THE 911 THEME

When you hit 50, do you expect to be in the best shape you’ve ever been in? Do you expect to be loved and revered the world over? Me neither. But when we’re talking about Porsche’s 911, this is very much the case. Their iconic sports car has been through seven generations to reach its current status and shows no sign of slowing down, nor declining in popularity. In order to celebrate this anniversary, we’re dedicating the next few days not just to the 911, but to the entire Porsche marque, so we’ll hope you’ll join us in celebrating all that’s great about the brand.

When dealing with a shape as familiar as the 911, you would think that every conceivable angle and every detail has already been covered. But as new generations of photographers emerge, so do new ways of seeing things. Like the 911 itself, it’s a constant evolution. With a little over a week from announce to reveal, the 911 theme has of course continued the trend of re-adjusting my preconceptions of what you are capable of. But enough waffle – let’s get to it shall we?

(Above) The featured image for this theme was a straightforward choice. By combining so many elements into one photograph – a 911, Mount Panorama circuit, a beautiful landscape and a setting sun – David was always onto a winner.

It’s easy to overlook the details but Zach was quick to catch the air scoops on the rear of this wingless GT3 RS. Using a shallow depth of field, along with thoughtful composition, he has created something that is both a true representation and visually interesting.

When working with a location that has varied lighting, it’s always tricky to balance things just right. Younes has done a great job here. The car is perfectly exposed despite lying in both shadow and light.

A simple detail, simply presented. The shadows from the hard light source create a great sense of depth to the badge.

It’s not often you see a 911 jumping, let alone with the nose pointing downwards. This is a great capture considering the car appears to be arriving into frame unsighted.

By shooting with a fast shutter speed, Steven was able to capture the debris being kicked up as this 911 drives away from his camera. The shallow depth of field is often a by-product of a fast shutter speed on a sunny day.

This abstract submission from Roger Egea depicts a Porsche Cup Car entering the famous tunnel in Monaco’s harbour. The super slow shutter speed has created an almost painterly effect.

This shot really jumped out at me. The semi-silhouette nature of the car being lit by a chasing car is dramatic enough, but when you notice the glowing exhaust behind the rear wheel and the dart of flame out the back, you can’t help but be impressed. A shot to be proud of.

The repetition of colour in this one really caught my attention. It’s simple but very effective and required the foresight to see it long before it happened.

The pale blue tones and contrasting orange and black make this something pleasing to look at.

A great capture from Maurice here, peeking through the trees. A shallow depth of field has thrown the foreground out of focus, concentrating your attention on the car.

A strong black and white conversion, with wide dynamic range,  allows us to see all the nitty gritty detail in this shot. Fabulous texture too.

Another black & white, but a completely different approach. The contrast between light and dark areas creates a dynamic across the image, with the shapes being unmistakably 911.

Another shot through the trees, but another way of presenting a point of view.

This shot is all about the composition and contrast between the bodywork and dark ground.

Subtle colour grading and the choice of a cinematic aspect ratio results in an image with a lot of impact.

Beautifully lit, perfectly aligned. How enjoyable is this to look at?

Another superb black and white conversion. Simple framing but allowing strong contrast to do the hard work.

I really quite like how stand out the orange of this GT3 RS is against its surroundings. Plenty of texture and detail too.

And finally we have the last submission for this theme. The leading lines, the colour grading, the portrait aspect. It’s all good and combined makes something even better.

That’s it for this theme, I’ll be back next week with a regular ol’ #IAMTHESPEEDHUNTER. Make sure to get your submissions in and be sure to stay tuned for plenty more Porsche content over the next few days.

Safe shooting.

Paddy McGrathTwitter: @PaddyMcGrathSHInstagram: speedhunters_paddypaddy@speedhunters.com

#IAMTHESPEEDHUNTER

About #IAMTHESPEEDHUNTER

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Have you submitted already but yet been featured? Here are some tips to help you…

DO – Tell us your name!
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