Getting that fast look!

[macmx]

Can anyone tell me how to achieve that fast look, so common in car images? The car is really sharp but the surroundings look like they're blazing by.

Is this done by slow shutter speeds or is it all post production?
If in post, can someone give me a heads up on how to do this?

Any help is much appreciated! Thanks.

 

[polypal]

I have a hunch these pictures were completely photoshoped.

What you are referring to is old style shots made at circuits or during rallies.
That technique involves tracking the car at a slow shutterspeed as the car moves along.
Try it starting with 1/15 till 1/60 shutterspeed.

The blurred background emphasis the speed of the car.

 

[jotloob]

Yeah

The red one is my brand . 330 i touring . Enough space for a CFV BACK .

 

[macmx]

No kidding. I drive a 330xd.

 

[polypal]

Topic?

 

[vandevantersh]

Yeah

The red one is my brand . 330 i touring . Enough space for a CFV BACK .

No "boot" space in a 300 i touring??? (I think Paul is getting watchful that this doesn't turn into a car thread*g*)

Steve

 

[polypal]

Hi Steve,


No problem.

As far as I am concerned you are all still discussing how to get the drag effect.
Even if that were not true I could not be bothered.

Let's just say I bought the house I live in now because it has 4 garages.
The appartment I had before In Brussels had room for 3 cars.

I admit at being guilty. I too like cars.

Paul

ps I tried Dirks trick to avoid the grey surround.
So far no luck. I have to try gain.

 

[vandevantersh]

Loading up for a photo road trip...bad driving in West Texas

Steve

 

[polypal]

Hi Steve,

I did not know towbars are allowed for those Prancing Horses in the US.

Or am I to believe you get all that luggage inside this car?

LOL!

 

[vandevantersh]

Hi Steve,

I did not know towbars are allowed for those Prancing Horses in the US.

Or am I to believe you get all that luggage inside this car?

LOL!

It all fits..that is why I didn't understand Jurgen's comment about the 330 i and room for a CFV back.*g*...Inorder to comply with the topic.."Getting that Fast Look"...The fast look is the smile on my girlfriend's face at 200+ km/h.

Steve

 

[wbulte]

It all fits..that is why I didn't understand Jurgen's comment about the 330 i and room for a CFV back.*g*...Inorder to comply with the topic.."Getting that Fast Look"...The fast look is the smile on my girlfriend's face at 200+ km/h.

Steve

The State troopers must love you doing 200km/h on the Texan freeways

That is the advantage of living close to the German border: Autobahn..
Not that my Audi feels like going any faster than 216 km/h (according to
my GPS).

As for the original poster's question: I did shoot some motorbike races long time ago (on 35mm). The trick is "pulling" the camera along when
the vehicle passes you and then trigger the shutter. Does not work all the time, but practice makes perfect.

Doing it in PS is lame IMO. Real Men Make Real Photographs In-Camera, They Do Not Use PS To Tweak Half Baked Crud Into Something Barely Acceptable.

Wilko

 

[polypal]

As for the original poster's question: I did shoot some motorbike races long time ago (on 35mm). The trick is "pulling" the camera along when
the vehicle passes you and then trigger the shutter. Does not work all the time, but practice makes perfect.

A couple of months ago I met a nutter, I mean that in a very positive sense, who lies on his belly in a van
rear doors wide open while he shoots cars on the move.

He works for a car magazine and is the only old style photographer that will not use the magic of PS.

 

[vandevantersh]

" The State troopers must love you doing 200km/h on the Texan freeways"

That picture was taken in the Nevada desert...no one on the road. I have been stopped twice in West Texas for 8km/h over../the cops just wanted to see the car. I bought "her" as a three year old "garage queen" with with < 5k km on the clock..I have put >120,000 more on the clock mostly driving in the South West and Rocky Mountain states.

 

[fotografz]

Most commercial shots are done using special stabilization rigs on moving camera trucks.

Commercial digital retouchers are talented beyond most people's comprehension, and can simulate reality to a mind-boggling degree.

 

[alastairbird]

OK, what you do (and I'm dead serious, because when I first heard about this I thought for sure the vibrations would make it not work) is attach a lightweight arm, about 15 feet long to the bottom of the car and place the camera at the end of the arm. These arms are sometimes made of plexi or glass, so they're easier to retouch out, or made of carbon fibre. They're specially made for shooting cars - carefully dampened and built to be ultra light and ultra rigid.

The camera sits at the right height, clamped in place, and the car is either pushed or pulled at about a walking speed while the camera makes a 1/2 or 1 second exposure. Because the camera and the car are at a fixed distance, the car is sharp. The background is blurred because the car is moving. You have to have a pretty much perfectly flat surface (brand new tarmac works well) or the bumps in the road cause the arm to sway.

You can rent the rigs from big camera houses in LA and New York - more for motion picture than for photography.

And then the arm is retouched out and hey-presto, a high-speed look is achieved.

 

[1000F]

OK, what you do (and I'm dead serious, because when I first heard about this I thought for sure the vibrations would make it not work) is attach a lightweight arm, about 15 feet long to the bottom of the car and place the camera at the end of the arm. These arms are sometimes made of plexi or glass, so they're easier to retouch out, or made of carbon fibre. They're specially made for shooting cars - carefully dampened and built to be ultra light and ultra rigid.

The camera sits at the right height, clamped in place, and the car is either pushed or pulled at about a walking speed while the camera makes a 1/2 or 1 second exposure. Because the camera and the car are at a fixed distance, the car is sharp. The background is blurred because the car is moving. You have to have a pretty much perfectly flat surface (brand new tarmac works well) or the bumps in the road cause the arm to sway.

You can rent the rigs from big camera houses in LA and New York - more for motion picture than for photography.

And then the arm is retouched out and hey-presto, a high-speed look is achieved.

Here's an example of a shot that was taken in this way. The car was rolling at around walking pace

 

[1000F]

I actually have a few pictures that would be on-topic for this thread. I'll post them up when I get home.

Car photography was how I got into photography as a hobby, so I should be able to find a few that would be relevant!

 

[bradleygibson]

The first Mercedes image definitely looks like it was achieved in post. Note the background movement has been achieved with a zoom burst, yet the car is pin-sharp. In addition the lighting on the car and the lighting of the rest of the scene (most notably, the sky) do not agree (although this could be done with artificial lighting on the car).

I believe it was a composite shot, done in post.

As for the BMW picture, it looks more like the real deal (relatively slow shutter speed). This is often done someone risking life and limb laying down, being driven down the highway shooting the car. Kenyon, a gyro stabilizer company shows a couple examples of the work being done with their gyros: http://www.ken-lab.com/html/kenlab_4.html.


Thanks, 1000F, your explanation and picture of the slow-mo technique were very interesting!

-Brad

 

[1000F]

Thanks, 1000F, your explanation and picture of the slow-mo technique were very interesting!

-Brad

I will take credit for supplying an example, however alastair will have to be thanked for the explanation! ;-)

 

[bradleygibson]

whoops, yes you're right--I must have misread that! Thank you, too, Alastair!

I will take credit for supplying an example, however alastair will have to be thanked for the explanation! ;-)