DIY Photography

Hacking Photography - one Picture at a time

  • News
  • Inspiration
  • Reviews
  • Tutorials
  • DIY
  • Gear
Search

Submit A Story

Automotive photography isn’t just another subject. It’s a way of life

Sep 18, 2017 by John Aldred 2 Comments

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

Many of us own a car, or will at some point in our lives. Even if we don’t, we may have access to nice cars, and almost certainly know somebody who owns one. For a large proportion of photographers, cars are just another subject at which we point our cameras. But for petrol headed photographer, Easton Chang, they’re not just another subject, they’re a way of life.

The Art of Style and Speed is a short film about Chang and his passion, created by SmugMug Films in collaboration with RGGEDU. In it, Chang talks about his inspiration and what car photography means to him. We also get to see behind the scenes on some pretty cool photos.

Chang is fully immersed in car culture, and you can tell he’s passionate about it by the way he talks.

Cars are much more than just being an inanimate object to us car enthusiasts. It’s the culture, it’s the lifestyle, it’s the people. It’s a way of life.

I think this can hold true for almost any genre of photography. You have to live it, breath it and be passionate about it to really excel. Of course, there are exceptions, but if you’re photographing something just because it’s your job, you may produce good work but will it stand out? If you know what you’re doing with a camera and pour your heart and soul into a shoot because it’s something you truly believe in, it’s going to rise to the top far more easily.

It’s a very cool film showing some unique insight into Chang’s history and mentality. How he approaches a shoot, and what’s going through his mind when planning and doing it. And you can see how the passion and preparation pays off in his work.

The shoots highlighted in this particular film cover an array of different shooting techniques for some pretty amazing results. There’s panning, tracking, aerial action shots from a crane, as well as fire, and who doesn’t love fire?

Many try to do shots like this with a drone these days. But you’re never going to get the control you can when shooting from a crane.

When I bought my first car, and I was getting involved with the car culture thing, I really wanted to capture that with a camera. I wasn’t a creative person, I wasn’t into photography at all, but I found that it was an amazing creative outlet, and I wanted it to show the world and to show online my passion for cars and what I was seeing through my own eyes.

A lot of photographers start the same way, and I’m one of them. In the beginning, I wasn’t all that interested in photography. I had a passion for something else that I wanted to document. I also wanted the world to see my passion the way I saw it. Then, photographing people became my passion. Although I still like the other thing, too.

Chang notes that every car is different, every location is different, each has its own unique personality. The shoot is tailored to that special combination of variables. This, too translates to other genres. I primarily photograph people on location, and I experience the same thing. Each subject is different, their personality is different, the environment is different. Each shoot is tailored to that set of conditions.

Of course, the conditions in which I shoot rarely involve fire.

Although the results may very well be worth it.

Hearing thoughts of other photographers is always fascinating to me, even when they’re not photographing the same things that I do. Listening to the similarities makes you realise you’re not going crazy, going through the same struggles. And the differences can provide some valuable insight you might not have considered that you can apply to your own work.

You can find out more about Easton Chang on his website and follow his work on Instagram and Facebook.

FIND THIS INTERESTING? SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

Related posts:

Pro automotive photographer switches to a treadmill and toy cars for these epic photos How I planned and shot an entire automotive campaign remotely over FaceTime Friends brought together by an automotive campaign Automotive photographer uses a computer game to plan and previsualise a real car shoot

Filed Under: Inspiration Tagged With: Automotive Photography, car photography, Easton Chang, inspiration, RGGEDU, SmugMug Films

About John Aldred

John Aldred is a photographer with over 20 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter - and occasional beta tester - of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.

« Nikon R&D suggests new Nikon mirrorless camera will be full frame
How to fake bullet-time effect on a budget and with a single camera »

Submit A Story

Get our FREE Lighting Book

DIYP lighting book cover

* download requires newsletter signup
DIYPhotography

Recent Comments

Free Resources

Advanced lighting book

Recent Posts

  • DPReview is shutting down in three weeks
  • Panasonic S1H II specs leak – 8K and phase detect AF
  • Adobe launches Firefly AI – no unlicensed photos for training
  • Photographer captures immense power of stunning Hawaii’s Banzai Pipeline waves
  • AI headshot app challenges traditional headshot model

Alex Baker is a portrait and lifestyle driven photographer based in Valencia, Spain. She works on a range of projects from commercial to fine art and has had work featured in publications such as The Daily Mail, Conde Nast Traveller and El Mundo, and has exhibited work across Europe

Dave Williams is an accomplished travel photographer, writer, and best-selling author from the UK. He is also a photography educator and published Aurora expert. Dave has traveled extensively in recent years, capturing stunning images from around the world in a modified van. His work has been featured in various publications and he has worked with notable brands such as Skoda, EE, Boeing, Huawei, Microsoft, BMW, Conde Nast, Electronic Arts, Discovery, BBC, The Guardian, ESPN, NBC, and many others.

John Aldred is a photographer with over 20 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter - and occasional beta tester - of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.

Dunja Djudjic is a multi-talented artist based in Novi Sad, Serbia. With 15 years of experience as a photographer, she specializes in capturing the beauty of nature, travel, and fine art. In addition to her photography, Dunja also expresses her creativity through writing, embroidery, and jewelry making.

Copyright © DIYPhotography 2006 - 2023 | About | Contact | Advertise | Write for DIYP | Full Disclosure | Privacy Policy