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Author Topic: For Rob's eyes  (Read 13021 times)

Richowens

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For Rob's eyes
« on: August 07, 2012, 02:52:29 pm »


 
  1956 Mercury Montclair



  1965 Chevrolet Impala



  1963 Chevrolet Impala



  1964 Pontiac GTO
« Last Edit: August 07, 2012, 03:02:22 pm by Richowens »
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RSL

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #1 on: August 07, 2012, 03:07:51 pm »

It's probably time to add another forum to The Art of Photography: "The Car Corner."
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WalterEG

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #2 on: August 07, 2012, 06:50:17 pm »

For me, the pinnacle of the yank tank was the 1950s - and possibly even the 40s.

There was such diversity in style and detail between the marques which all seemed to single out a slice of the market and produce the goods to appeal to that particular market sector.  I forcibly restrain myself from saying 'NICHE' because I don't really think anybody saw through quite as much BS back then.

How is this relevant to a photography thread?

Well, from where I sit, it seems that the same homogenous veneer of conformity that has stricken the automotive industry has also plagued photography.

Kina sad, I think.

W
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Rob C

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #3 on: August 07, 2012, 06:57:59 pm »

It's probably time to add another forum to The Art of Photography: "The Car Corner."


Wherever, it's a damned nice idea: the subjects were often works or art in themselves. I tell you this: it's a zone where the U.S. simply wins hands down. From the zero war years until possibly the Ford Consul but definitely the Fords Zephyr and Zodiac and Vauxhall Cresta of the mid- to the late 50s, the U.K. was stuck in the swamp. We certainly had some great stuff before that, but afterwards, just as we were starting to build again, we fell prey to the brilliant strategies of the indigenous commies who used the wonderful weapon of mass inertia to gain control of unions and then, with the magical power of the mass vote, murdered the car business for us as it was being reborn. Even the best of the best was lost and what remains today is owned by India, Germany, Japan and the U.S. Our sports car industry fared no better; indeed, most of it vanished without anyone noticing.

This makes me both very sad and just as angry, but it changes nothing. What makes me just as annoyed is that 'programme' called Top Gear where three grown men run around like congenital idiots or hyperactive schoolboys, and are shown not just in their homeland, but all over the world. What the hell does a show like that have to do with cars? It's about as relevant to cars as the tv news is to news.

Off to bed. Family going home tomorrow, so maybe I'll try to find some nice wheels to shoot here. I know that some exist, but access is the problem...

Rob C

Richowens

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #4 on: August 08, 2012, 12:04:04 am »

Russ,

 I didn't start this thread looking for any kind of approval from you. I don't give a damn what you think of this thread, my post or my photos.
 
 I have as much right here as anyone else and it IS NOT your forum. I know the photos aren't any kind of art, just record happy snaps of what I saw

 at the car show. I posted them for Rob, or anyone else who might enjoy old cars.

Rich

 
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Rob C

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #5 on: August 08, 2012, 04:05:17 am »

Thanks for the piccies, Rich. It always amazes me to see how great paint used to look many years ago. I have a thing for black cars, for some masochistic reason, and washing them when the sun goes low and permits me to do so is frustrating, because the black looks wonderful when I walk away chamois in hand, but by morning the dew and dust have ruined my best efforts (no garage went with the apartment, indeed, none exists anywhere near it). My latest little bus, a Fiesta, is also black and when I first shot it it had a lovely gloss; now, a year and a few months later (I think) it's lost that completely and never shines as it used to when new. Worse, the water-based paints seem to be far softer and scratch at the slightest accidental touch of a fingernail at the door handle. But the body warranty is longer...

Metallic paint. I think it works very well in some colours but not in balck; my Fiesta was only available with black in metallic, and I really don't like the effect much; it looks cheapish and not as good as a solid black which, for some reason, appears to have more presence, more solidity and visual feel (just like a black Nikon F2 Photomic;-D) though I actively discourage touching!

Anyhow, I like your shots and I really wish I had the chance to visit one of those concourse d'élégance events which, sadly, are thousands of miles distant from here.

Someone once posted a shot here on LuLa of a '59 Coupe de Ville that he used to have in California; I've forgotten who it was, but if you read this, could you please post it again, now that we have a slot?

Rob C

jule

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #6 on: August 08, 2012, 04:29:32 am »

Well boys... car sharing time... :-) Not a black one Rob...nor an Americal car - but she still is a beauty...

Penny - our 1923 Vauxhall which was driven by Max in 2010 from Peking to Paris  Peking to Paris Website ... and then by our son James and Max from London to Capetown. London to Capetown Rally Website - and James Blog for their journey from London to Capetown (Links for those who are interested).

Julie

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Rob C

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #7 on: August 08, 2012, 09:48:53 am »

Hi Julie

Black's nice with certain body shapes, and awful with others, too. Perhaps the least exciting colour, apart from beige, must be white. My wife used to hate silver cars - possibly because her brother and sis-in-law always have silver Mercs, but her take was that they all look as if the owners couldn't quite afford to get them painted at the factory... I'd have risked that, but the problem was the price of the cars, not the paint option. I used to justify holding off by quoting the service prices for the marque, which are scandalous, however many pennies you might have in your hip pocket. My excuse now is that I'm not going anywhere (that I'm aware of), and that big cars are stupid in little towns with alleys and 'streets' built to confuse invading corsairs. (That trucks frequently frequent them to deposit building materials for 'reformas' is neither here nor there: I don't have a truck.) A further one that I pull out of the mind, on and off, is the one about protecting the kids' inheritence; that makes me look cool and responsible - perhaps I should relax and just stay with it.

I see from your shots that rivets are big in your life; very industrial and very strong! Good thinking.

;-)

Rob C
« Last Edit: August 08, 2012, 09:50:29 am by Rob C »
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Bruce Cox

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #8 on: August 08, 2012, 11:44:57 am »

The car as beast of photographic burden:

Bruce
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Chris Calohan

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #9 on: August 09, 2012, 08:13:11 am »

And yet two more car shots...I love old cars, new cars, inbetween cars...

These are two 1931 Model A's, a touring sedan and a coupe:





Curious, Walter, but what is relevant to a photography thread? Well, easy answer: photography. Is it art photography? It could be though in most of thsese instances probably less art than glitz and glitter, but still, to me photography is a recording of a time or event or of a setting. Old cars in new setting seem to fit into a lot of photographic genres. As always, it is a matter of personal taste as to what to look at and what to ignore. Personally, I'd love a Car thread.
« Last Edit: August 09, 2012, 08:19:16 am by chrisc »
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Rob C

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #10 on: August 09, 2012, 09:58:01 am »

Chris-

I'm sure these refurbished cars are in better paint condition than they were when they were new. On the first shot, the one with the flag, the top of the hood seems to be in British Racing Green, as found on some Jaguars, whilst the mudguards are black or very dark blue; can you remember if those were the actual colours or just an effect of reflected/mixed light?

The deep, deep paintwork on the lower shot illustrates what I find so wrong with the look of the bodywork on my current Fiesta: regardless of colour, it will always look like tin. I sort of wonder if the paintwork on old cars just looks solid, or that it really is solid because of the possibly high number of coats, or just because the metal is thick. (In the 50s, in the U.K., you could buy a paint to produce your own fake whitewalls... says a lot about something.)

It wasn't only photography had a Golden Age!

I think that's what Walter was implying in his comment about relevance to photography - how contemporary photography is as bland and devoid of personality as are most new family cars, but I don't presume to usurp his right to correct me if I'm mistaken!

Rob C

wolfnowl

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #11 on: August 10, 2012, 02:39:59 am »

Since this seems to be the 'new' classic car thread...

These are all from the recent Jaguar Concours d'Elegance here on the island...













Mike.
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Rob C

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #12 on: August 10, 2012, 04:26:07 am »

Thanks for posting, Mike.

There are two which instantly grabbed my eye: the 2nd shot - Blue Chrome and then the 4th one, Feline Fork. I think they both capture the spirit of what these kinds of pics are probably about: preservation of classic features that seem to be on a slide to contemporary invisiblilty. I especially miss the sense of glamour in a good piece of chrome, Yes, there have been several nighmares in chrome, no doubt, but well handled it brings areas to life. I think that the secret is to avoid the look of too much weight - as ever, it's back to design!

I guess that if ever proof were needed, one has but to look at the MGBGT, the one with the chrome bumpers followed by the horror with black plastic bumpers. That one change ruined a very pretty car. (Okay, it was U.S. legislation, I'm told, that caused the change and not MG's misguided imagination.)

Thanks -

Rob C

Chris Calohan

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #13 on: August 10, 2012, 09:14:41 am »

On the blue sedan, the body color and the fender colors were the same. On the coupe, the body was a deep green, quite similar as you noted to a British Racing Green with black fenders. The colors are achieved by using lacquer rather than acrylic paint. I have seen where up to four coats of a base primer are used, hand sanded between each coat and as much as 8 coats of color lacquer also hand sanded between coats and then finished with two clear coats. You can see from the end of your nose all the way to China in the reflection.
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Rob C

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #14 on: August 10, 2012, 09:40:25 am »

No wonder the Fiesta looks thin!

However, I'd gues that a paint job as you describe, Chris, would cost more than my wee car. Neither would I believe any garage I know that assured me that's what they'd do for me. I would guess that it's the sort of work that only friends can achieve with any degree of trust.

Thanks -

Rob C

AWeil

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #15 on: August 10, 2012, 06:19:18 pm »

Ok, I play: More car sharing...

Best
Angela
« Last Edit: August 10, 2012, 06:21:30 pm by AWeil »
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Rob C

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #16 on: August 11, 2012, 04:11:01 am »

Angela

Yet another case of a horse looking for a happy pasture? I think that if I had a garage I'd actually spend the time trying to restore something. I'd have begun with my previous Escort XRi and, by now, might have had a better and more useful car with which to do my shopping.

As it was, I couldn't get a decent paint/metal repair, never mind any thoughts of restoration. I can't count the number of times that I ran into re-repair problems with the metal at the top of the port-side A-pillar. A shame, as that car held very happy - if final - memories. It also had a relatively low mileage.

Rob C
« Last Edit: August 11, 2012, 04:23:47 am by Rob C »
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Chris Calohan

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #17 on: August 11, 2012, 11:08:55 am »

Some Mini Shots. Ever since my grandson has been able to push or in some way propel a riding toy, he's had a Mini. This was last Christmas' Electric Mini.



Next to his Papa's Mini:

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Jeremy Roussak

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #18 on: August 11, 2012, 02:27:50 pm »

Russ,

 I didn't start this thread looking for any kind of approval from you. I don't give a damn what you think of this thread, my post or my photos.
 I have as much right here as anyone else and it IS NOT your forum. I know the photos aren't any kind of art, just record happy snaps of what I saw
 at the car show. I posted them for Rob, or anyone else who might enjoy old cars.

Rich

 

What the hell provoked that? Sometimes people's intemperate responses to comments on this site bewilder me.

Jeremy
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AWeil

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Re: For Rob's eyes
« Reply #19 on: August 11, 2012, 05:45:48 pm »

Rob, this was a meeting/event featuring 'American Cars' in Mannheim, Germany. Fans and friends came with their own cars to show and be seen. The level of restoration was - sort of - mixed, but it was fun. The people attending were just as interesting as the cars.

Best
Angela
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