Sunday, August 16, 2015

Vintage Val in her '55 Montclair

 
As I have shared before, many of my photo shoot ideas come to me in visions. 
The photo above is the result of a vision I had with the turquoise car and Val's white
scarf blowing out the window.
 
When I had the vision I thought, WHAT????
WHERE am I going to find that car????
 
I have learned to trust the visions because I am then led to all the props and
fine details of the photos.  I have learned to think of it as an exciting adventure
and to just follow it along.
 
But WHERE was I going to find a turquoise car from the 1950s???
 
A day after I had the vision, I was watching television.  I NEVER watch
commercials because I have Tivo and speed through them.
But that day, a commercial popped up and I found myself watching it.
 
The commercial was advertising an upcoming Antique Festival in a nearby
town with a vintage CAR SHOW!!!!
 
I KNEW I had to go and sure enough I found the exact car in my vision
and the owner was from my own town!!!!
 
Skip and Peggy were awesome to let me use their FABULOUS  '55 Montclair for the shoot!
 
 
It took me several weeks to pull together the props from the vision.
I had to spray paint one of my picnic baskets white because I had
more ideas pour into my brain with Val going on a picnic in
the spiffy car.
 
I found a wonderful vintage dress that matched the car on 
a vintage fashion Etsy Shop called TwoMoxie
The owners, Angela and Beatrice sent the perfect dress from Canada and
were excited to see the photos.
 
But I still needed shoes for Val.
One day I had the urge to go to the Salvation Army to look for the shoes.
I did not know what they looked like, but I followed my urge to go.
 
I approached the shoe aisle, but one of the workers was stocking
 shoes and was blocking the aisle.  I tried to look down
the long row of shoes around her, but my
eyes were turned to see the PERFECT colored high heels right in front of me for $3!
 
I was SHAKING with excitement...THESE were the shoes and they
matched the dress and CAR!!!!
 
The props were ready, but the shoot kept getting rain delayed.
 
 
Finally, we were able to synchronize the car, Val, me and the weather.
 
I usually love to shoot in bright sunshine at 10 am,
but when we arrived at the location, I quickly realized the sun
was going to be a big problem with lots of glaring chrome, plus
shooting inside the car!
 
We shot the picnic scenes first.  I backlit Val and
used the reflector.
 
That orange blob on the grass to the right of me is
my mini leaf blower we used to blow Val's scarf in the first photo.
 
To learn about using a leaf blower to create wind in photos
watch my VIDEO TUTORIAL.
 
 
 
The reflector always saves the day in bright sunshine,
but remember to look for the soft "edge" light...not bombard her with
a pure reflection of harsh sunlight!
 
To learn how to use a reflector CLICK HERE.
 
Skip was so nice to take these behind-the-scene shots with my I-Pad.
 
 
Here's the picture story of Vintage Val going on a picnic
in her matching '55 Montclair.
 
Only Vintage Val would drive a car that matches her outfit...hee hee!
 
Look at those PERFECT high heels and I was led right to them!!!!
 

 
Shooting inside the car posed lighting challenges.
I had Skip move the car so we wouldn't get direct sunlight coming
in the windshield.

 




 
WHY don't they make cars in these fun colors anymore???
 









 
This is one of my favorite photos with Val's curl just right.
I LOVE the colors!
 



 
We had to move the car again because of the harsh sunlight.
And Skip used the reflector to light her inside the  dark car.







 
Val is an avid reader and was going to bring a book to the
shoot that matched the car...ha ha!  But she forgot.
 
My friend, whose land we used for the shoot, brought us the perfect book!
"101 Classic Love Poems"
 
Of course, Vintage Val would read that on a picnic in
her matching land rover!







 
My vision showed her with a bowl of strawberries which I bought,
But with the rain, the shoot got delayed and the berries sat in my fridge for a few days.
 
A special thanks to my hubby who didn't eat them,
even though he REALLY wanted to!

 
Vintage Val always gets her beauty nap!
 
I'm still pinching myself over those PERFECT shoes!!!

 
Skip held the reflector for me in many shots.  He is one of only a few
helpers who has an innate understanding of how to angle it for
the softer glow.
 
In this next photo, Skip held the reflector to BLOCK the sunlight
entirely on Val's face.  Notice how it is glaring on the rest of her body.
 
He was standing outside the car holding the reflector over the windshield.
 
THANKS, Skip!!!!

 
 

 
He blocked the sun in this next photo, also.
See how there are no shadows or glare on her face,
but there is on her legs?
 
Skip and Peggy were the BEST!  Peggy even helped arrange
Val's skirt saying, "Jill, I think you need a bit of petticoat!"
 
I could go on and on about those SHOES!  Have you ever even seen
high heels in that color???

 
Once again, the sun blocked by the reflector.

 
 

 
 
 
I am very grateful to Skip and Peggy for helping me fulfill my vision!

 
The shoot took a grueling two hours, but we all had a ton of
fun and laughs!  Val is a trooper!
 
Would you believe, when we got back to my house, Val's
car wouldn't start and we had to jump it????
That would NEVER happen to Vintage Val!
 
It's so magical to play out a vision...
 
 

6 comments:

  1. A very cool photo shoot! I think it would have taken me way more than two hours to accomplish this even if I'd planned it ahead as I can see you did here.

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  2. Wonderful pictures - very beautiful - every single shot! And - yes - the shoes are gorgeous!!

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  3. Outstanding performance done by all. Beautiful photos as always.

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  4. Outstanding performance done by all. Beautiful photos as always.

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  5. This is an awesome shoot! Although I may biased because Skip and Peg are my Mom & Dad. You did a great job. THANK YOU!!!

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  6. This is an awesome shoot! Although I may be biased because Skip and Peg are my parents. Wonderful job! Thank you!!!

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