| 1986 MONTE CARLO SS |
| Details: | none given |
| Owner: | Bryan Kanak; Scottsdale, Ariz. |
| Photographer: | Keith Kanak; Scottsdale, Ariz. |
| Camera: | Canon EOS 20D |
| Comments: | Last year’s winner unintentionally picked a tough road by choosing a white car. No paint color, a white sky, and no surrounding color in the location is like getting dealt a crappy hand at poker. Still, Kanak made the most of it by paying attention to the details and using the setting sun in an artful way. |
| 1969 CHEVROLET CHEVELLE SS |
| Details: | 454-cid big-block Chevrolet |
| Owner: | Brian Reidinger; Elizabethtown, Penn. |
| Photographer: | Jill Reidinger; Elizabethtown, Penn. |
| Camera: | Kodak digital |
| Comments: | Interestingly, the photo lab that processed the enclosed prints botched the job terribly. It was only when we viewed the CD with the original image that we saw the rich magenta cast of an East Coast sunset.
On the down side, it looks like a great car, but, like many other submissions, there were no mechanical details. |
| 1970 FORD MUSTANG MACH 1 |
| Details: | none given |
| Owner: | Alan Schraad; Overland Park, Kan. |
| Photographer: | owner |
| Camera: | Canon Powershot A620 |
| Comments: | Absolutely wonderful view. The horizon shows off perfect paint (or at least makes it look that way). The silhouette of the car is uninterrupted, the marker lights add color and character, and the light is perfect. Oops! Forgot to re-pose the front wheels correctly… Need some supplemental light in the grille too. |
| 1965 CHEVELLE SS |
| Details: | none given |
| Owner: | Brent Madson; Blackfoot, Ind. |
| Photographer: | Joshua Madson; Blackfoot, Ind. |
| Camera: | not specified |
| Comments: | A lot of readers only have normal, medium-range lenses, which makes it difficult to get a dramatic shot. Yet this one pops because
of the attention to details. Note the sharp horizon line down the side, the clean silhouette, and a lack of protrusions from the top and sides of the car. It’s a basic snapshot, but a really good one that flatters the car. |
| 1970 CHEVROLET CHEVELLE |
| Details: | none given |
| Owner: | Brad Jacobson; Twin Falls, Ind. |
| Photographer: | owner |
| Camera: | Sony Cybershot 7.2 |
| Comments: | The profile view is one of the most powerful angles, yet it often goes ignored. We’ve got all four wheels in the picture, plus an upward camera tilt. The sunlight on the grille makes this shot work. The front wheels are posed nicely too. To improve, next time try playing with the angle of the car to the sun. The horizon line could be much stronger. |
| 1969 CHEVROLET CAMARO |
| Details: | 355-cid small-block, Dart heads, MSD ignition, Flowmaster exhaust, COMP cam, Hotchkis and Global West suspension, Baer brakes, Alston six-point rollbar, Simpson
five-point harnesses, Corbeau seats |
| Owner: | Ned Jackson; Manteca, Calif. |
| Photographer: | Kanwar Boparai; Manteca, Calif. |
| Camera: | Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT with 18-55mm lens |
| Comments: | Ned Jackson’s Camaro ran in the August Hometown Hot Rodding, and this time around his friend, Kanwar Boparai, took new photos with a better digital SLR camera. Kanwar’s approach was even more dramatic and resulted in a wonderful nighttime image.
Next time, use more depth of field with a higher f-stop. |
PHR PHOTO CONTEST WINNERS
WINNER |
| Robert McGaffin | Elk Grove Village, IL | ’66 Nova (owned by Craig Mengarelli; Kildeer, IL) |
| FIRST RUNNER-UP |
| Matt Gassner | Albuquerque, NM | ’68 Camaro (owned by Lew Knight) |
| SECOND RUNNER-UP |
| Ryan Fultz | Noblesville, IN | ’68 Chevelle |
| BEST OF THE REST |
| Jay Albright | Macungie, PA | ’87 Fiero (owned by Ryan Gallagher; Emmaus, PA) |
| Kanwar Boparai | Manteca, CA | ’69 Camaro (owned by Ned Jackson) |
| Chuck Cook | Coldwater, MI | . ’70 GTO |
| Jason Elder | Black Creek, British Columbia | ’68 Chevelle |
| Brad Jacobson | Twin Falls, ID | ’70 Chevelle |
| Keith A. Kanak | Scottsdale, AZ | ’86 Monte Carlo |
| Mike Kolodziej | Wood Dale, IL | ’03 Mustang Cobra |
| Jonathan LaPaglia | Los Angeles, CA | ’73 Challenger |
| Joshua Madson | Blackfoot, ID | ’65 Chevelle SS (owned by Brent Madson) |
| David Newey | Melbourne, Fla. | ’69 Mustang (owned by Rob Roy) |
| Greg Paules | Corpus Christi, TX | ’03 Corvette Z06 |
| Darwin Pfingsten | Mulvane, KS | ’27 Ford C/Altered (owned by David Rivers; Las Vegas, NV) |
| Jill Reidinger | Elizabethtown, PA | ’69 Chevelle convertible (owned by Brian Reidinger) |
| Jesus Reyes | El Paso, TX | ’70 Barracuda (owned by Enrique Sotelo) |
| Johnny Richardson | Tallahassee, Fla. | ’68 Charger |
| Alan Schraad | Overland Park, KS | ’70 Mustang |
| Nicholas Webb | Belle Rive, Il. | ’02 Trans Am |
The Prizes
Besides the opportunity to be published in a national publication, our 20 finalists will all receive PHR swag consisting of a T-shirt, two license plates, decals, and a copy of this issue of PHR. Our winner will get this stuff, plus the huge box of treasure we've been collecting all year long. It's packed with T-shirts, books, hats and other sample products from manufacturers.
Photo Report Card
The great response notwithstanding, there were some recurring hiccups we'd like to point out. These are things that are easily addressed for future photos, so don't freak out (you guys did great).
Wheels turned wrong. Perhaps some readers set up their cars for one shot, then forgot to reset the steering for the next angle. Thus many entrants posed the tire tread-not the wheel face-toward the camera. If you elect to pose the steering, show the wheel, not the tread (unless you're doing an ad for a tire company). Hint: full-lock is not required.
Too often, the rear shot is better than the front shot. We're guessing most people tend to shoot the front and side first, and then finish with the rear as they hit their "stride." When the good sunset light finally comes, the car is set up for the rear shot. You're tired, and in spite of the great light, nobody wants to move the car again. Hint: Rear shots are rarely as exciting as front shots, no matter how good the light. Move the car.
Over-cropped and weirdly framed photos. It might seem like a good idea at the time-to zoom in on a car until it touches or nearly touches the edges-but that really kills it. Let the subject breathe a little with some room by leaving an imaginary border around the subject. While you're at it, make that imaginary margin the same for both the front and the rear of the car.
Too much camera tilt. This is our fault, since we told you to try leaning the camera 10 to 20 degrees for effect. (Maybe 5 to 10 degrees is a better range.) A little tilt is fun, but too much will have your fellow readers reaching for the motion-sickness pills. Our regular freelancers are sometimes guilty of this too.
Give us more information. You went to the trouble of taking photos and sending them in, but many people left out crucial information about the car. Hard to believe, but true. Readers want to know what's under the hood, so include more specifics next time.
Like we said, these are really easy fixes for future reference, so don't get bent. On the plus side, we saw a greater use of tripods and camera supports, windows were rolled up, and there were far fewer appendages growing out of hoods and roofs.
Keep Up The Effort
If you didn't make the top 20, our advice is to keep trying. We're seeing a big improvement over last year, and thanks to your efforts, PHR looks better than ever. Don't believe us? Just pick up a copy of Car Craft and compare your photos with the ones their readers send in. If you didn't find out about this year's contest in time and you don't want to wait for next year, you're in luck. We need high-quality photos every month for Hometown Hot Rodding. To get you motivated, we've started two monthly photo contests: one for the best photo of a completed project, and one for the best photo of a car under construction. We'll be giving away cool stuff, like a complete complement of car care products, a new pair of Timberland Pro shoes, or anything else cool that comes over the transom.
New Assignment:
Affordable Dreams
We've also got a different assignment for you, this time it's a search for cars we'd like to shoot. (That means someone else does all the hard work for you.) The assignment is called "Affordable Dreams," and the criteria is that your car must have been built for less than $25,000, including the cost of the car, all mods, and paint. It can be Pro-Touring, street/strip, cruiser, late-model, restomod, it doesn't matter. If you've got one built for even less dough, all the better. We'll need you to send a CD with five high-resolution photos (front three-quarter, side, rear three-quarter, engine and interior), a one-page cover letter with your car's story, and another page with a semi-detailed list of your car's mods with the cost of key parts (including the car itself). If you've got any performance data like ET slips or dyno pulls, photocopy them and throw them in the envelope. Finally, give us your name, address, phone numbers, e-mail address and Social Security number (just kidding). Pack it all up and send it to:
PRIMEDIA-Popular Hot Rodding Magazine
Attn: "Affordable Dreams"
774 S. Placentia Ave.
Placentia, CA 92870
If we choose you for a photo shoot, be prepared to show us proof of your "affordable" status. We'll take your word for reasonable claims, but beware, we'll probably question a 572 crate motor you got at a swap meet for $1,000. We're looking for at least 10 sweet rides from across America to feature in a monster story early next year. We'll shoot most of them, but we may also tap some of our newly found reader photographers for some freelance work. Got a question about the new contest, know somebody with an affordable dream, or want to shoot an affordable dream car for us? E-mail john.hunkins@sorc.com with the subject line "Affordable Dreams" and we'll respond within three business days with the answer to your question.
All Affordable Dream packages must be received by November 15. Meanwhile, we'll be thinking of some really cool stuff to give away, so get those cameras revved up.