1:

DO NOT take pictures during the mod-afternoon - The sun is high in the sky and will cause hubik shadows and the light will not flatter the car at all.

TIP 2:

Use the highest resolution on digital or slow film speed (100iso for example) - alter in photoshop later if you want to use at a small size for internet etc.

TIP 3:

Remove anything that can date the car - number plates, tax disc, copy of yesterdays paper from dashboard.............

TIP 4:

Forget the whole car - we all know what a Yaris/Supra/Celica looks like - By all means take a full on shot but be creative and look for something that defines the car in the picture like the lines, angles, badges etc. Close ups on certain areas can be altogether more powerful than a "all car in Shot" type picture. EXPERIMENT with this one...........

TIP 5:

Shoot from a High or Low angle - Level views are dated and look boring - Add impact by exagerating the viewpoint..................

[Karma Supra]

WEll I'm sure the photo masters will see they are full of flaws... I seem to have lost my fave ones :censor: :ffs:

Playing with reflections, pearl paint, polish and a sunset!

Shame about the trees, but tthe light brough out the pearl in the paint, You can also see the lines along the top of the door and spoiler picked out.

Ok awfull pic, taken with a 640 x whatever webcam... but the effect is interesting!

The right angles can make even the :ffs: yest of cars look good!

One off my all time fave cars pics is in the US SC400 (aka soarer) brochure but its a funny shape and I can't scan it!

-not forgetting the main picture in the TOC garage for my black car!!! - minimal background and contrasting colours!

[mikeb]

The best sunlight for car photo's is late in the evening, just before sunset.

Use a polariser to cut down on glare/reflections. B)

[gordypix]

Add more impact to a pic of a PROBE by cropping and altering the angle a tad:

[gordypix]

TIP 6:

Turn the wheels slightly - in the case of the Probe above ideally they should have been turned towards the left of the car............

[Karma Supra]

I was walking past the pink probe <_< with my camera and just snapped it.. Funny that I usually do turn wheels in, but not in those pics!

[Caz SR]

Some great tips there - thank you very much!

This is one of my favourite pictures that I took of Lees Supra at Nurburgring:

Upon reflection, it might have looked better with the wheels angled slightly. I have a few more of my favourites here.

Thanks again.

[Moffmo]

.TIP 4:

Forget the whole car - we all know what a Yaris/Supra/Celica looks like - By all means take a full on shot but be creative and look for something that defines the car in the picture like the lines, angles, badges etc. Close ups on certain areas can be altogether more powerful than a "all car in Shot" type picture. EXPERIMENT with this one...........

TIP 5:

Shoot from a High or Low angle - Level views are dated and look boring - Add impact by exagerating the viewpoint..................

←

TIP 4:

http://www.toyotaownersclub.com/forums/upl..._1115222639.jpg

TIP 5:

http://www.toyotaownersclub.com/forums/upl..._1108731809.jpg

http://www.toyotaownersclub.com/forums/upl..._1108732507.jpg

hhmm am i learning

[gordypix]

B/W suits the Supra in that pic

[jaxx]

tripods!

one with the adjustable legs, retract one leg with the camera cocked over and snap...

me and a friend tried this, only had a tiny sony cybershot on the top but the added bonus is the 'pod keeps the camera extremely stable and vibration free giving lovelly crisp shots

[Al J]

A few more tips if I may be so bold...

background: Keep it simple so as to show off your lush motor. Pretty scenery is nice though a shiny car with a background of urban decay can look cool. B)

digicam peeps Unless you've got an SLR, watch out for losing bits of your car (in the pic!) especially if using the viewfinder to compose rather than the viewing screen. Far better to leave a bit more space around your car and then crop the photo in the PC.

adjusting pics Photoshop is great if you know how to use it but a great way for quick fixes is Picassa.

original photo

tight crop

landscape crop and ooh, nasty storm clouds!

Picassa free download here