After some debate, this weekend’s trip to #GRIDLIFE went off without a hitch and was, unsurprisingly, fantastic. Let’s lead things off with a shot of the BMW leading a couple more BMWs through a corner in the Gridlife Touring Car series.
Tag: automobile
#GRIDLIFE Up in the Air
The final decision on whether or not to attend this year’s #GRIDLIFE Circuit Legends in Lime Rock will depend on weather, meaning it’s currently up in the air. I thought I might match that with some shots from last year’s event of cars literally “up in the air.”
Black Silvia
This black Nissan Silvia was a sinister presence at #GRIDLIFE last year, but the reflections from its surfaces killed the dark-and-menancing tone. I’d typically address this with a polarizer, but didn’t have one handy. Luckily, some polarized sunglasses did the trick. I rather like the effect of the bokeh’ed-out lens in front of the car, like a bodyguard waving away paparazzi.
Race Miata
They say Miata stands for, “Miata Is Always The Answer,” but in this case I suspect the question was, “What has an adorable little face nestled amongst some serious race prep?”
Challenger in the Rain
In the rainy hills above Palm Springs, I was able to put the techniques I learned at #GRIDLIFE last fall to good use to get a dramatic shot of a Challenger driving faster than was probably advisable on the rainy road to San Diego.
Drift Loose
The smoke and the motion in this shot of a drifting 86 at #GRIDLIFE Circuit Legends last month really grab my attention, but it’s the little detail of the hand making the shaka sign out the window that puts this image over the top.
For more pictures from #GRIDLIFE this year, check out this post.
Living the #GRIDLIFE
Last weekend brought me to the #GRIDLIFE Circuit Legends event at Lime Rock Park. I finally finished processing pictures from the event. Today’s post features some of my favorites from the event, but there’s definitely more to come.
Let’s start with this BMW M3. This was my first time trying longer exposures with moving cars to get serious motion blur. I’m honestly thrilled with how it came out and can’t wait to try more.
#GRIDLIFE was also remarkable for the access available to the pits. Enthusiasts were just roaming around as mechanics got to work on their cars.
That provided opportunities for even kids to get to see the cars up close.
The bucolic nature of Lime Rock added some chill vibes to what would otherwise be a pretty high-adrenaline setting.
Nocones Garage built this race car from a Subaru 360.
The red Honda S2000 in the background wasn’t even part of the team with the two red Subaru BRZs, but they were all kind enough to keep their cars in a line.
I like the array of tools and materials in front of this BMW M4.
While the Acura RSX’s team worked aggressively on their car, the BMW M2 team in the next stall looked on.
I spotted this Toyota Supra by the gates coming into the show.
The owners of that BMW M2 earlier got their beast out onto the track.
Shots like this, with huge amounts of motion blur, are the kinds of dramatic moments that really got me excited to go through with the wasted shots necessary to capture the perfect ones.
This show wasn’t just a chance for me to expand my shooting abilities; I also practiced some new photo-processing techniques. I don’t normally do a ton of color grading, but shots like this one really feel richer with some amped up forest green.
Speaking of forests, this trio was stopped by the gate, too.
From a forest of trees to a forest of people surrounding an FD Mazda RX-7 making its way back to the pits.
I had a chance to look into some pretty nuts engine bays.
A Honda S2000 looks the part out on the track.
Beneath the Boss S14 body kit, this drift monster is still a Nissan 240SX.
As is this less-disguised example. Just look at those sparks!
Watching four cars drift in parallel was really something…
But this shot of bonkers tire smoke from an 86 really got me attention.
Muscle Cars at Dawn in San Diego
Dawn makes for this dynamic moment when parts of a scene are thrown into dramatic sunlight while others still benefit from delicate, scattered, indirect light.
I like these shots for how the Ford Mustang and Dodge Charger are bathed in relatively gentle, flattering light, but headlights and sunlight make the rest of the scene comparatively high-contrast.
Kentucky Drive in the Wagon
When our wagon last appeared on Decaseconds, I was celebrating 200,000 miles on the odometer. While there may be several thousand more miles on the clock now, it remains a great vehicle for photographic adventures.
Streets of San Francisco Redux
What better way to capture San Francisco than looking down California Street?
Land Rover Defender
Being both a “horse person” and a “car person,” I was naturally chuffed to find a brand-new Land Rover Defender at the Saratoga Horse Show this spring.
Alfa Romeo on Shattuck
I remember thinking at the beginning of my “serious” return to photography in 2011 that I’d someday look back to those pictures of a particular place and time (Berkeley in the early 2010s) with a sense of nostalgia that then random street scenes didn’t necessarily offer at the time. This view of a 1974 Alfa Romeo GTV parked outside the Cheese Board has now become one of those images: in 2020, the prohibition on diners in the road median is now being enforced, while the parking for the cars see here has been largely removed and replaced with additional sidewalk seating.
Prague Mini
The city streets of Prague’s Old Town may be fairly narrow, but a Mini still looks small. Perhaps the enormous-looking man behind the wheel adds to the effect. Whatever the case, the connection to the original Italian Job makes me happy any time I see a Mini in a European city.
Alltrack In Its Natural Environment
Though Decaseconds isn’t about to become an auto blog, there’s something about a car in the environment for which it was practically designed (like a tiny Peugot in Paris, a Miata on a racetrack, or a manual transmission, turbocharged, German wagon in the Adirondacks) that looks just right.
Salt Flats Evo
The Bonneville Salt Flats are the perfect location to spot a fast car with a big wing—though it’s perhaps a bit diminished when the car is on the Interstate, rather than the crumbly old lakebed surface proper.
Decaseconds 