I had the engine revved to 5,000 rpm. Our talent was sitting shotgun and my DP was crammed in the tiny back seat.
When I let go of the brake we go from 0-60 in under 4 seconds.
The G-force from the acceleration was incredible and as soon as I let off the throttle we all sat stupidly as I rolled to a stop with our jaws dropped, chuckling as if we were a couple of 11 year old boys who just saw boobies for the first time.
Shoots like these never get old because the subject matter always inspires me to push way past my personal best.
For the last decade, I’ve photographed a majority of the hottest production vehicles in the 21st century, including Bugatti, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Bentley, Lotus, Aston Martin, and many others. It has been a thrilling experience to be able to drive these exotic rides.
When discussing the project with photo editor, Lauren Schumacher, and director of Robb Report Studios, Bailey Barnard, we really wanted to create something that made sense for social media — it had to be informative, exciting, and beautiful.
I drooled over the opportunity to teach people about the vehicle’s ,launch control, a feature that allows even a photographer to launch the Porsche from 0-60 in 3.7secs (Car and Driver).
On the day of the shoot, I was more excited to fly the drone than I was to drive the Porsche. Using the drone allowed so much creative freedom and gave the shoot an instant boost of production value.
I was able to talk to a rancher in the Los Angeles suburbs to shoot on the private road adjacent to their empty corral.We had plenty of space to rev up the engine at high RPM’s along with a drone buzzing around as it followed the 911. We shot until twilight finding new angles and camera movements to tell our story, and we used every excuse we could to use the launch control.
I have a dream job.
I was hired to direct the film for this story, but the photographer in me could not resist capturing stills of this fine specimen. My goal for this study was to capture the elements that displayed over a half century of refinement — The original 911 was made in 1963.
Creating images like these is why I became a photographer.
I was shooting these images for myself so I was only guided by my passion and creativity to create a story. I used my curiosity to form a question — What makes Porsche iconic? Then I explored further to find a solution and in this case I was trying to isolate fundamental shapes that were associated with the Porsche 911.
What I love the most about photography is when I see the final image and it tells a beautiful story that hints at your original question. At that point the image sings and you feel like you have discovered something true. Its the best.
Taking pictures and my love of cars began with my father. He always had a camera by his side while he taught me to fix cars. My father was an aeronautical engineer and jet mechanic in the Navy. He would be out to sea on 4-6 month deployments. Much of my relationship with my dad was built from the photos he would send in his letters.
While being stationed locally he would keep his hands busy by working on our cars at home. He would show me how to do things like rotate tires, change brake pads and bleed the brake lines, it was our time together.
I love what I do. Not only do I get to shoot these amazing vehicles, but I get to experience them behind the wheel. I have always had a tremendous fascination about cars and how they can make a person feel superhuman. A car can boost your confidence and make you feel powerful — faster, stronger, quicker, more nimble, and more free. The 911 has had decades of refinement to bring out those qualities, and when I’m around a vehicle like this, either by video, stills, or VR I just want to do it justice.