Worst Automotive Photography Ever.

I am the absolute worst photographer that you have ever witnessed, even when I’m trying really hard.  My problem is that I don’t have any idea why I am so terrible.  Even if I had the best camera in the entire universe, my pictures would still be awful.  I just don’t know how to capture the moment like Volkswagen owners do.  They can make a beat up stock GTI look like it is dripping in 40 layers of fresh clear coat with a beautifully streetlight lit background.  Me? Well, my best pictures appear to be taken under water.  Blubb Gurgle Blubbb Blub…

I’m pretty sure that I just don’t understand light.  Light does crazy things, especially when I am holding a camera.  As soon as my hand touches the camera, the failure begins.  I can have the camera towards the sun, away from the sun, flash on, or flash off…….none of it matters.

For those of you that know what you’re doing, can you give me some quick pointers so that I can provide better blog pictures? I’m tired of blur.

Jeremy Nutt

Hi, I'm Jeremy.

4 thoughts to “Worst Automotive Photography Ever.”

  1. Learn to shoot with the crappiest manual camera your grandma’s got…then you will understand light, shadows, and the rule of nines, grasshopper!

  2. Of course you need to pay attention to the basics: light, contrast, framing, background; but don’t forget the subject. The best thing is to image the car is a women. What are you trying to capture? (face, body parts, character, “mood”?). Also it helps to use an angle that is flattering to the car, this will keep your pictures from looking like a “snap shot”. Take a look at pictures you like in car mags, then make a list of how the photographer dealt with the simple issues: light, framing, contrast, angle, etc. Then next time you take a picture, stop and think for a minute before you shoot.

  3. Are those your best examples? There is hardly a single thing right about them! Don’t shoot in full mid-day sunshine; shoot morning or evening. Don’t shoot a vehicle in half-shade/half-sun; pick one or the other. Clean up the background. Clean up the foreground. If the camera has a noise reduction setting, enable it. If you have a tripod and self-timer, use them. Use a flash to fill in shadows when the light is harsh. Use a long shutter time when the light is low (tripod again!). Shoot from interesting angles, from either high or low, instead of the expected eye-level shot. Get your homeboys out of the shot unless they’re doing something interesting. Try the camera’s extended abilities, such as using vivid color, hi contrast or low contrast. Take ten shots, each of them different, and make notes so that later you’ll know what worked. If blur is your problem, then there is probably a slight shutter delay after pressing the button on your digital camera. Again, use a tripod or set your camera on a tabletop or something to steady it. Crappy cameras take crappy photos; the glass of the lenses matter, as do the CCDs that capture the digital data. Shop for a good new camera or a great used camera. Read reviews and forums to see what people like and what to watch out for. The Canon G9, G10 and G11 are excellent small cameras and you can get a very nice used one for half the original price of $500. They are called “pro-sumer” cameras, professional consumer grade. But the Nikon DSLRs are great and not so expensive, too. Good luck!

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