Below I will try to give some pointers on how to take pictures of a car. This is intended to give you an idea of how to frame or stage a shot. After reading this I hope some of you will purposely go out just to take pictures of your car. If you are at a show or end up parking someplace really cool then maybe this thread will help you choose your angle.
If you are looking to get a great shot of your car, leave your cell phone in your pocket. I know there are some phones out there that have 5+ megapixel cameras in them. The big drawback of these cameras is the fact that the lens is not covered and therefore is made of plastic and prone to getting cloudy. If you live in or around a decent size city you should be able to find at least one camera store that rents cameras. This is good, you can rent a $2,000 camera and a $3,000 lens for less than $100. I hate to say it but better cameras simply take better pictures, even if you don’t.
First things first, pose your car like you would pose a child for a photograph. If you take a picture from the normal ¾ view make sure your front wheels are turn the opposite direction of the camera, below are an example of right and wrong.
This is how the shot should look, with the wheels turned to show off the rim. It adds a cleaner line to the overall look of the image.
There are two things wrong here, the wheels are turned wrong which adds a black tire to an otherwise nice car shot and the tire is not brushed off. So now there is a dirty tire sticking right out in front.
When posing the car there is more to it than just the tires. The back drop and where the sun is can make or break a shot. Over exposed images are bright and washed out and can really take away from your car.
Here is an example of an over exposed picture.
The image above is so blown out most wouldn’t even know that is a black car.
Lighting seems to be an issue as well. If the sun is high in the sky and there are virtually no shadows then shoot at any angle you like. If the sun is low try to shoot without getting a long shadow in the picture unless you are intending for the shadow to be the focal point of the image.
Never shoot with the sun to your face, this will almost always wash out the image or add huge glare. Shoot with the sun to your back, you can pose the car in a way to get the shot without the sun being the back drop.
Be aware of your surroundings, parking lots can make good surroundings if they are empty and not full of poles. Nature is also a common surrounding but trees and bushes can steal focus. There are a couple of issues that can happen with a poorly selected angle or surrounding. Your car can appear to have a tree or pole growing out of it or the objects can steal focus. Here are a couple of examples showing this.
The bush stole the focus! Move about a foot and get this instead.
There is a tree growing out of my car!
Here is something that really bothers me, having a sign or pole or anything that can be avoided in front of the car.
Surroundings should be chosen wisely. A large city backdrop can actually take away from the car. It may look great while standing there but the skyline of the city will take center stage or if the shot is tight to the car the backdrop will be a bunch of half buildings. It’s good to stick to a wall or an expanse like a hill or something that brings depth like train tracks going under the car or something along those lines.
If you want a picture of your car at a car show or IN the car show then try your best to get the whole car. Make sure there are no signs in front of it, people, other cars, or anything like that. If the car is parked up tight to other cars then wait until the show is over or the cars next to you move, or, until its empty enough to move the car to a suitable spot for the shot. One more note about car shows, close the hood, so many car shots with the hood up but the angle of the image doesn’t even show the motor. I have heard about this from a lot of people, put the hood down, our Buicks spend too much time with them open in the first place.
Positioning of yourself is important. Not every shot has to be from a ground up angle but at least try and get all four tires in the shot. Notice a shot of a straight ¾ view of the car. It will look like a peg-leg or better explained it will look like it has three wheels.
Oop’s
Much better, all wheels are seen giving the car a better stance.
If you are looking to get a great shot of your car, leave your cell phone in your pocket. I know there are some phones out there that have 5+ megapixel cameras in them. The big drawback of these cameras is the fact that the lens is not covered and therefore is made of plastic and prone to getting cloudy. If you live in or around a decent size city you should be able to find at least one camera store that rents cameras. This is good, you can rent a $2,000 camera and a $3,000 lens for less than $100. I hate to say it but better cameras simply take better pictures, even if you don’t.
First things first, pose your car like you would pose a child for a photograph. If you take a picture from the normal ¾ view make sure your front wheels are turn the opposite direction of the camera, below are an example of right and wrong.
This is how the shot should look, with the wheels turned to show off the rim. It adds a cleaner line to the overall look of the image.
There are two things wrong here, the wheels are turned wrong which adds a black tire to an otherwise nice car shot and the tire is not brushed off. So now there is a dirty tire sticking right out in front.
When posing the car there is more to it than just the tires. The back drop and where the sun is can make or break a shot. Over exposed images are bright and washed out and can really take away from your car.
Here is an example of an over exposed picture.
The image above is so blown out most wouldn’t even know that is a black car.
Lighting seems to be an issue as well. If the sun is high in the sky and there are virtually no shadows then shoot at any angle you like. If the sun is low try to shoot without getting a long shadow in the picture unless you are intending for the shadow to be the focal point of the image.
Never shoot with the sun to your face, this will almost always wash out the image or add huge glare. Shoot with the sun to your back, you can pose the car in a way to get the shot without the sun being the back drop.
Be aware of your surroundings, parking lots can make good surroundings if they are empty and not full of poles. Nature is also a common surrounding but trees and bushes can steal focus. There are a couple of issues that can happen with a poorly selected angle or surrounding. Your car can appear to have a tree or pole growing out of it or the objects can steal focus. Here are a couple of examples showing this.
The bush stole the focus! Move about a foot and get this instead.
There is a tree growing out of my car!
Here is something that really bothers me, having a sign or pole or anything that can be avoided in front of the car.
Surroundings should be chosen wisely. A large city backdrop can actually take away from the car. It may look great while standing there but the skyline of the city will take center stage or if the shot is tight to the car the backdrop will be a bunch of half buildings. It’s good to stick to a wall or an expanse like a hill or something that brings depth like train tracks going under the car or something along those lines.
If you want a picture of your car at a car show or IN the car show then try your best to get the whole car. Make sure there are no signs in front of it, people, other cars, or anything like that. If the car is parked up tight to other cars then wait until the show is over or the cars next to you move, or, until its empty enough to move the car to a suitable spot for the shot. One more note about car shows, close the hood, so many car shots with the hood up but the angle of the image doesn’t even show the motor. I have heard about this from a lot of people, put the hood down, our Buicks spend too much time with them open in the first place.
Positioning of yourself is important. Not every shot has to be from a ground up angle but at least try and get all four tires in the shot. Notice a shot of a straight ¾ view of the car. It will look like a peg-leg or better explained it will look like it has three wheels.
Oop’s
Much better, all wheels are seen giving the car a better stance.
