Suggestions for shooting car events

Ya know, the other day I went to the biggest car show in the midwest, Car Craft Nationals in St. Paul, MN. I didn't pay a dime and made a few bucks while I was at it.

I say the word "suggestion" because, well lets face it, if you don't like my "tips" or "rules" then you aren't going to follow them, now ain't that right? So, I will suggest some stuff that will help and it's up to you to use it properly.

Getting in for free:
Hell, going to a car show, especially if like me you have a car you want to put in the show can be EXPENSIVE!

Here's some SUGGESTIONS for getting in for free -

1 - Volunteer to do work. I did, worked like a charm. I had do some work, but it was free and i got to stand directly on the track.... no other photographer got to be ON THE TRACK, but me!! Everyone there knows me and gives me a lot of slack to take photos.

Side note about volunteering - It can be your ticket in to many many things. #1, you get your name out there, #2 you get special access behind the scenes, #3 you meet the bigwigs and #4 it involves something you enjoy doing. #5 it can introduce you to all sorts of powerful people who make decisions like ..oh... i dunno, WHO TO BUY PHOTOS FROM!! I'm NOT saying you volunteer your photos... Never, ever ever ever ... Neh-ha-heh-Hever give photos away.

2 - You can sneak in, it's easy, i did it. No one even checked my credentials to get into the show.

3 - Ride with a friend who has a neat car. That's assuming you have friends.... friends with cool cars that are going to the show.


Getting good photos
Good lord I can't tell you the amount of people who sent me photos of the EXACT same coverage of the event and they were just down right baaaadddd.

1. Get into places others can't - You'd be surprised how little people ask questions when you have a giant lens/camera combination strapped to your neck. Sorry, but your D40 and the kit lens ain't gonna get you respect. It's the truth, people can spot a tourist. The shot below (the red smoke) I was standing directly on the show floor BEHIND the ropes, no one questioned me, hell even the promoter gave me a 'nod' and let me go. (See suggestion #4 for getting into cool places and not getting trouble).

2 - Anticipation - There's no way you'll get a photo like this without knowing exactly where to stand, what's going to happen and when to push the shutter. I can't tell you where to stand, or when it's going to happen or when to push the shutter... i just know damnit!



3 - Use photoshop... yes, please do. I dare you to tell me that this photo is better unedited than the "damn dirty cheatin' lying no good photoshop hoodlums" version.

Original photo -


Edited version -



4 - Make friends - People will tell you all sorts of fun stuff about their car or even that they are going to do something stupid like a burnout at 4 o'clock (true story, i was tipped off to the silliness by a friend, and got good photos of it). Another true story happened to me last year when I was shooting the 40th anniversary of BIR, the organizer loved the photo i took of him (yes, him, not the cars) and told me that he'd get me into restricted access next time I came to the raceway.

5 - Use slow shutter speed - 1/160th or lower looks good. Any faster and the car looks like it's sitting still. If you can hit the magical 1/40th or lower and still get a crisp photo... you are buttery goodness in my book.



6 - Use batch processing - I created a batch process to resize, add my logo and save as a jpg to process all my files. 500+ photos can be a pain, but i just hit a few buttons and bingo-bango.... all done for me.


Making Money

Hell, why go to the show if you don't want to make money, right?

1 - Join local message boards and make a presence. Just showing up and posting once or twice won't do it. People need to know who you are and introduce yourself to them.

2 - Look, car people are CHEAP!! Especially the Mustang and Camaro guys... they just are. So don't be pissed off that some of them won't buy your stuff right away... you need to have a GREAT product. You need to get the photo that no one else can.

3 - Walking around the car show and taking photos of the cars parked WILL NOT GET YOU PAID!! Those photos look like ass and no one will buy them. Sorry, it's the truth. Anyone can take those pics and they are boring as all hell. Once again, you need to get the shot that no one else can. I can't tell you how to do that, i can only SUGGEST things.

4 - Be friends with magazine editors - Yea, it's tough, but it happens. I am, and I'm not a "pro" photographer.

5 - USE PHOTOSHOP!! - People know the difference between a SOOC shot and an edited shot... edited always looks better (at least when I edit). SOOC looks pedestrian and amateurish... don't be an amateur, be a pro! LOL

I've got more, but i'm fatigued and need to get to work.

Good luck.

~Eric

[Sime]

Nice post man... I have to agree with you on the whole edited thing - Maybe I should post you mine to edit!! (I need to get better!) Good tips on getting paid, too..

Sime

Added schpiel about volunteering.

[Highlander69]

Great post!
Just bought the 5D MKII a couple months back, I'm just a "shoot what catches my eye" person so no training or anything here... learning as I go.
My cousin talked me into going to the Good Guys Heartland Nationals in Des Moines a few weeks back... (didn't take much arm twisting) so I thought, what the heck, lets give the new camera a workout.
Here's a couple pics I liked... unedited, I'm a PS beginner so it's just cropping and adding a border so far.

I had to get between a tree and another car to get the angle on the ratrod. I finally got a B&W that I liked... (more learning curve)

I like that photo of the rat rod, I might increase the contrast a bit to make it look older, but beyond that it's a good photo.

[Highlander69]

Thanks for the feed back!
I love the red smoke on the Stang! That is pretty nasty looking... in a GOOD way!

[MargoJH]

I like to shoot from a low position especially with older cars. You can also get some interesting photos using a wide angle lens, the wider the better

http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-9479...-kingsway.html
http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-1407...ping-path.html
The logos etc were taken off for microstock purposes

Originally Posted by Highlander69

Thanks for the feed back!
I love the red smoke on the Stang! That is pretty nasty looking... in a GOOD way!

Ummm.... Obviously not a car fan, huh?

That's a GTO... wrong make/model.

Originally Posted by MargoJH

I like to shoot from a low position especially with older cars. You can also get some interesting photos using a wide angle lens, the wider the better

http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-9479...-kingsway.html
http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-1407...ping-path.html
The logos etc were taken off for microstock purposes

That's not really all that "low", they both look fairly eye level to me.

[Highlander69]

Originally Posted by maxharvard

Ummm.... Obviously not a car fan, huh?

That's a GTO... wrong make/model.

Oops... my bad. Actually I wasn't looking that close at the car, I saw the Stang pic above it, then the smoke pics.
Yes I am a car guy, I have a 69 Mach1 that I bought for my 16th birthday... still have it over 27 years later... I've had Camaros, lifted 4x4's and others. I'm also a drag racing chassis builder and did a few years as a circle track builder too.
Looking closer at the pic, it is obviously a Pontiac by the nose, similar to a Grand Am.