Car Photography: What to Know and How to Nail It
Taking the shots
Always assume that your car’s shoot begins with static pictures. This means you need to study the make of the car and identify its key design features. Is it the lines and concept, the bulk, the special lighting? Or some other special additions? Don’t hesitate to get creative where you can!
Shoot all the basic angles first
The front, back, top, sides, and inside steering and backspace. Is the car top heavy or bottom-heavy? Was it built for speed or style? Is it sturdy or light? Based on that, fix up your viewing angle and decide if high or low angle shots do it justice better. We can’t make a car built for speed look heavy and bulky.
Observe and highlight its features
Cars are sculptural subjects. A photographer with an artistic mind will get the best out of their subject.
Here, the lighting you use makes a difference. Startup the car and show off its head and tail lights. Cast light onto the curves, the wheel case, and chassis.
Use a polarizing filter to manage stray reflections and work up the flash so that the highlights don’t go away. Adjust your ISO for special environments like nights, race tracks, or garages, and parking lots.
Sometimes, you may need a model to pose, drive, or demonstrate its features. Planning appropriate shots and angles is indispensable here. Fix the angles that make it look goodsuch that the key features are shown well.
Focus and highlight the customized parts
A lot of these are in the interior usually. So your best bet is either to include a light inside the vehicle or adjust your ISO, so you don’t have to compromise. Get details like the seats, leather finish, or logo, and speedometer readings. Luxury cars have special features too, which you can show off with the help of a model.
Shooting outdoors
Many cars are best showcased outdoors, on the roads they’re meant to be on. But before you get your car outside, do a little homework — is there an empty stretch of land or road you can take shots uninterrupted? When and where does the lighting look good? Can you access the space for golden hour? And is the setting in contrast with the car?
It is easy to place black and white cars on the road and in various settings, but colors are tricky to manage. Ensure that you create enough contrast. And the roads you pick need to be the roads the car is meant for—such as heavy off-roading vehicles on a dirt road versus an SUV or luxury car on long highways.
Shooting outdoors means you have a tiny time window to pull off your shots.
So use a gimbal if you have to for your acrobatic shots and the telephoto lenses and tripods to get your long shots well and highlight the car’s speeding lines. Getting in some motion blur is a great way to show just how dynamic the car can be.
You may need several test shots to adjust lighting, speed, and captures when you shoot in motion. Have several positions and poses marked out, and wrap up your shoot before lighting changes too much. Having shots of the car both from the inside and the outside helps convey the feeling of whizzing past in this vehicle!
With such extensive details to consider, it helps to manage traffic and safety while you go through the shoot! Always consider safety first!
Shooting exotic vehicles? Lucky! Check out our exotic photoshoot ideas for some serious location inspiration!
