Hitting the Heights

Spitting gravel from beneath its tyres, a modified Toyota Hilux rumbles down one of the many steep tracks around Mount Stol in the Julian Alps. It rides a crest in the scree, briefly taking flight before scything through a flooded ditch, sending water arcing out either side. Yes, this part of the world is a wild and varied playground for off-road drivers – but also photographers.

“On a car shoot like this one,” Uroš explains, “it’s important to get a proper range of shots – so as well as action, we need the hero-style shots where the car is static and looks beautiful. That search for great locations,” he continues, “is something I’m committed to so I can make my images more exciting. It’s part of the style which defines my work. On top of that, I’m always looking for fresh angles, great light, and really whatever I can do to enhance the car’s details. After all, the point of these pictures is to help people discover something new and special.”

Setting up for his action shots, “one of the first things to find is a setting that lets the car interact in an exciting way,” Uroš  explains, “because it’s the flying stones, dust or water that help give these pictures energy.” To freeze the exploding action, “I shoot at a minimum of 1/1000sec, and use Continuous AF mode, moving the AF area around with the joystick to start tracking the car,” he continues. “And even though I’m not a guy who shoots thousands of pictures on a job, I do use my Alpha 7R IV’s Continuous Hi+ drive mode. 10fps means I can look for images where the wheels are off the ground, or the water is spraying in the right direction. Whatever shows the action off best.”

For static shots, fine composition and attention to detail is required, says Uroš . “Of course, we’re first making sure they’re clean,” he grins, “but any minor blemishes shown up by on my camera’s 61Mp sensor can be taken care of in post-production. The background is really important, so I look for great scenery in the wild, or beautiful old buildings, making sure there are no distractions. They have to complement one another, but remember the car is the star, so I’ll shoot at f/5.6 or f/8, keeping the backdrop obvious, but not dominant.”

Whether it’s the static or action shots, Uroš  likes to shoot from a low angle, making the car more dominant in the frame.

When it comes to choosing his favourite lens, Uroš  has an unusual choice, as well as a broader tip for aspiring car photographers. “For starters,” he explains, “it’s really important that you don’t use very wide lenses. These will distort the car when used up close and won’t show its design properly. It needs to look like it would to your own eyes, and respect the work of the person who designed it, so I never go below 35mm on a full-frame camera.”

“My favourite lens,” he continues, “is the FE 135mm f/1.8 GM, especially for the action shots. I’ll also use the FE 24-70mm f/2.8 GM on my second body, and I have the FE 35mm f/1.4 GM and FE 85mm f/1.4 GM, too. But the 135mm F1.8 I find combines this amazing sharpness with really nice bokeh, and with its bright maximum aperture, it’s great for low-light situations, too. It gives my telephoto shots a different feeling from what I’d get on a more typical lens like a 70-200mm. Because it’s a prime, you need to plan a little more and predict where the car will be moving, but with good communication with the driver you can take care of that easily.”