fly away home

i've been checking out some of the odd and random shows lately. looking for some different cars to shoot, new people to meet. well, this one was really disappointing as far as shows go, but not as far as the few cars that showed up.

the flyer mentioned that you should r.s.v.p., as there was limited space. well, smooth move sherlock, i can't think of a better way to get people not to show up. marketing genius.

i'd just gotten a new macro lens to replace the one that had broken...so sad. anyone interested in an awesome minolta "secret handshake" macro lens, that doesn't focus anymore? needed to test it out, in case it needed to be returned. being late in the day, i could only think of this particular show still running by the time i could get there.

well, despite being only half-way through the advertised show time, there were a grand total of four cars that i would consider being in the lot for the show, two of which were just selling stuff or otherwise just silly and shouldn't ever be seen in public...so embarassing. oh wait, a tricked out golf cart in front of an indoor golf facility, i guess could be interesting to some.

there were only three when i first pulled up across the street, then this baby drove in. saves the day even better than that stingray next to it. thank you so much!

took a shine to it

this car caught my attention. off at the end of the lot, the sun just starting to go down, light hitting it just so. the pinstripes and chrome just begged to be looked at, just had to get past a handful of hydraulicly-endowed cadillacs.

i like that the fuzzy dice match the color of the roof and interior. i'd lose that antenna ball if it were mine, but i ain't so nevermind.

crossroads

there have been a few new shows listed on dave's site recently, at least i've never seen on it before. this is from the good times show off crossroads parkway, in the carl's jr parking lot. figured if there wasn't much there, we could just go to fry's down the street.

there was a pretty good turnout: lots of chevys, lots of low rider cadillacs, and lots of hydraulics being bounced around. the show started in the late afternoon, but the sun is still dropping fairly early, so started shooting as quick as possible. there was a space of time before the parking lot lights came on, where it was pretty dark, and hard to see the cars. i still took some shots in the various lighting conditions...never know what you'll get. always learning, so practice, practice, practice. see what works and what doesn't for a picture.

there were beautiful cars from one end of the lot to the other, but this was one of the first group of cars we looked at. the owners were friendly and brought along their nice, big pit bulls too.

master of the universe

maybe not of the universe, but of the road. yummy grille on this old buick. lots of chrome. and oh so shiny. would i buy this if i had the cash? i dunno. what would i buy? i'll have to think about that.

lots of cars are showing up with for sale signs plastered on the windshield. is time to start the next “project” or can't afford the gas? well it's a buyer's market, if only i had the money to get something and do the upkeep. do these old cars become money pits, like boats?

------- wtf, it's already after 10 pm...no wonder i'm tired. i can't help myself...just had to post one more. nighty night bunny wab-bit.

old pioneer days

so i've had a hell of a week: too much work going on with some overtime, an afternoon of jury duty, and a drive out to riverside. no time for a single car show. then comes today, out of work on time, sun still shining, warm weather, and i don't have my camera with me because it rained yesterday. feels weird to have gone straight home.

this dodge is here by special request from a new flickr friend, who asked to see more of this car for whatever reason. while it is an interesting car, the owner was more intriguing, and i remember that i had almost gotten up the nerve to ask if i could take a portrait of him, but i was still too shy at the time. only saw him and his car a few times after this show, which was about a year ago now. ahh the essence of why i'd rather shoot cars than people...i don't have to talk to them and they hold still for as long as i can keep the owner from leaving.

tails, you win!

usually, i hate when cars park nose in, but particularly with these i give an exception — exceptions for exceptional cars. i just love the back end of some of these cadillacs. all pointy angles. did this guy add the funky tail lights from a ’59? i'm not finding another ’61 like this online.

this was from original mike's on sunday. apparently the couple that run the show had a medical emergency, so there was no raffle/prizes. and being still so cold after the rain the day before, a lot of cars didn't stick around long. gotta dangle that carrot of a prize to keep them there.

was told that there are 360° of television screens inside, so you can watch everything from the bar or whatever. well, i don't drink, and i've usually eaten before this show, so i'll take your word for it.

old guard

this line of chevys was at the old memories eastside charity event at the broiler yesterday evening. i got my better half to join me for this one and a couple of other shows today. good sport. thanks d.

the rain had stopped earlier yesterday, but the cold continues, with intermittent strong winds. the wind wobbles my tripod sometimes and messes with my shots, and throws them out of focus. guess i need to get a weight to help stabilize it from the shaking.

there weren't as many cars as we expected, probably due to the weather, but still a few worth shooting. several people were very helpful about moving their chairs out of the way, so i could take a picture, so thank you very much. there were some cars that i really wanted to get, but the sun was busy going down, and was casting too much of a shadow across them, so i had to pass, or the location just sucked with all the posts and light poles screwing up the look.

my hubbie ran into another photographer who cared to advise him that if he used a flash, you wouldn't need to use a tripod. the camera model my hubbie uses doesn't have a built-in flash. the guy said you can buy them pretty cheap. yup.

usually, at this point my hubbie would have whipped out his iPad® and shown him that we do all right without it, but he didn't have it in his bag. he just handed him one of my cards and told him to check out my website to see what we get without using a flash.

so, camera guy, i hope you didn't lose my card. please let us know where we can see your pictures, we'd love to see them.

by early evening’s light

made it through the week at work. very tired and ready to sleep in tomorrow. raining tonight, otherwise i'd have been over here at chubby's diner with the latin gents.

i can't remember seeing one of these plymouths in such fine condition before, and especially here amongst all the chevys. just a nice, simple off white, yellowed by the sunset.

it's owned by a very nice gentleman, who took some time to chat, introduce his young son, and look through my picture book. he seemed familiar with several of the cars in the book, knew the owners or had otherwise seen the cars elsewhere.

junk in the trunk

there were three of these cars at enderle earlier in the month. i think they said there are maybe 6 in all of california. kinda rare. wish he'd closed the hood, but the back is pretty interesting on it's own.

------

ever had one of those weeks? ya, well i'm having one. drove 2 hours to see my kid play baseball and then they didn't play him, since he'd played three games over the weekend. busy busy at work, and that makes me happy, but they keep me hopping. supposed to rain this weekend, so there won't be any car shows to worry about missing. ehh, i have other things that keep being put off, i guess i can attend to for lack of excuses. lol.

maybe next week will be better.

blimey, it's limey

i did mention there was a car show at whittier high school a couple of weekends ago, as a fundraiser for the baseball team. i didn't get there as earlier as i'd planned, so the sun was already pretty harshly in the sky.

there were a decent number of cars there, mostly chevys. main club representing was the bomb squad. not sure if this one is one of theirs, as the majority of those were around the corner from this one. it was such a brilliant green, enhanced by the sun, i had to have it. wish the owner would have closed the trunk. eh, the owner was behind the next car over, and seemed oblivious to hey, someone is taking a picture of my car. screw him, i cropped him out of the picture, so there.

there were a number of cadillacs all hyped up on hydraulics, all jumped up and posing. i only took a couple of shots of those, cuz they aren't really my thing. they just make me wonder why they do that, but to each his own.

there was a spectacular old chevy truck parked out on the street, i suppose because he didn't want to pay to participate for a trophy...there seemed to be plenty available, maybe everyone got one at the end of the day.