Have you ever tried to sell a vehicle that was a little past its prime? It may not have a lot going for it, but using the “car roller” technique could make that vehicle look as awesome as the day it rolled off the lot.
Rollers provide an opportunity for the photographer to make something look speedy and eye-popping. Normally, many examples of these photos are with supercars — the latest Porsches, Audis, or Ferraris. For the sake of my sale, I was using a 2007 Kia Rio. While trying to shoot the rollers for my Craigslist ad, I ran into a variety of problems with my shoot. Luckily, The Car Creative explains how to successfully shoot rollers in his recent video.
The primary issue I ran into was the fact the accelerating in an old Kia is utterly scary. The car is not designed to go fast and acts more like a sail than an aerodynamic vehicle. Another issue I ran into was the fact shooting rollers breaks all the rules of photography I knew up to that point. If something was going fast, at least trying to, I would want a fast shutter speed. It’s completely the opposite. Most importantly, shooting wide is key because it will show off wherever you are.
The Car Creative also helps explain in finer detail, such as settings and focus techniques to get results in a much shorter time. Hopefully, no one will have to use this technique to sell a car that has no right to be in a roller photo shoot.
One thing? I see at least two while driving on a public road. Start with (1) no seat belt and hanging out of the window, and (2) driving on the wrong side of the road.
Waiting for people to get injured or killed emulating this. If you are a pro photographer, then pay for time on a closed track.
Imagine it's more likely free to shoot in public land than not. Just imagine.
I was going to say the exact same thing as Mike and Alexander. I'll go one further, though: it's 100% irresponsible for fstoppers to have posted this video in the first place. It promotes unsafe and illegal practices that, in the today's TikTok climate, all too many people will attempt on their own. Take the post down!
And - I speak with some authority on this. In addition to my side hustle as a photographer, my day job is producing TV commercials with an emphasis on automotive. I've produced big network spots for virtually all manufacturers. And - we always follow the letter of the law including permits and safety. www.paulpap.net.
For safety's sake, I sure hope you don't boil the water while still in the bottle.
Man, the namby-pamby commenters.
1. This Is no more unsafe than passing cars. It's not like the dude was shooting and driving at the same time. LOL!
2. It's on an isolated road.
3. It didn't look like they were going fast.
Exactly, you can get road blur at 10-20 miles an hour.
Also, by stabilizing the camera on the hood or fender you can get "high speed" shots of the driver and car with the background blurred by the "high speed." To do this "dangerous feat" the car merely has to be pushed by two out of site assistants at 1-2 miles an hour.
I am hoping everyone can use common sense if trying these kinds of stunts. My broken down car was shot on a country road not going any more than 30mph. It's more a of joke because you do not need a ton of speed to get the effect you want.
Let's assume they were being safe. You are still saying it is ok to break the law as long as you get the shot.
In this scenario, YES! I'm saying it's ok. We're not talking high crimes here. And, they didn't trespass or damage anyone's property, which is the main issue when it comes to breaking the law to get the shot.