Piloti called on me to photograph both the 2017 Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca and Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in Monterey, California. I was tasked with not only getting photos of the event action, but product shots on site as well. The shoot was booked just one week before the events and it was an intense, whirlwind trip with me flying in Saturday morning and back out Sunday evening, photographing one event each day. Given the nature of the trip, we didn’t have time to strategize much in advance and only after meeting with Piloti’s creative director on site Saturday did we come up with a concept and direction for the product photography. After shooting some samples, I proposed the idea of shooting across cars and other objects in the foreground and background, layering the model and shoes between while keeping the focus on the product.
In addition to those product photos and the overall event coverage, we also focused on one particular driver and car that were competing in the racing at Laguna Seca, an Alfa Romeo brand ambassador and his 1967 Alfa Romeo T-33 2.5 Daytona.
It was an exhausting but exciting two day experience and one I’ve been looking forward to for years, having never been to Monterey during Car Week despite photographing 100+ cars that have sold at auction there during Car Week. It was certainly a challenge to capture product photos while avoiding the crowds, working with unpredictable settings (such as cars coming and going, cars being open and closed, constantly changing lighting/weather, etc.) and while trying to not get in the way of others (I needed to get my shots, but the last thing I wanted to do was interrupt judging or make the event less enjoyable for others). However, I managed to get a wide variety of shots and, most importantly, the client was very pleased with the results.
Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca
Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance