How can i improve my car photographing skills?

[Alex12]

Hi all,
Im really just after general advise on how i can improve my car photography skills, here is a picture that i took of my car the other day, what are people views on the image? how could it be improved? (please keep in mind that this was my first ever image with this camera)



Thanks for all advise

Edited by Alex12 on Wednesday 2nd July 17:41

[SpydieNut]

sorry, but to me it's just a picture of a car

nothing in makes it stand / jump out at me. try different agles, closer, further etc.

i also think the green background is wrong as it blends with the car and detracts from it.


have a look at some of the car pics on here and see what makes them stand out - then experiment on your.

[NiceCupOfTea]

I'm no expert, but...

I think the background's too busy and the car doesn't stand out enough. I like the gravel, but it should be level, one of the wheels is sinking down! Find a good angle, I know the angles that work/don't work on my cars.

Experiment with taking photos from different heights.

I think there's a "2/3rds rule" whereby you should keep the main focal point of the shot to one side of the frame (1/3rd of a way in from either side).

Have a look at some of the ones in here by people like GetCarter and TrackDemon.

[GetCarter]

...and forgive me for saying you might consider a more aesthetic subject.

(I know, I'll get me coat)

[Alex12]

Thanks for the replies guys, i know its not a very good picture as im a complete novice at photography, thats why im after advise, but i see what your saying about the car not standing out enough, i have looked at some others on here and your right. think i just need some more practice

[Alex12]

GetCarter said:

...and forgive me for saying you might consider a more aesthetic subject.

(I know, I'll get me coat)

Im still awaiting delivery of the R8 so this will have to do till then

[Jenx]

Golden rule #1 :- Background is everything! Less is more...

Golden rule #2 :- Copy other people, copy the styles you like.

Golden rule #3 :- Practice, practice, practice...and then practice what you've learned.

Sod's law :- You can't polish a turd...you're never going to make you're Micra as impressive as a Lamboghini. I'm afraid you're just going to have to live with that one

Martin.

[GetCarter]

OK, I'm no car photograper but for what it's worth, my advice.

Find the right background (harder than you'd think)
Find the right angle to make the car look it's best
Take time to pay REAL attention to details
times 2
Find the right light
or make it
times 2
Wail a while
Take a lot of shots
Pick one.

IMHO

ETA - what he said above /\

Edited by GetCarter on Wednesday 2nd July 18:39

[Zad]

The car needs to be horizontal, and on a more consistent surface. Try taking the shot from lower down, this emphasises all the 'interesting' design bits and avoids the boring bonnet and roof. Maybe try using a wider aperture to throw the background and foreground out of focus, whilst keeping the car sharp. The light looks quite flat, so perhaps try shooting at different times of day.

[Deluded]

Here is a photo I took a few weeks back of my Prelude.

Looking at your photo, it seems you have just randomly parked the car and taken a photo standing up.

You need to put the car in a position that compliments it with a background that had some appeal but not too much to take away from the subject (the car!!!).

DONT BE AFFRAID TO LIE ON THE FLOOR! Cars tend to look better from lower down, but can also look good from higher angles too. Experiment until you get a photo you are happy with! Just be flexible!

Also make sure the photo is cropped and rotated properly. You crop out some of the unecessary background and it does seem a little wonkey.

Cars alot tend to look good in dark and contrasty photos. Yours is quite light. The dark areas are more grey than anything else. More than likely a tweek of the settings on the camera would help or even some post production in photoshop or similar to darken it down a bit!

[Alex12]

good info guys thanks il be sure to put these tips into practice, also i realise that the car isnt the best looking car but the reason i want a good picture(s) of the car is that im planning on selling and i want some nice pictures of the car as i have done with all my cars as a memoribilia sort of thing.

cheers

[Scope]

Try this handy tutorial for size...

http://www.mattwatkinson.com/tutorial/

[GetCarter]

Scope said:

Try this handy tutorial for size...

http://www.mattwatkinson.com/tutorial/

I just wish I was getting royalties every time that was linked

[Deluded]

Had a bit of a play for you :

[Simpo Two]

GetCarter said:

Wail a while

Which tune is best?

To me the car looks as if the handbrake's been released and the car's just rolled back down the drive until it's stopped any old how. It would look more aggressive (possibly the wrong word!) if the car looked as if it was going forwards, not backwards!

[Dai Capp]

I would go for abstract detail on a 'normal' car. For sports car I tend to photograph from down low but not too low as to see a load of the undertray!

Here's a couple:

My Z3 taken fairly low down to create an imposing stance



and an early effort of my old Cerbera taken a few years back but just turning the camera to get a bit more dynamics

[

There is also a great book available:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Photograph-Cars-Enthus...

This goes through a number of techniques to help a budding car photographer...

HTH

DC

[rmmackfc]

I generally try to get the right location and then get the car from the best angle.
Here's one of my favourites of my old Z ... wish I still had her.

[baz7175]

There's loads of advice out there in here, on the net and in books/mags for help in improving car photography...and the bottom line is you will have your own take on what you think the best angle/shot is for each individual car, but 8 times out of ten the front/side rear/side 45 degree angles shots are normally of the better shots taken (excluding detail shots etc), and then depending on the shape and style of the car that will also dictate whether or not it will look better in a low shot from such an angle:-



Middle height position:-



Or to shoot from a higher position:-



Obviously there is still the other 2 times out of ten where everything looks amazing with the car and background working perfectly that a head or side on shot can look great also:-



The good thing is that all you need to hone your car snapping is a camera and a car, which you appear to already have, so just try lots of different options yourself with angles, locations etc, upload them to the pc and then see what you think works best (if you have the ability to hook the PC up to a decent sized tv, throw on a slideshow as it will let you see the images in a much bigger format and help you to see what works and what doesn't).

Good luck and I look forward to seeing how you get on

[JimNotJon]

I agree with the guys above. I love taking photos of cars but am still very much learning and have only got basic kit.

Its not what you have its how you implement it.

Couple I took:

[Dai Capp]

Second and the last ones for me - like the feel of depth on the second one and jap performance car and neon lights in the last one is just a classic!

DC