classic

Outdoor Classic Car Show in Saint Petersburg in brief

This real (not replica) green Ford Cobra was a real show stopper.

I really like to photograph cars, but I very rarely get to do it on purpose.  I had no idea a classic car show was going on just a few miles from my Saint Petersburg home until I happened upon it as I was leaving a meeting about an upcoming HDR gallery exhibition.  I was very glad I did though.  There were some real beauties at the show, but I focused on the Ford Cobras and a 1963 Chevrolet Corvette split window.

This Ford Cobra was a replica, but from this angle looked pretty true to form.

Lately I have been thinking about how only old things have any value.  For cars, to me, it is absolutely true.  These classics are beloved works of art.  I think of the cars rolling off robotic assembly lines today and think, how many will be in car shows 40 years from now?  Probably not any.

Staring up the nose of a beautiful 1963 Chevrolet Corvette split window..

The 1963 Chevrolet Corvette split window is one of the all-time classics and a rarity.  It's a truly beautiful car with so much character that one cannot even compare it to any car of today, not even another Corvette.  

The split rear window of the famous 1963 Chevrolet Corvette as seen at a Saint Petersburg classic car show.

I just hope there are enough of these classic cars in good condition still around by the time I can afford one of them.  What a feeling it must be to cruise down the street in a piece of motoring history!

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If you have a classic car, get it professionally photographed today!

Classic Ford Galaxie mini shoot

Nice chrome fenders on this classic Ford Galaxie

I went to Crescent Lake Park with the fam to check out a community yard sale in search of a cheap tennis racquet and beyond hope an old, sturdy tripod that could tie me over until I get my dream Gitzo carbon fiber tripod.  I found neither, but there was something unexpected, a classic Ford Galaxie.  It was owned by a retired gentleman from my home state of Rhode Island!  I struck up a conversation with him about this and that.  

the front end of a classic Ford Galaxie with sweet antique Rhode Island license plate

Naturally I asked him if he minded if I took a few photos.  He said not at all.  So I whipped out the D300 which had my Nikkor 105mm VR Micro f/2.8G lens on it, not the ideal lens for photographing a car in whole.  Also, it was sitting in the middle of a huge grass field in the bright noon Florida sun.  So I just made the photos I could in that situation with the gear I had.

left tail-light of a classic Ford Galaxie

I gave the owner my business card and said I'd love to have another chance to photograph his classic ride for free with my usual car photography kit with me.  I'm not sure if he'll take me up on that offer, but I do know he and some other old-timers hangout at this donut shop on 9th Avenue where all kinds of stories are told.  So I will most definitely go and check out that place because I of course love donuts, and I would really like to hear stories about the old days and what they used to do in their cars.

the interior of a classic Ford Galaxie -- she was a beauty inside, and out for that matter