Tag: Cadillac

Change Perspective and Improve Your Photographic Vision

Posted on by Nick Roberts
1938 Ford Truck
1938 Ford Truck

One good way to reinvigorate your photography is to change perspective; doing so will improve your photographic vision. I love cars and have been photographing them since I was a kid. Over the years, for the most part, I had fallen into a predictable method of framing them: I would pick a three quarter angle and fire away. While this method produced many interesting photos it wasn’t that different from the way 99% of photographers approached the subject.

1956 Ford
1956 Ford

This past summer when the annual Street Rod Nationals came to Louisville I decided to use two distinct approaches that I hadn’t used much over the past several years. The first approach was to shoot symmetrical compositions, something I usually avoid due to their static nature. Symmetric compositions don’t usually have a lot of movement and can be rather bland but once I started shooting these images I realized that it was far more challenging than I initially thought it would be.

1955 Ford
1955 Ford

The first challenge was to frame perfectly symmetrical images; shifting the angle of the camera away from a pure 90 degrees from the subject would introduce a subtle asymmetry. It wasn’t as simple as standing in front of the subject and trying to center the details. I discovered that if I was even a fraction off center the distortion of the sensor plane to the plane of the car would result in missing the mark. I compensated for that by making certain to use the grid lines in the viewfinder to accurately bisect the image but even at that there was still the problem of getting the edges of the other elements equally framed. That was when I realized that it was also important to think about the sensor plane too. I would first align the vertical lines in the viewfinder and then shift slightly left or right to center the elements along the edge of the frame a perfectly as possible. I started using a monopod to stabilize my camera while still having the flexibility to move freely among the crowds that surround the cars.

1946 Ford
1946 Ford

The second challenge was to come up with a different viewpoint. I opted for coming in over the front of the car above the hood so that I was shooting almost straight down. As soon as I started doing that I saw how the shapes of the cars were so different than I was used to seeing. The photos that follow were a refreshing change for me and the act of shooting them added another aspect to my way of seeing familiar subject matter with a fresh eye.

Cadillac Abstract

Posted on by Nick Roberts
Cadillac Abstract

This image is a macro of the glass in a 1931 Cadillac Sedan I saw last year at the NSRA Streetrod Nationals. This particular car was impecable in every way but the owner had chosen not to replace any of the glass in the car. These early cars had a type of safety glass that was made by taking two layers of glass and fusing them together with a clear plastic membrane that was sandwiched between them. Over time the membrane will sometimes start to delaminate and the result is an amber looking pattern usually at the edges of the glass. This car’s glass had done that at the bottom of every piece of glass in the car and the restorer had kept it in the car. I couldn’t resist the abstract patterns and colors and took several photos of it though I’m not sure I took any of the car itself.

I processed this image in Topaz Adjust which allowed me to intensify and enhance the colors in the delamination. Once again I took a subject that I had seen and photographed innumerable times and found a new way to interpret it. Keep your eyes open when you are looking at something you have photographed many times before and you just may stumble onto a gem such as this image.

LaSalle Lenses

Posted on by Nick Roberts

I’ve always been a fan of automotive designs from Harley Earl who was the first Vice President of the Art and Color Division at General Motors. His most ambitious work began with the LaSalle line of cars which set the standard for opulence and refined design during the short life of the line. As an offshoot of the Cadillac line many considered it to be the “baby” Cadillac and that in itself was the seed of it’s eventual demise. People were buying LaSalles because they were less expensive than Cadillacs but were built using virtually the same chassis and driveline as Cadillacs.

There aren’t many LaSalle in the streetrod scene so finding this early 30’s LaSalle at the Streetrod Nationals was a real treat. I loved the way the builder had kept Harley Earl’s design details intact and created a modern car within the framework of a classic LaSalle.

I chose to use NIK HDR Efex Pro to produce this Black and White version. This composition relies on repetition of form to build it’s foundation along with the strong diagonal lines formed by the headlights and grill. The black and white effect also emphasizes the clouds and adds texture to the image.