Yeah, this is really tight. Well done.

Could you possibly explain the setup of this shot? I'm interested to know how you connected the camera to the car.

So Cool. This whole theme and the images posted is pretty damn amazing.

Awesomeness.

Wow. Cool as shinola! My favorite photo today!

Wait - can I guess? Rotating platform at car show?

Class shot, I've done a few of these too but found it mighty tricky to get a shot that had a pin sharp car and a nice blur in the background. You seem to have managed it. Nice.

I'm interested in the gear you've used too. I bought a suction pad mount specifically for this, but I think I need one with three pads to stabilise the camera properly.

Thank you all so much for the comments. For starters this photograph is untouched outside color correction to remove the green tint from the gas tube lit signs in the background. Some pretty funky colors tend to appear in big cities with lots of neon stuff.

You can see the mount just inside the frame and in the reflections of the car. So now that you are looking at how ghetto this photo is you might see what is going on a little easier. The shoot was a lot of fun, and I learned a lot. But since then I don’t think I have taken another photo of a car.

I used Delvcam Suction Cup mounts (sold at B&H), metal tubing, and a rigged up ball head with an attachment plate like any tripod really. Camera gear was a 20d and a Sigma 14mm. The suction cups and tubing shake a lot, so some tire shine bottles were hung from the tubing right under the camera to stop that as much as possible.

You can Google ‘car camera mounts’ for some ideas, but that solution will cost a pretty penny and usually only get you a few feet away from the subject. It’s similar to the setup I used though, and probably not the cheapest or best route to take even.

A few tips on this; ghetto rig it all the way, avoid black or white automobiles (they are the hardest challenge to shoot), you can fake the cars speed with exposure (how fast do you think this car is going?), and keep texture in the ground (if you expose too long it just turns into a flat blur and you lost the grip of motion it gives the photograph). A 2x4 with some zip ties or tubing with Monfrotto Super Clamps can work better in many cases that a $6000 carbon fiber swivel mount system used for movie production. I’ve met several photographers who did corporate level ads and each one of them told me the same thing, to problem solve. It’s all about imagination and figuring out what work for what you are trying to do. Sometimes the 10k budget shoot may only need a trip to Lowes and a rigged up system that runs $70.

Hope that gives a solid rundown.

Thanks for the rundown, Blinks. Great info.

> you can fake the cars speed with exposure
> (how fast do you think this car is going?)

It *looks* like the car is going fast... but if I had to guess, I'd say this was a 4 second exposure and the car is going like 5 mph. (That's totally a guess, since I've never done this type of shot before.) :)

Will, you're awesome

holy cow! amazing shot!

Man oh man - that you caught the brake pad so clearly is amazing. This shot is so inspiring.

That's amazing. I would still have a heart attack about having my camera hanging on a jury-rig setup outside a moving car though. Some day...when I have a lot more bravery, or money to potentally replace the camera gear (whicever comes first) maybe I'll try something like this ;)

I wish I could vote for this for the current 'automobile' theme again!

Hah!

I agree this is excellent for current theme.

Fives across the board.

Wow.

Whoa, you really should submit this again!

Yes. I agree with Hans ;)