Final Poster

Heres my final idea with a few small changes, taking into account what people have suggested.

Poster Design

Better late than never, but here are some designs i've come up with for my poster. Ones a Duotone which i quite like, then theres the classic multi box version and a split image version too. Anyone care to say which they like?

final images

well its about time i gave another update, so to any of you who are still here and reading then here is my final set of images which i have definitely decided to produce as postcards, bound together as a form of fun advertising that you may get through the post. I'm just doing some final touches, then off to the printers hopefully by the end of this week.

Another shot to add to the collection

Heres another image which came from the same photoshoot but have been taking a while to edit it through photoshop. I think i like it, as i like the depth and the way the roof line of the concrete draws you into the picture. I have a variety of different shots from different angles so may alter my choice slightly, i'm not sure. The word in this one reads Conquer, and i'm not sure if that really works.


I either need to think of some better words, or maybe not every image needs a word, maybe a could split them between the series.

Need a few more shots, but hoping to go out tomorrow night for some more, then should be able to wrap up the series.

A taste of things to come

Heres a couple more shots that i've been working on from the other nights shoot. Got some more too, but they're still in need of editing.
once again these aren't final versions, so no criticising any bad cutting out.
I have stayed with the idea of a word to anchor the image, and i think it just about works, though do tell me if you dont like them.

I've been trying to play around with the locations a bit more to attempt some interesting shots, so without further ado,

staying the right side of the law?

Well i went out again last night taking more photos for this project, and for the two locations i chose, i got approached by security at one and observed by the police in the other. Am i really that dodgy looking? The trouble is, its usually quite late, as the areas are too busy during the day, or dont really work for whatever reason.

Anyhow, i will upload some more images in a while, i just need to edit through them.

Next Location

Well as i was looking for locations, i've naturally been looking for ones with some sort of concrete or surface that would go well with the idea of graffiti. This is the latest installment after i was driving round a lot of carparks at night and was drawn in by the columns in a row and how i could use them to make an interesting image.
I will add some contacts at some point, but this is this one image i've been working on for this location


Im not entirely sure about the positioning of the text, so will try a few more. I have some ideas for a couple more shots too, so need to pop out and get some more snaps.. watch this space (however not too closely)

I spy trickery..

So it looks as if you not only have to find a decent location, but shoot the car in a studio to get perfect lighting, then photoshop it into your background.

Looking back at Ambient Life website I knew the images were photoshopped anyway, but i had failed to notice that on some, the cars have literally been pasted in. Thus doing away with all those annoying reflections i am struggling with. grrr..

storm troopers

Whilst floating around the net, i stumbled upon this masterpiece, 'What Storm Troopers do on their day off' so i thought i'd post and share it with you all...

HERE

What a week

My word, what a week.. I cant begin to explain various things that are going on at the moment but its leaving me a little messed up. Anyhoot, on to the blog.

I need to update with some more recent images which I will in good time. I have to admit I am struggling a little with finding some locations for this project as I dont seem to be able to recreate the ideas I have in my mind. I am also less able to control the lighting as I thought I would be, but maybe this is less important than I had originally foreseen as some car photographers can use ambient light depending on what kind of image they're trying to create.

I am still aiming to retain a playful/artistic kind of feel to my images and produce a selection of wide angle and close up shots, perhaps sticking to three images from three locations and one main image.

So then, onward and upward, hoping to get some more images this week to add to the others..

Further manipulation

Right well i've had a bit of a play with a couple of the images in PS to create something that i feel brings the pictures more to life and more of a sense of play with them too, instead of 'just a car'

dont criticise me on my cutting out techniques, as i have only done a quick job to play with the composition and colours, nothing is finalised.


So what are peoples views? do they look alright? Which one's best?

I'm not sure really how I'm going to choose on my 10 images and whether they will be 10 different locations or not? But i think they will all hopefully flow together and work together.

I also need to work out how i'm going to present the images, currently i'm thinking of a small book thing.. maybe like 10 different postcards bound together.. hmmm.. need to think abput that.

overall i'm quite happy at how this batch have turned out, though think i need a few more shoots yet to complete the collection..

Contacts

Well as promised, here is a selection of pictures from my shoot in the new location..
I have played around with different angles, and also though about doing some odd close ups to throw into the mix. I wanted to find a location with quite a plain but interesting background, and i think the stripes of this underpass work quite well.. plus there was some graffiti on there which kind of went with one of my ideas, even if it was a bit lame and not too colourful..

Another location

Well its about time i updated again, things have been very hectic over the last week, but i have found a location i feeel might work well for some good shots. I have done some experimental shots, of which i will upload in the next couple of days or so, and see where i go from here.

the location would lend itself to graffiti quite well too, and i will probably edit the pictures slightly on photoshop to help to give them a more complete look.

watch this space.

Rain! Grrr...

Why must it rain?>

That is all.

Fonts

Well I've been having a quick look at fonts for my poster and quite like this one..
What do people think? Or is it terrible? haha

I think the thing which dragged me in was the colour and layout of the example poster:


Hmmm, I will have a look for some more too..

Some more ideas

Further to my earlier research of 'Ambient Life' I found this pic of a Morgan which has been enhanced with the use of photoshop to add a flag on the wall behind it like graffiti, which also serves as a reminder of how British this car is. I do quite like the image and as I have mentioned earlier, would quite like to do a shoot with some graffiti around a car.
This image got me thinking that if I didnt manage to find what I wanted, then maybe some could be added after to help the image.

After having a look for some new fonts for the exhibition poster, I found a few graffiti styles, of which I downloaded one, and had a little play in PS to see what it could look like if I added it to one of my shots. Excuse the cheesy phrase, but I thought the overall idea worked quite well?

This made me wonder if I could perhaps come up with something a little more funky/playful for the car i'm using, and control the image with text (Calvin would be proud) i dont know?

alternatively i do now know of one location which could be quite promising, but it is rather a long drive away unfortunately :( anyone know of similar places which are perhaps a little closer..

hmmm...

Research

Whilst looking for some images to inspire me for direction with this project, i stumbled upon a website called Ambient Life, which has some rather interesting shots.

Ambient Life

I am finding that the images of cars that i find most interesting have often been photoshopped to enhance them. This isnt to say the original image is not good, but just it may not be terribly exciting. The other two important factors seem to be exciting backgrounds and angles, sometimes in motion using either a rig attached to the car, or another car with the photographer hanging out of the back. Sounds like i need a small team..

It would also be fair to say the best images i have found tend to be of high end exclusive/expensive cars, which perhaps lend themselves to being photographed a bit more, as they are more likely to have good surfaces and details. As i dont have access to a lot of high end cars, i will keep practicing with the car i have and try to come up with something more ingenious in terms of the shot.

onwards and upwards.. hopefully..

Another Night Shot

Well after the feedback from the last night shoot about the image being too red/pink i thought i would go out for a test shoot to see if shooting on a different colour balance would lessen the effect of the light pollution in the sky on a long exposure.
After quite a few test shots this was the result, which i'm relatively happy with. But i think that it might now be a little bit blue? It certainly looks a lot colder. However the car stands out a little better against the background now. Maybe i need to look into different types of filter? I dont know whats out there?

In terms of the shoot, i still kept with the idea of running round with a flash gun for now, but made more effort to light the car evenly and also added some highlight on the interior by popping a flash inside.

I wasn't entirely happy with the composition of the image, but as it was more of a lighting experiment, i don't think it mattered quite as much.

After this i think i'm going to do some more research into night shots, but also look into some daytime stuff and exciting things to do. I had originally chosen to start with night shots as i felt i had more control over the lighting, but will look into the use of reflectors for daytime stuff..

Night shots

Well having received my remote shutter release and thus having the ability to do some long exposures, I ventured out in the middle of the night to have a little practice.
Apart from getting interrupted by the Military Police, ha! I think it went quite well, baring in mind I was shooting in complete darkness. My exposures were around a minute and a half, which was just about long enough for me to run around using a hand held flash gun that I fired at different angles and distances from the subject. I used the flash to highlight various bits of the background too, to make it a little more interesting.

These were the best two images from the shoot, though theres room for improvement. I quite like the way that the sky has gone orangey with the light pollution as i think it compliments the red, though I dont know if I can change that somehow to make it less orange for other shoots which I may want a darker black sky? Also I might try some slightly more interesting angles etc,

I know they might not be to everyone's taste, but i'd appreciate some feedback on what people think and improvements etc..

ta,

Hotlinking

Just trying to hotlink a picture from my photobucket, will it work?

ah ha! no IMG codes..

Night shot attempt

how frustrating, i have ideas but equipment has let me down. just been out for a play tonight and it turns out 30 seconds is nowhere near long enough for the exposure i'm after, so i think a remote shutter release is in need.. amazon where are you?

Ooh, a new lens

Well i have acquired myself a new lens which allows me a wider aperture, so thought i'd give it a whirl and take some test shoots experimenting with a shallow depth of field. Whilst the images might not be overly exciting, i am thinking of different ways i might be able to produce some interesting images of cars by perhaps focusing on particular details for a couple of the shots.

I am also thinking of taking some wider angle shots but could really do with it stopping raining! I am planning on practicing with some long exposures at night using a flash gun to illuminate different aspects of the car or background, but am still searching for some good locations and waiting for some slightly drier weather to go experimenting. When will this rain end?

The Next Step?

Right, well i better make this quite a long post as to shift muggins' face down the page a bit so less of the Llama overload!

Ok, well I havent entirely decided how i'm going to go about this project but i do know that it will be involving cars in one form or other.
I have been looking at some images for inspiration, and have been interested in the different ways they are lit, but also their surroundings etc. I think when i get going, the locations i choose are going to be quite important to make my images a little more interesting and aesthetically pleasing.
I think i may also try and do some night shots and play around with the lights a bit too?

One idea i had was to use one car and shoot it in a variety of different locations, almost like its on a little adventure (not a rip off of a 'mini adventure' obviously *cough*) and see what comes of that.
I may need to drive around a little to see what i can find around. I've always been quite interested in graffiti and cars, so if anyone knows of any highly graffitied walls that you can park a car next to then feel free to leave a comment and tell me where. The more exciting/colourful the better, not just those pointless tags.

Having looked at some images, there seems to be a lot of photoshop going on to help to enhance them. I may also have a fiddle with mine to further push them, but whilst trying not to lose the original image.

I do get the feeling i'm rambling a little here, but hey. Off to do some more research me thinks.

now how do i add a picture? think this has worked..?

Well I have arrived

Right, this is my first post on here if it works, I will be updating with my ideas as and when they come and any test shots that i can muster up, watch this space.