Stranger Lamborghini: BTS of a Pepper Yandell 'Stranger Things' Project

NO SPOILERS HERE! Just in case you were worried. They say inspiration can come from anywhere, and I have to say that definitely couldn't be more true. For one photographer, it came in the form of one his favorite TV Shows. Commercial automotive photographer Pepper Yandell took his work with automotive photography and digital retouching, and combined it with imagery and concepts from the Netflix Series "Stranger Things" to make a truly unique photograph featuring one Lamborghini, and a monster from the show.

In discussing this project with Pepper, he mentioned that with many of his clients, he has to maintain a certain level of restraint with the editing, in order to have the end result be something believable. However, seeing that this was completely a personal project with no end client to satisfy other than his own creativity, he was able to throw the rule book out the window and create something truly unique and amazing.

For those of you unfamiliar with the premise of the show, there's an alternate universe known as 'The Upside Down,' and in this nightmarish landscape, things are a little... different. When bringing elements into a project like this, many people will simply say, add it in Photoshop, but sometimes that's just not the best way to do it. Watching the video above, you can see all the techniques that Pepper used in order to plant the car in this scene, from having physical props of the vines to run along the ground to the smoke used to create the atmosphere.

From there it was over to Photoshop to put the finishing touches on the image, including exposure blending, color correction, and dropping in the creature in the background. It definitely takes watching his editing breakdown a few times to really get a sense of all the work that goes into an edit like this, from minute details to massive global adjustments. This is a great example of what can happen with some creativity, a little planning, and a whole lot of skills. I'd love to see a full set done in this style. *cough* Pepper.  

For more information about Pepper and the work he does, head on over to his Website or his YouTube to get some more insight and see a few more of his editing breakdowns.  Now go out there and try something different, and see what you can create! Hopefully you leave this article inspired to give something like this a go.