Person + Cadillac XLR = ???

[ChristopherCoy]

I have friend who works for a vehicle dealership. His general manger drives a Cadillac XLR, which is just an absolutely gorgeous car. In any event, the GM is going to allow my friend to borrow the XLR for a photo shoot in two weeks. All cool, right? Wrong....

I am the photographer at this shoot, and I haven't a clue how to pose people and cars at the same time. Especially because my friend is a he and not a she, so I can't exactly stick him in a bikini and prop him up on the hood. Well I guess I can, but that isn't exactly the look that I am going for.

So my question is... how do I take a cowboy dressed in full starch, and put him with the XLR and make it look good?

Any posing tips? Examples?

Thanks Google! (illustrative purposes only, not my pic)

[srwatters]

Go find a car magazine with a driver review. Should be ideas there or you can go browse the stock photo sites for inspiration. Then there's always google images.

You have the world at your fingertips.

[toverman]

A real man never sits on a car! Leaning on the driver's door? Yes, arms folded, looking somewhat serious toward the open road.

Look through the "transportation" section of this forum more ideas on getting rolling shots ... you can highlight the guy driving the convertible as you shoot from another car. You can also sit in the back (although there isn't a back, is there? maybe in the passenger seat), using a slow shutter and blur everything but the cockpit of the car and the driver ... a neat effect. All kinds of ideas spring to my mind!

Is this a serious shoot, and what will the images be used for? I keep thinking of whimsical situations to put him and the car in, but they probably won't work for you.

[ChristopherCoy]

I looked through the transportation section, albeit not in depth, but most, well everything I found was of the cars themselves. Hence the thread...

The shots are two fold... he just wants some nice up to date pictures of himself for his parents, and I want to increase my portfolio.

I dont know what you mean by 'whimsical', but if there is even the slightest risk of a dent, ding, or scratch.... I'm not doing it... LOL I saw this car in person yesterday at the dealership. OMG it is flippin hot!

I did a google search as per Scotts suggestion and I have a few images that I can use as inspiration. The one thing that I did notice, is that most of them involve extreme angles when it comes to the 'masculin' feeling. Is that because angles give the feeling of speed?

[toverman]

By "whimsical" I didn't mean anything approaching a "trash the car" session.

I don't know the real answer to your angles question, although to me woman=curves and men=straight lines. It's also a situation where high contrasts might work. As long as his face is properly exposed (flash, reflector, whatever), a mid-day shoot with hard shadows could add something.

[bondarnes]

Pretend the car is a pick-up and go from there.

[danchez]

Originally Posted by bondarnes

Pretend the car is a pick-up and go from there.

My girlfriend had a pick-up... I drove it like I stole it, YEEHAA!!!

[TBoat]

Have him pose in the forground (arm crossed; stong poses) with the car in the background at 45 degree both coming and going,

Straight on from the rear, with him leaning against the trunk (his back to trunk) again stong poses

Squatting beside the front tire

Standing in open door, like hes about to get in