When I was back in college, I remember being the most productive 1am to 4am as I had little distraction from the world around me. In recent months, I have been interested in shooting cars late at night as it adds a new dimension to the landscape when trying to shoot at typically busy areas.
Safety should always be a priority when shooting at night. Never know when some bustas will try to drive up and cause a ruckus. Safety in numbers is a good starting point so make sure that you call up some buddies to go shooting with you. In this event, I called up Alec (@alecnguyenvisuals) and Phil (http://www.handsomeandphilthy.com) to join me in photographing my 1990 Porsche Carrera 911 C4 964 and 2002 Acura NSX. Alec ended up dropping out as he needed to wake up at 6am for work but Phil was still down.
Phil eventually came... these young bucks have a hard time committing to a schedule so there is constant badgering I have to do on my end to make sure the shoot moves forward. As I cannot drive two of my cars at the same time, I hesitantly handed Phil the keys to my 964 but I knew deep down he would treat her right. You guys should have seen how his face lit up when he started her. Like a kid in a candy shop.
We made a quick pit stop at the Chevron before heading to Cal Poly Pomona. There we were greeted by a car enthusiast who was eager to check out the NSX. His truck did a great job adding a distracting element to the scene lol.
We found a overflow parking lot with solar panel roofing. Had the campus police check us out and took off. I guess we didnt look threatening. I wish I had more photos to post and show you guys but the problem is, Phil forgot to bring his own tripod to a night shoot (facepalm). So being the nice guy that I am, I handed him mine to shoot. I shot for a total of 5 mins on two locations.
Shots done for Instagram Accounts: ns2kx and 911na2
My goal on the second location was to shoot the cars like they were spotted in the "wild". In the end, i was mildly happy with the shot but it was getting late as it was around 3am so I left it at that and we headed back.
If you guys have one thing to learn from this is, prepare your gear for your shoots! Being a professional is all about being prepared. You think Phil would have learned his lesson right? Stay tuned.
Shots done for Instagram Accounts: ns2kx and 911na2