Big Shiny Fast and BlueA great assignment came along to shoot a big, shiny, fast and blue Indy/F1 racecar. The site of our car shoot was at a facility where these racecars are serviced and prepped for race day. What a great place! When we scouted the location, we found it to be meticulously clean…like a medical clinic. The space was ample and everyone helping us was over-the-top wonderfully accommodating. They provided 5 or 6 really great cars from which to select. The car chosen was one with the least amount of decals and stickers. The rich blue decided on for final was complementary to our client’s branding. A “speed bump” came from the limited height of the immobile, overhanging fluorescent lighting which was in a continuous repeating pattern over our entire area. Our lighting set-up had to disguise the repetitive reflections of the fluorescents and still make the car look pretty. Plus we had to economize our time since we had 10-12 shots of the car to do within that one day’s time. Solution: Our work-around was to use two 12’ x 16’ “silks” overhead, suspended directly under, but not touching up against all the existing light fixtures. We then poured numerous lights from above through the silk to light it evenly, their output balanced with our surrounding lights aimed at the background and side panels. My crew was terrific, and we systematically progressed through our shots, needing only to adjust our lights slightly as we rotated the car from front to rear, in tune with our shot list. Our last shot which required a complete re-light, was a profile of the car where a large white wall was needed to be constructed to shoot through. Our friends/ clients were made happy after my photo and Photoshop work was done and the huge project was finally completed. People look better when they’re happy! Enjoy the roll-over. |
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