Custom black F77 Porsche 911 Tampa Car Photography - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/11 ISO 200 1/40th blended with another exposure (for the sky) tripod mounted with cable releaseBen called me up about photographing his custom Porsche 911 in Tampa Florida which I learned was done at Champion Porsche, as you can see by the 911 on the back being replaced by F77. The Porsche 911 has long been my favorite sports car, since I was a kid, and I have not had the opportunity to photograph one for a client yet so I was very excited. This shoot was a little different though as Ben wanted photos for selling the car! Many of the shots I made for him were stylized, but a bit less so than I might normally making them more like the shoots I do for big auctions houses that just want the car show from all angles. Thus, some of the shots you see here were edited just for my portfolio, and not necessarily included with the ones I sent to the client.
Custom F77 Porsche 911 photographed for sale in Ybor City Tampa - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/11 ISO 200 7-exposure HDR tripod mounted with cable releaseThe above shot was my first time to photograph a car from this above and behind angle, partially to show the vents over the rear engine hood on the Porsche. This shot also features the custom "F77" badge. Oh, and if this location looks familiar to you, this is the fifth car shoot I have done at this Ybor City location! Clients see my previous images from here and want to have it for their own cars also.
Porsche F77 custom black 911 on the streets of Ybor City Tampa Car Photography - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/11 ISO 200 7-exposure HDR tripod mounted with cable releaseThis shot I made black & white for myself, as I thought it made the 911 look even more agressive and menacing just waiting there in the middle of the street for any challengers.
Porsche 911 custom F77 model on brick street Ybor City Tampa - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/11 ISO 200 9-exposure HDR tripod mounted with cable releaseThis was the first time at this Ybor City location that there were no cars parked on the street, which allowed for just parking the Porsche in the middle of it and getting some new shots I have not made here before in the previous shoots. That said, some dude did just show up and park his car right by our shoot! Now this is a desolate area, and after 5pm everything is shut down for blocks around. So we politely asked the guy if he could move his car, which he did. Then he proceeded to walk way off to who knows where. Why park here then??
Lights on modified Porsche 911 with F77 options Ybor City Tampa Car Photography - Nikon D300 Nikkor 105 VR micro @ f/8 ISO 200 1/80th tripod mounted with cable releaseHDR is not always needed to shoot in mixed lighting, as seen in the above shot. No sky is featured in the shot, so I just let the shutter speed stay open until I got the exposure I wanted. Shooting with my Nikkor 105mm VR micro f/2.8G lens, which of course is a prime lens, resulted in the starburst look coming from the headlights.
Stylized Porsche 911 Carrera S type 997 interior with manual shifter - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/5.6 ISO 200 1/60th - Strobist: SB-800 @ 1/2 power in 43" shoot through umbrella frame rightThis exact interior shot was my first attempt, and the lighting looked cool and dramatic, but not appropriate for the purpose of trying to show the interior for selling the car. I liked the image for myself, though, and made it more stylized by converting it to black & white. For the client, I introduced another speedlight on the driver's side to produce an evenly lit shot.
Yours truly (on left of course) with client Ben after the photo shoot of his Porsche 911 in Ybor City TampaI never remember to get a shot of me at my shoots, but this time the lights were already setup and I asked Ben if he would mind getting in a portrait with me and his Porsche. Good luck selling it Ben!
SLS AMG Mercedes at a car show at the Shops at Wiregrass in Wesley Chapel - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/11 ISO 200 5-exposure HDR tripod mounted with cable releaseI was surprised that such a suburban, strip mall kind of place like Wesley Chapel would be the site of something like an outdoor car show. It seems the Shops at Wiregrass are more than just a place to buy things, but a sort of community event center home to car shows, firework displays and all other manor of outdoor events. 
A good crowd came out to the Shops at Wiregrass to see a car show on a typically hot and humid July in Florida afternoon - Nikon D300 Tamron 17-50mm @ f/11 ISO 200 5-exposure HDR tripod mounted with cable releaseIt was unusual though to have a car show only start at 12pm and go to 4pm, the hottest time of the day. Usually they start at least by 9am, which is important as Florida is not exactly an balmy place in July! Despite the weather, I made a walk up and down the long rows of cars and stopped to take a few photos. There were no cars I had not seen before, and the only supercar was the SLS AMG Mercedes in the top photo. Still, it is always nice to have a local event to attend and be around other car fans.
