Photographer Felix Hernandez Shoots Epic Scenes Using Miniature Cars

Confession: I love me some Felix Hernandez, and I'm pretty sure the rest of Fstoppers would agree with me. Felix first came onto my radar when we did an article on his piece "The Wardrobe" in June of last year. Then, later that same month, he won "Fstoppers Photographer of the Month" where a variety of his awesome miniature-based photography was featured. This past May we featured him again after Audi hired him to do an artistic campaign for the new Audi Q2. I hope you're getting the idea now; Felix Hernandez makes magic, and he's back with more.

Felix has titled his latest project "Famous Cars" and it's pretty obvious why.

In this series, Felix is taking model versions of famous cars from film and TV and creating these fantastic effect-laden images from them. He was inspired by the shows and movies he loved while he was growing up.

It’s a tribute to my childhood, to all those cars from TV series and movies that made me happy in my youth. The general concept behind this series is showing the cars as the main characters, so you won’t see drivers.

The first two cars featured in Felix's series was the General Lee from the Dukes of Hazard, and the Ecto-1 from the original Ghosbusters films.

There's a lot more going on in these images than some nifty Photoshop work, Felix focuses on building a base of practical effects in-camera so that the time spent in Photoshop is more about polishing the final piece than creating things that the camera didn't capture. His attention to color and mood elevate each image from something that is just cool, to something that makes you go "whoa."

Hernandez brings an obsessive level of attention to detail to his work, taking multiple images and layering each piece to get the final result. He'll suspend a model off the ground with string, blow smoke or dust into the scene with a small tube, or grind a small drill to generate sparks. Check out some of the behind the scenes shots from the shoots for these first two cars in his new series.

For his latest shoot, Hernandez chose to take on perhaps one of the most iconic cars in film history; the DeLorean from the Back to the Future Trilogy.

This is the third famous car so far, the DeLorean from Back to the Future. As with the other cars, it was shot in the studio doing the majority of the effects in-camera with multiple shots using a 1/18 scale car, shot over a simple background, mixing studio flashes and light painting techniques.

I think it's fair to say that the final results are stunning. Felix also sent us some photos and a video detailing his some of the practical effects he used to achieve these awesome effects. His techniques are something just about any photographer could replicate in their home, but it's his vision and execution that set's Felix apart.

Felix is one of the guys on my short list of photographers to keep an eye on for when they release their next "big thing." His creative vision and ability to make these gorgeous images out of tiny toys make him a must-follow. Looking forward to what you give us next Felix!

Images used with permission from Felix Hernandez.