Thursday, June 02, 2011

History on wheels


Old, big red
Deerfield Beach, FL, December 2008
[Click all photos to enlarge]
About these photos: Thematic Photographic explores "well aged" this week, and I thought this lovingly preserved set of wheels qualified in spades. If you've seen something - or someone - with experience through your lens, please head here to let the sharing begin.
I often wonder if the folks who designed and assembled this car a lifetime ago knew that decades later it would become an object of desire for those who appreciate history. Just as often, I shift my timeline a little and wonder if the folks who designed and assembled my neighbor's Chevrolet Impala ever wonder the same thing. Then I wonder if said Impala will ever become as unique in some future time as this vehicle is in ours.

Probably not.

There aren't any formulae that dictate what becomes collectible and what becomes forgettable junk, but I'm willing to go on record as saying a nearly invisible design that sells in the six figures to folks who buy cars by the pound won't likely show up on a far-in-the-future high-end auction turntable. No disrespect to the Impala, but it just doesn't have "it". Whatever "it" is.

I realize this may make me seem like a bit of a hypocrite, as I once wrote about making the Toyota Yaris seem sexy (oops, make that twice.) I guess the Impala can be sexy, too (even caught my rental in this moody nighttime shoot) but neither of these vehicles will ever be considered a collectible antique. I guess it depends how you choose to look at it. And you can find loveliness in something even if someone doesn't ever want to pay ridiculous sums of money for it.

Whatever the subject - old, lovely car or new, kinda-forgettable-but-still-potentially-sexy-t0-us one - I keep learning new things as I spend more time staring through my lens. Funny how that works.

Your turn: What does photography teach you?

7 comments:

Kalei's Best Friend said...

Photography helps one see shapes, color, dimension..and I feel photography can bring out emotion either in the viewer or the subject. What I love about photography is that u can take a picture of an angle that most wouldn't dream of doing... I love the perspective photography brings out because the viewer is seeing what the photographer sees.

21 Wits said...

I love discovering something in my photos that escaped me before I took the shot! Got to keep our eyes wide OPEN! all of the time!

Anonymous said...

Photography teaches me to pause, to "make haste slowly", to open the eyes of my soul a little wider.

I find that my breathing slows, the space between heartbeats is filled with shutter clicks and a world of hurry and worry is postponed.

Whether I'm dangling from a harness/anchor hundreds of feet above the ground capturing other climbers working their routes, or whether I'm holding my breath watching a Dall sheep and her newborn make a first acquaintance- photography grounds me in the moment. It teaches me patience (not a native virtue), it forges a bond between my eyes and my memory.

Photography closes a gap between the past and the future, holding the present in confidence.

Anonymous said...

neat blog mmmm

kenju said...

Like Karen S., I learn that one doesn't always SEE what is in front of one's nose.

Nikki - Notes of Life said...

Photography teaches me to look closer at life.

Looks like a beautiful car. Lovely shots!

Unknown said...

In my opinion, I think the makers of this old red car did not expect that their creation would be one of the most notable cars in auto history. In their mind, they just wanted to create an awesome vehicle and give their clients the best. And yes, photography gives us a new perspective and changes how we look at things. For some, this may seem like an old car. But when you look at it through the lens, it became a different thing. You will see the details and the workmanship and you will realize the effort given to create this awesome thing. [Nettie Christensen]