have a seat

i saw this car originally a month ago, at the viejitos fullerton show. this picture was from the xmas show in santa ana, the following week.

the owner had it parked up at the entrance in fullerton, and asked me to take a picture of it. it was parked in the shade next to a tent, next to the restaurant. in that light it looked blackish. those shots really didn't turn out that bad, but when i saw it again here, wayyyyy better. with the sun hitting it, you can see the glitter in the paint.

but the point of the title of this post, was that when he first asked that i shoot the car, he also asked if i wanted to sit in it, and see how nice it is inside. had to turn him down, as i'd already been shooting other cars and sitting on the ground and such, so i was afraid i'd get his upholstery dirty. had to say no, unfortunately for me. nice of him to ask. maybe some other time, before i start shooting.

the other danny

i know i shoot cars as i find them, but sometimes i have my doubts, especially when someone asks me to shoot their car. i know what they are expecting to see vs what makes me happy. i like this shot, again with the lens flares. but i think this danny (the owner) would have preferred a shot from the other side, pretty plain vanilla.

this is the second time i've taken pics of his car, and both times, i knew they wouldn't be what he is probably looking for. parking in the shade to keep the car and himself cool—good for him, but not for a clean shot of the car, with more accurate color.

this car is a dark blue, but shooting into the sun is effing with the color. from the other side on this, and a couple of shots of other cars in this club, the colors are more vibrant, mostly due to the time of the day and angle of the sun.

but they're also clustered around their club tent, or jammed next to each other, so aside from the shadows off the tent, the people in the tent end up in the shot too. from the other side, you'd see a little gangsta doll off the front bumper and the tent legs, as well as the empty chair that one of the guys jumped out of when he realized i was taking the picture. but the color would have been nice and deep blue if the tent hadn't been there.

my better half says i should ask them to move the car to get a better shot. but then they'd lose their spot, wouldn't they? you wouldn't ask a tiger to hold still in the jungle while you take a shot, so why should i bother to have them move it? if i wanted to control it that much, i'd open a studio and be a master of the universe.

i might be making a lot of assumptions, based on a few past experiences with car owners. forgot that i was just taking them for fun, and tried to let them tell me how to do the shot. basic tenet: don't let someone else art direct my hobby.

since i shoot mostly to make myself happy, i post the shots that i like, and if, by chance, danny likes a different point of view of his car, well then, he's found one.

there i go again, i've rambled on, with my thoughts not quite in order and too tired to rewrite it correctly. what would my professor think of that?

fleetmaster

well, my weekend hasn't worked out as i planned. spent saturday with my car in for routine maintenance, ended up getting it home for a little over $900. ugh. definitely not doing xmas this year. then, since i wasn't home to work on my pictures, i didn't work on the cars i wanted to post here.

so there's just this one, and then i have to go sit through a church choir thing my mom is part of, my xmas present for her. my better half enjoys these things, xmas carols and such, and it makes my mom happy that some family will go and see her do her thing.

for several years, i endured the show playing solitare on my phone, then last year i unfortunately picked seats up front, unknowingly sitting next to the pastor or reverend or whatever he was. oh, i had to behave. it entertained my better half, his mother and mine that i had to be ever so good, not playing games, or making any comments. i'm heading for the loft this time.

this chevy (starting to max out on chevys right here now) belongs to the fleetliner club. danny asked me to shoot their cars, and i have a few more to post when i have time.

thrifty

i've had a couple of very long days at work this week. no time to play with my pictures. going to catch some zeebers early tonight, so i'll just put up this one since it's ready.

found this truck at the show in fullerton. don't shoot a lot of these, because they seem pretty plain, but i just liked this pose for some reason.

i have a few cars to work on this weekend, so maybe i'll post more than one for a change.

xmas spirit

i'd intended to go to a couple of shows today. made it only to this one at the santa ana elks club. was going to also hit up the john force show, but as i approached the freeway ramp, the radio was reporting a big truck spin out up the highway and a motorcycle cop had just got on the freeway and began the zigzag pattern...didn't feel like driving the surface streets out there, so i skipped it. maybe next year. i guess i'll peek at dave lindsay's pics when he posts them.

anyway, as soon as i walked into the lot, i met up with danny, from one of the clubs at last week's show. he's interested in shots of his club's cars, several of which were there. i'll see if i like any of them another day.

the guy that belongs with this truck also asked if i could take a picture of it. said it was the first time he'd had it out since his dad died. well, i would have even if he hadn't asked. it's a pretty clean ride.

interesting zebra stripey airbrushing pattern and big red bow on the front. might have liked it better if it wasn't parked next to a white iron fence, which reflects on the paint and just confuses the eye with the competing zebra pattern.

i think it was a member of one of the host clubs for the show. hope he sees this. i threw a card on the seat.

golden oldies

the sign in the back window of this beauty says classic oldies—i assume the car club, not just a statement of opinion. this one and the black and gold one behind were just amazingly perfect examples of rolling art. simply awesome. what more can i say?

envy

today, my former brother-in-law died...that's all i want to say about that.

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yet another car from the viejitos show; i've got a few more to share before i let it go. this car's not perfect, but i like it anyway—a bit of character. found it hiding at the back of the lot.

sunny side up

this belongs to the president of the viejitos club. he seemed like a nice guy, welcomed me right away, but that's what you'd expect from the host of the party. he asked if i'd taken a shot of his car, "the brown convertible up at the front." at the time, no, i'd just arrived, but i did go back up to the entrance and take a couple of shots.

i can't recall that i've seen another convertible like this one. i haven't decided if i would have rather shot it with the top down, or just as i found it.

hoochie mama

another incredible car from yesterday's show. this one from the sons of soul car club, is black, with brown paint, covered with rainbow flake paint over the wheels and on the roof, pinstriping on the inside and out by kelly n sons, an airbrushed painting on the backseat. the painting on the window names it "hoochie mama." i found it visually stunning and practically perfect in every way.

spill the wine

today a went to only two shows, skipped the third by choice. wanted to see stuff i don't usually see. this one is from the viejitos cruisin on a sunday afternoon show over in fullerton. i've seen a few of their cars here and there, but was interested to see what a show hosted by them would pull in.

i was not disappointed. a virtual chevy buffet, some of los angeles and orange county's finest showed. and the people were very nice too. i was greeted by the president of the club when i got there. as i walked about and shot the bunch that were there initially, other clubs showed up and filled the lot, until they were parking two cars wide up the aisle. it was really not a huge lot, and i had to park down the street.

several people came over to talk to me, and ask to be sure to get their cars. guess i'll be busy over the next few days posting some. and there were so many more extraordinary cars that came out, i'll be busy for a month on just this one show if i wanted.

anyway, the owner of this car, who happens to be the guy taking a picture of his friends, found me at the front of the lot, and specifically asked if i had taken any of his car. at that point, no, i had passed it by, because the hood was up. he went directly back and closed the hood, just for me. it had a nice big chromed engine, but no interest for me.

i took several shots, but this one was my better half's pick of the bunch. hope you like it.