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Nissan 370ZX in an Beautiful Fall Setting

By automobiles, Fall colors
My boss just bought a new automobile after years of nursing his aging convertible. It was time for an upgrade after dealing with the decreasing reliability of his old ride.

After weeks of eluding our questions… he FINALLY answered by driving up in a shiny new Nissan 370Z. I am so glad that he bought this version. The design is as stunning as any car on the road today… at least ones that normal people can afford.

I would not consider myself an automotive photographer by a long shot, but I never miss the opportunity to try to shoot something new. One day after work, we went out to the back of our parking lot where some of the fall foliage was starting to catch fire. Between all the cars leaving work and the fading sun I was able to catch a few angles of the car.

I quickly realized that this particular car is so shiny that it reflects everything in the near vicinity. To my eye, that caused a lot of messy reflections which break of the distinct lines of the 370Z as seen below.

My most successful photographs of the car used the cloudy sky as a big soft box which clearly defines its muscular lines. They are also free of street and branch reflections which cause visual confusion.

Next time I would love to photograph this car in a more controlled setting without having to worry about getting run over while I lay prone in the parking lot.

An Unforgettable Day of Driving Exotic Supercars

By automobiles, corporate photography, supercars

ne of my oldest friends, Scott, had his 40th birthday this year and his wife, Maura, went all-out to make his big day special. Anyone that knows Scott knows that he is a huge gear head and loves anything with a motor and 4 wheels. The more exotic, the better.

Scott’s automotive collection started moestly way back in college when he drove a “Vette”. No, not a Corvette, but a Chevette. Later as Scott become more successful, he was able to trade up. Now he owns a rare BMW M-Coupe, a car designed by Chip Foose and a sweet customtized Mercedes.

For his birthday present, his wife gave him a chance to spend a day in supercars that very few people have the chance to see, much less drive. Here’s where it gets good for me. Maura gets motion sickness and cannot stand to be in fast cars. I was asked to make the ultimate sacrifice and take a day off to go with him. It took me about 1/2 a second to make up my mind. It was one of the coolest things I have ever experienced.

The tour is unique in the fact that you drive ultra-exotic machines on public roads for at least 30 minutes per car. There were 5 cars and 8 drivers so there were 3 instances where each driver had to be a passenger, but I don’t think anyone minded this because it let you expereince the car from a different perspective.

My whole day was spent as a passenger, and there is a very good reason these cars are named supercars. They accellerate faster and stop harder than anything on the road. I come from a motorcycling background and they are on par or exceed the performance of those. I had to recalibrate my mind with the compressed stopping distances, the “stick-like-glue” grip and pure grunt of 400-500+ horsepowered vehicles.

And even though we were warned to obey all traffic rules and that the driver would be responsible for speeding tickets or car damage, the cars were put through their paces. I rolled video of the several people driving and I noticed that I was laughing nervously in some of the turns. I am glad that I had something to occupy my mind from the terror.

The cars were mind-boggling expensive with the priciest one topping $500,000. The cheapest one of the bunch was a measly $237,000. So, next time you think you want to buy a house, skip that and see if the bank will give you a loan for a car.

If you want to schedule your own supercar tour, visit World Class Driving.

My Chance Meeting with a Classic 1959 Corvette

By automobiles, Classic Car, Corvette

While filling up gas at a gas station, I noticed that I was parked right in front of a classic 1959 Corvette. Truthfully, I parked as close as I could to the car since I have always been a fan. I could look at classic cars all day.

The owners told me that they were from Florida and were driving cross-country. I had just a minute to grab a few shots before they drove off. I am glad to see such cool cars still driven on the highways.

Here is the original photo before I messed with it.

My New Honda S2000

By automobiles, Honda S2000

They say the best time to buy a convertible is in the winter so I took that advice and bought my “new” used car during a rare Atlanta snow storm. I had just turned 40 and had wanted to fulfill a lifelong dream of owning a really cool sports car.

I had been lusting after the Honda S2000 since 1999 when it first appeared. To me this is what a sports car should be… beautiful, simple, timeless, well balanced and made with a very high standard of quality. It’s not the fastest or the biggest, but it is one of the best affordable sports cars made in the past 10 years.

I had been casually hunting through classified and Ebay to see what the current market was for these cars when I saw one advertised at a local dealership. I was really just going to go for a test drive… Really I was. I swear. But there she was on the edge of the lot… looking perfect. The yellow paint almost glowed in the dark, and I soon started to think about the possiblities.

Was I originally planning on buying a pearl lemon painted car when I started my search? Heck no! Yellow attracts cops almost as much as donuts. What I was looking for was a nice used Honda S2000 that was silver with a red interior, second generation with mileage under 100,000.

This car smelled new, looked new and had a small fortune in upgraded and tasteful wheels installed already. It was a 2002 model and it had less than 11,000 on the odometer. That means that the previous owners barely drove this car.

We settled on a decent price and I took the car home when the snow subsided. I have not looked back since. This has been the coolest thing I have ever bought. Luckily my wife is not a jealous woman because I tell her everyday how much I love my new toy. Life is good!

Canon 5D Mark 2 Web Commercial for ReNu Finish

By automobiles, automotive products, Graphic Works, ReNu Finish, videography

When a client needed a demonstration video for his car restoration product, I did not hesitate to use the Canon 5d Mark II. Hollywood has already embraced this DSLR video technology for movies, television and commercials. Considering the relatively low entry cost for full HD quality, it is easy to see why.

The product demo was filmed on a used car lot where we found the a very weathered 10 year old vehicle to show how ReNu Finish restores plastic trim to its original factory finish. The best thing about this product is that one application can last up to a year, unlike some of the silicon spray products on the market.

The video was a group effort with me shooting the raw footage, Chase Walker providing the voice over with music and David Struve at Graphic Works editing the clips.

This product should soon be available at many major retail auto parts stores and department stores. For more information visit www.medsproducts.com.

“Caffiene and Octane” Car Show

By Atlanta, automobiles, car show, The Avenues

Caffiene & Octane Car Show Photos
My good buddy Scott has been trying to get me to go to an EARLY Sunday morning car show that happens in Roswell every month. I dragged myself out of bed at 7 (what?!!) to get there before the crowds came. I am glad that I did because the fabulous cars that arrived were worth the effort.

Caffiene & Octane Car Show PhotosI have to confess that some of the older cars caught my attention than then ultra exotic an modern supercars that were on hand. The highlight of the day was when I was standing next to Scott’s BMW M-Coupe and overheard a guy tell another “I’d take any car in this lot… even this ugly BMW!” That just made my day. ha!

Check out the car show gallery here.

Mr. Struve’s Evil Looking Subaru WRX STI

By automobiles, Fall colors, Subaru WRX STI

Subaru WRX sti

If Darth Vader drove a car on earth, it would probably be this. At first I was afraid to get near “Satan’s Hot Rod”. I had once seen it lay down a smokey burn mark in the parking lot when “the accelerator got stuck on the floor mat”. (Struve, save that excuse for the fuzz.)

The fall foliage was particularly beautiful with the afternoon sun backlighting it. We snapped a few shots before the sun blinked out. Check out the photos here: Subaru WRX STI Photo Gallery

My New Acura RSX

By Acura Integra, Acura RSX, automobiles, Fall colors

2005 Acura RSX Type-SA new era has begun for me. Last March I finally stopped being stubborn and bought a car to replace my aging, but trustworthy 1994 Acura Integra. I drove that car for over 11 years and we had many trips and adventures together. Not to mention a few tickets. Ah, the memories.

My new car is an improvement on the old one… It is a 2005 Acura RSX Type S. It is very similar to my old car except, much nicer, faster, better built and kids don’t point at and laugh anymore. I can finally get some respect on the streets. This still does not prevent my car from getting dinged in parking lots. I guess some things never change.

My neighbor wanted to buy my old car to play with it. I can visit it any time that I want to, but mysteriously, I never have.

Maserati GT Photo Session

By automobiles, portraits

Mike's Maserati
I got an opportunity to photograph a exotic Italian sports car at dusk in Ackworth, Georgia. The car was being sold a few days later so we had one chance to make the photos as a lasting memento of the car. We could have done more with more time, but the good light only lasted a few minutes.

M Coupe Xmas

By automobiles, Christmas


I had to return to PJ and Jackie’s home to take more photos of their brown-out inducing light display. I begged my buddy Scott to let me shoot his rare BMW M Coupe against their light display. What was I going to do? Use my rusty car?