From the very first issue, one of the objectives of AutoSpeed has been to present excellent quality photography. Not just good photos from a web perspective, but professional quality shots that could easily grace (and sometimes have graced) glossy paper. For that reason we have always gone with traditional media - film and film cameras - and have then scanned in these images. With the recent release of professional level SLR interchangeable-lens digital bodies, that approach may soon change, but you can be sure that the quality will always remain central.
In this special we've gone through the more than 5000 images published over the last hundred issues of AutoSpeed, picking out the best pics. Sometimes there's a story behind the pic, sometimes we've included it because it's simply a breathtaking photo, and other times just cos - for whatever reason - it's one of our favourites.
With so many pics, the pages might take a little while to load, but the wait'll be worth it.
Enjoy.
When we saw this twin turbo Honda NSX in the Melbourne AVO workshop we knew that we just had to feature it. Unfortunately there wasn't the opportunity at the time to take the car to a photo location - or even to get some action shots of it on the road. But we knew that the car had participated in Targa Tassie, and called on the services of Tasmanian photo agency Perfect Prints. And they supplied a ripper... (PP)
One of our most popular feature cars ever, the radical UK-made DAX Kamala features mostly turbo Ford mechanicals enveloped in a one-of-a-kind body. Shaped like some kind of preying mantis, the incredibly aggressive and purposeful body is captured to perfection in this shot supplied by the manufacturer.
Chris Higgs' Laser was one car that we just had to feature. Subject to a lot of negotiation (another magazine wanted to exclusively run the car) it took months before we could get it in front of our lenses. But the results were worth it - the car's a stunner. This shot was taken lying on the ground with a 24mm lens and fill-in flash. And if you look really closely, you can see the masking tape that was temporarily holding the spotlight covers in place! (JE)
In the vernacular, a 'tracking shot' is taken of the moving subject from another moving car. Getting a blurred background without bumps in the road also causing blur in the wrong places is always a bit hit and miss - especially when you're leaning out of the sunroof of your newly-acquired Audi! But this Mini was just such a good car that we went the extra mile. (JE)
Tasmanian photo agency Perfect Prints has a team of top photographers working for them each Targa Tassie. We wanted an action pic of Chris Higgs in his Mazda RX3 - and they sure delivered! The daylight under the rear wheels, the vivid front camber angle....it's a shot that perfectly sums up the excitement and action. (PP)
While the exterior of feature cars often shows pristine paint and bodywork, it's rare to have the same attention paid to the interior. And, when the effort has been made, capturing the typical varying shades of charcoal and black on film often isn't all that exciting. But this superb Mazda RX7 interior was a totally different scenario! With a tripod, long shutter speed and some fill-in flash, the silver and blue just leapt into life. (JE)
When we decided to feature a stretch limo, we wondered how our readers would take it. What's this thing doing in AutoSpeed? The Soundstream-equipped car was photographed outside of the Adelaide Casino, door open and awaiting the alighting of a luscious young woman. Pity she hadn't arrived yet! (MK)
This N13 Pulsar might have had a CA18DET turbo four under the bonnet, but the exterior was, well, pretty boring. And the antiseptic white paint didn't help much. Towards the end of the shoot some moving pix were tried; this pan mixes a long shutter speed with some direct flash to give the sharp-but-blurred arresting double image. (JE)
The story on this black Nissan 200SX attracted some criticism - where were the dyno graphs and the quarter mile times? What didn't get any unfavourable comment, though, was the photography. This wide-angle pic sums up the awesome presence of the black beast perfectly - bonnet pins, angular front spoiler and that dominant intercooler. (GB)
When we went to photograph this superb R33 Skyline GT-R, we had the vague idea of getting the car onto an airport tarmac - after all, the owner flies a helicopter for a living and we met him at work. But instead of a chopper or other aircraft, we found that the wet concrete and the closed door of the helicopter hanger made a perfect backdrop. (JE)
This supercharged XB Falcon was always going to be an unusual car for AutoSpeed to feature. With its bug catcher sticking out through the bonnet, hugely grunty throb being emitted from the exhausts and sheer muscle factor, this was one man's man car. So when the owner's son was happy to pose (complete with his baby seat), we couldn't pass up the opportunity! (JE)
The SLK was just so beautiful that we wanted a moving, flowing dusk pic. We took the car to the busiest shopping street we could find on a Friday night, and shot what seemed to be thousands of exposures with people, blur and lights mixed with the Mercedes. We had people abusing us for getting in their way, horns tooting and a host of interested onlookers. But we got the shot we were after... (JE)
One of the constraints of the web is that pics are small until people click on them to enlarge, so while a pic like this across a double page spread of a paper mag would look fantastic, it doesn't look nearly so good when reproduced as a tiny pic on the screen. But that doesn't detract from the point that it's a superb photo of a Type R STi WRX! (MK)
After the first Alfa 156 that AutoSpeed got for road testing was unceremoniously shunted up the bum, we managed to negotiate the one-day loan of another. That meant the driving impressions, photography and evaluation all had to occur in just eight hours... it's normally a one week process. Drive like mad, jump out of the car and take a pic; drive like mad. But there are worse ways of spending a day than fanging in a 156... (JE)
We don't often show the car owner in the shots that we run - he (there's never been a 'she') usually looks and feels ill at ease - but Gavin Messenger was a natural. He was relaxed, had the right approach and was happy to be photographed. With a 24mm lens and fill-in flash, the dusk sky makes a stunning backdrop. (JE)
We don't think that you'd find a story on a solar car race in any other automotive performance magazine but AutoSpeed! But the most efficient racing cars in the world fascinate us - especially when the Australian Darwin-Adelaide race takes place across some of the most inhospitable terrain you will find. This fantastic pic - shot by one of the University of New South Wales team following the race - shows a stripped racecar at one of the overnight camps. (UNSW)
Direct flash when bounced flash or available light should have been used, a hastily grabbed scale plonked in the foreground... it's not a great photo. But then in another way it is - here's the archetypal case of one pic being worth a thousand words. Before they saw this, there were people who thought that these two PC cooling fans - mounted in a plastic housing - would give their car a supercharged power boost... (JE)
Probably the most internally controversial image we've ever run. Some AutoSpeed staff detested it; others loved it! A manipulated image of a fridge, we ran it as the opener to a story on a patented technique for refrigerated intercooling. And some of us still love it... and some of us still hate it!
With Mark Smith's V6 Laser we decided to do nearly the whole shoot with the car moving. It's a style of automotive photography that's growing rapidly in popularity - but it's also one very hard to get right. One major paper magazine photographer shoots 18 rolls (nearly 650 shots!) to get enough pics for one story... but we can't afford to do that. So, this shot - from just the one film that was taken - pleased us greatly. (JE)
How do you make a story on washing cars visually interesting? It wasn't easy but this mix of handheld very slow shutter speed and flash got the affect that we were after. With the water and the lighting and the fact that the shot wasn't being posed - it's all a helluva lot harder than it first looks! (JE)
There are lots of angles from which you can photograph a car, but one that's rarely exploited is from directly above. This pic of a Mercedes 500SL is striking, with its composition and lighting presenting a unique and effective view of the car. (PL)
So what happens when the chief photographer gets himself a new 300mm lens? He uses it a helluva lot in his first shoot! The Daewoo Cielo with intercooler and mesh grille lent itself to an aggressive, shallow depth of field, low perspective shot - especially in that red paint. (JE)
Featured in our very first issue, this shot of a racing truck - tyre-smoking understeer and all - announced that we weren't going to cover just the mainstream. Unfortunately - at least at that time - readers' viewing patterns showed loud and clear that they weren't much interested in truck racing... Still, it's a great shot! (JE)
We never mind running a burn-out as an impact pic within a feature car shoot, but often the conditions or car aren't right. But not in this case. At one stage we had three Supras smokin' it up for the Nikon; this was the best. Should've started the smoking shots earlier in the afternoon (where there'd be enough light for a bit more depth of field) but what the heck; it works. (JE)
A very 'glossy car magazine' stye of pic (and so early in AutoSpeed's history!), this uses all of the car photography clichés - graduated tobacco (ie orange) filter, final dusk light, wide angle lens, and plenty of empty sky. In later pix we've narrowed the emphasis down to the car itself, realising that most people will view the photo only at a small size. (JE)
"Borrowed" from a BMW publication, this stunning pic shows durability testing of brakes being carried out. Note the huge forced-air cooling ducts and the sheer redness of the discs... (BMW)
The tight and twisty Adelaide street circuit is a natural place for photographing racecars adopting unusual attitudes. But for a while we were scratching for an opportunity to use this pic - until Michael Knowling wrote a column about the race and suddenly there was a viable slot in which it could appear. (JE)
Cars are designed to move; the best car photography shows them doing just that. This brilliant pan has movement and style down to perfection - equal blur in both the foreground and background and earthy tones against the silver grace of the Alfa. (MG)
A photographer sick with the flu, a Suzuki with less than pristine paintwork, fading afternoon light and another car to photograph when this was one was shot - and all in less than 45 minutes! Sometimes you're just a bit lucky... (JE)
While we see plenty of company PR shots, most are very traditional - still cars posed against the sunset, that sorta stuff. But Saab photography is often very different - as this simulated moose attack on a 900 shows!
Our Cyber Cars Forum competition attracted some enormously talented artists - Kristo was one. This is his version of an Audi S3 Pikes Peak challenger...
The photo shoot which caused the greatest reader response ever, the Great Ocean Road drive in the STi Impreza WRX was an absolute blast. An incredibly photogenic car, great scenery, and enough time to get in both some good driving and good photography. (JE)
While we're sure not a classic cars magazine, I'd like to think that AutoSpeeders are eclectic enough in their taste to appreciate good machinery. Not much comes with a longer history of grace and pace than Jaguar; this machine was photographed with a 24mm lens at a Jaguar display. (JE)
Photographers:
JE - Julian Edgar, AutoSpeed
MK - Michael Knowling, AutoSpeed
GB - Greg Brindley, freelance journalist and photographer
PP - Perfect Prints, Tasmanian photo agency
UNSW - University of New South Wales
PL - Paul Lawford, freelance journalist and photographer
ML - Malcolm Griffiths, photographer
|