Photographer's thread

[spike021]

Originally Posted by Captain Snooze

I like those.
I like them a lot.

Thanks!! I wasn't sure on the preset I went with (basically the Lightroom name for the set of edits, if you didn't know already) because it's borderline surreal-looking. But I actually really like it.

[Spuds]

Originally Posted by spike021

Went on a short canyon/mtn run with a buddy this morning to a lookout spot so I could shoot his A90 Supra. Working some of the photos. Not entirely happy because I messed up a setting and didn't notice till halfway through the shoot . But making do with what I got.

On the other hand, I am super stoked that the weather worked out! I was hoping it'd be foggy like this.

Here's one or two I have so far (we didn't plan to shoot mine initially, which is why it's completely filthy):

1. Nice! Good pics IMO.

2. Wow the Supra actually looks pretty good when you cover the door vents lol.

[Capt Spaulding]

Very nice. I've found that pics taken in foggy conditions can respond well to playing around with the clarity slider. I can dial in a more or less mysterious mood.

[spike021]

Originally Posted by Spuds

1. Nice! Good pics IMO.

2. Wow the Supra actually looks pretty good when you cover the door vents lol.

Haha yeah, I think it's decently possible to make it look much better with aftermarket parts. It's too bad it didn't just come from factory like that, though.

[beltax90]

Originally Posted by spike021

Went on a short canyon/mtn run with a buddy this morning to a lookout spot so I could shoot his A90 Supra.

Love the effect, especially with the first photo!

Wish i had real Supras to photograph. All I have are tiny ones :/

[beltax90]

Photographing the Supra made me want to shoot one of my other favorite cars in my collection, the FJ Cruiser!

Love seeing these on the road. They were ahead of their time what with vehicles like the new Ford Bronco coming out.

These cars look great paying tribute to the original Landcruisers while still looking modern enough and the design still holding up today imo! Already a classic in my book!

was going for a rain foresty kinda vibe so i actually color balanced it by taking out a lot of the red to highlight the green, threw in some sharpening and clarity to make it pop as well as adding some vibrance and saturation to bring out the yellow. added some contrast to try and capture the cool sheen detail of the actual rubber wheels that this model comes with! also cool details like the rough and almost crumbly texture of the brick gives it that sort of Mayan ancient ruin feel?? which i think helps in giving the FJ the image of it being able to go anywhere with its offroad capabilities! also the overhang of the bricks i think helps with a sense of height like pictures of trucks you'd see at the edge of a cliff



also wanted to compare the photo above (nikon d40) to a photo i had taken of the same car with a sony rx100v point and shoot almost 3 years ago and I gotta say my d40 camera isn't that bad (the zoom lens like i said before also helps me too) was going for a top of mountain sunrise vibe for the pic below but i feel like my editing skills have sort of improved too? along with my composition

[spike021]

Originally Posted by beltax90

Love the effect, especially with the first photo!

Wish i had real Supras to photograph. All I have are tiny ones :/

Maybe see if you can find the local A9X group or if you come across any try talking to them? I think I found this guy on IG originally lol but some friends had come across him as well, and we've met up a couple times for drives now. Fortunately he was gracious enough to let me shoot it (I've had several people flake on me now to let me shoot their cars for practice ).

[beltax90]

went to the zoo with a friend! always think of taking photos here as a challenge because of crowds, barriers, the animals themselves with whether they're there or not / their poses and also everyone's picture ends up looking the same because of these restrictions.

because of this i didnt get too many photos that i thought were interesting, but i also knew this coming in so i was telling myself to mostly just enjoy their company and experience more of the visit by being there and not behind the lens. plus a lot of these guys were super stressed out already and i didnt feel like i needed to add to that!

anyway, some pics! I dont think any of these are too crazy but it was nice practicing composition throughout the day with these.

[beltax90]

also, have been trying to photograph food recently. these are of some baked goods my friends had made for me. these have been really fun staging and editing!

[beltax90]

So I've been driving a stock 2016 ND Miata for the last two days through Turo as a sorta birthday present to myself. I've always wanted to drive one since the twins and the MX-5 are so often pitted against each other in car magazines and online. Also, I've never driven a convertible before and I never test drove one of these when buying my 86.

Aaaand I gotta say, the 86 is so much more fun. Now granted, my 86 has little things done to it like catback, cf driveshaft, lightweight flywheel and Michelin PS4s but I think I still kinda remember how much more rewarding the 86 felt stock and how everything from the steering to shifting and accelerating and it's planted-ness all complemented each other so well.

Shifting in the ND didnt feel as notchy (the good kind) as I'd hoped, the steering doesnt feel as direct as the 86, and the engine doesnt really feel like it wants to sing when you romp on it if that makes sense? like the 86 (especially with lighter drivetrain stuff) feels so...like the car has been waiting to let loose as you go through the revs. i dont know.

Also dont know if this is because I'm afraid to give it the beans because it isn't my car but power to the rear wheels doesnt feel as playful when compared to the 86.

I think overall the Miata is great for cruising, heel toe downshifts and revmatching are really easy but everything just doesnt come together as nicely like in the 86. Even with the top down! It's a solid car that i wouldnt mind driving again but i'd love to turo another 86/brz, like maybe a turbocharged or supercharged one. but even a stock twin would be fun just to compare what ive done to my own out of curiosity. Plus stock 86s i think are still such great cars.

Makes me appreciate how lucky I got by picking the 86 from the beginning.





edit: alright, just had a proper go with the Miata tonight with no traffic and i was able to get more of that "Yes!" feeling out of it. You definitely have to wring it out a little more than you would with 86 but the dampening is definitely more refined/smoother than 86. It feels a little floatier, more grand tourer than go kart and i still think 86 feels more free and willing to be pushed than Miata. Still think this is a solid car and I did enjoy it more with the top down at night when cooler, I think an early morning drive would be amazing but overall the experience makes me still just appreciate 86 a little more.

also wish there were knee padding on the driver's side door

[beltax90]

alright alright alright, just wrapped up driving both my car and the miata back to back and wow! Didn't think I could love my car even more but wow!

86 definitely has a heavier but good weight to the steering compared to Miata's super light inputs. But everything in the 86 just feels so precise and definitely more on rails than Miata. Can confirm that the back WANTS to get out more in 86 than Miata which is really fun. Good notchy shifting in the 86 that I missed!

Miata is very well composed but 86 makes you feel like a kid again! oh and our brakes are pretty good for a street car!

I love our cars!

[beltax90]

So this one had to have some major editing done to it to make it at least decent (it's still pretty blurry)

Some things that I'd done were sharpening and clarity (at the expense of a lot of noise), brightness and contrast, exposure and curves, color balancing, vibrance and desaturation, cropping and clone stamping





not my best work but the composition and object arrangement i thought were spot on!

[spike021]

Originally Posted by beltax90

So this one had to have some major editing done to it to make it at least decent (it's still pretty blurry)

Some things that I'd done were sharpening and clarity (at the expense of a lot of noise), brightness and contrast, exposure and curves, color balancing, vibrance and desaturation, cropping and clone stamping





not my best work but the composition and object arrangement i thought were spot on!

I love it. Especially the lines and shapes help frame the subject and direct viewers' eyes to it (the plate with the cookies). Extremely well composed. Maybe needs better natural lighting but a nice shot regardless.

[beltax90]

took some photos at a gazebo thingy near my work. lots of trees which is nice because shade is hard to come by in the area, is kinda tucked away and a nice place to come and relax!