Florida | Gray Quetti Photography

I haven’t been a car enthusiast since my high school days. I happened on this event last summer when my good friend and photographer Woody Huband told me about a car cruise on Main Street in the historic Springfield community. The Cruise is held the 4th Saturday of each month and depending on weather there’s no telling the variety of vintage cars you might see.

Last summer when I photographed the Cruise I didn’t know what to expect but gained some knowledge so I could hopefully capture some different images this year. The Main Street strip is probably a 1/2 mile four lane street with a median. Cars cruise up one side and down the other. The cars also park in the empty lots so the spectators can view them up close. This year when I went on a Saturday, June 22, it was the first year anniversary of the cruise. Spectators tailgate along the strip, there is usually a live band playing, and the restaurants are open.

All of the cars are not vintage as seen above. But, you will see everything from Model T’s to Jeeps, Vans, hot rods, etc. Some cars even display elaborate sound systems.

This year I wanted to do something different with the night time photos. Woody and I figured that if we could set up multiple flashes we might be able to make the cars stand out a little better in the dark.

After the sun set ( not much of a sun since it rained all day) I set up a flash on the ground across the street so it would backlight the cars. To help fill in the front of the car I set up another flash on the curb slightly in front. I used a Pocket Wizard TT1 transmitter with a AC3 Controller to trigger both flashes that had Pocket Wizard TT5 receivers. I set both flashes on manual at about 1/2 power which helped save battery power. I was able to control the output of each flash from the AC3 Controller on my camera. My camera was a Canon 5D Mark 3 which was a perfect fit as it got completely dark and I had to ramp up the ISO to 3200. At 3200 iso there was very little noise.

If you’re in the area on the 4th Saturday of the month you might want to travel over to the Springfield district on Main Street around 6pm. Bring a lounge chair, cooler and walking shoes because you will want to walk around and get a close up look. The owners are very gracious in letting you look at their pride and joys up close.

I never was a car enthusiast, but a night out at the Springfield Cruise will leave you drooling for more.

Hope you enjoyed the photos.

Gray

I had the pleasure of photographing the engagement session for Christina and Ron last Saturday in the Riverside District of Jacksonville. It was a cool morning but we got an early start so we could get a few photos of the couple drinking coffee and watching the sunrise over the St. John’s River. Mission accomplished.

After the sunrise and coffee we worked our way up the boardwalk stopping in several locations for photos. We had gorgeous light which made for some nice photos. The couple loved the pictures and are eager for their friends and family to see them. A special thanks goes to my assistant Veronika who battled the wind all day while holding a reflector. Great job Veronika.

I hope you enjoy viewing the photos as much as I did taking them. Good luck to Christina and Ron for many years of happiness.