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[Axxis22]

Indoor, bright lights...

whats the best to shoot in?

[Adam Hicks]

A comfortable, loose shirt?

[FlipsidE]

A comfortable, loose shirt?

I was thinkin jeans if it's gonna be chilly in there...shorts otherwise.

FlipsidE

[edsarkiss]

haha you guys beat me to it.

my advice for shooting: if the situation is fairly consistent, get there early and run some tests for exposure and go Manual.

why? some shots will have bright reflections (light reflected off hoods) or large dark areas (wheels/tires). This is a very contrasty situation, and it may fool your autoexposure system based on the composition of the shot. imagine if you have six large light reflections off a piece of chrome -- you will get an underexposed shot if you are in an auto mode (Av,Tv,P). If you have set your exposure based on the light in the hall/room, you will get a perfect exposure as long as the situation stays consistent.

you'll want to determine your exposure for:
- interior shots
- exterior shots
- underhood shots
- and any other lighting situation.

use the histogram and/or a greycard to set exposure. use the greycard to get the white balance correct too. I'd plan on 30 mins or so of "setup time" prior to getting to the "real" shots.

now if the place is lit unevenly, or if the lights are changing, then maybe an auto setting would get you the largest % of correct exposures. as for the different auto modes, they all have their merits and appropriate situations. if you need to maintain a shutter speed because of low light / low ISO, then you gotta to shutter priority. if you're shooting down the length of a car and want it all in focus, then aperture priority. there's never just one answer.

[Adam Hicks]

And if you don't have time to do it exactly right, as noted by the previous post, shoot everything in RAW and just expose up a bit and make sure the only blown highlights are from bright reflections. You'll definitely have some blown highlights on the chrome, etc, but that's ok. You can fix the white balance in CS if you have it.

Adam

[Axxis22]

Thanks for the info!

[PhotosGuy]

Manual, RAW, & tripod.
If it's open on Friday (1st day), try to shoot then.

Here's one of the few from a show that I like & there are just too many lights reflecting in it. It's not even close to what I can get shooting outside after the sun has set:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v218/PhotosGuy/Car%20Stuff/39-Lincoln-Zephyr-comp_26.jpg

[cmM]

shoot available light if you can, use a wide angle lens, RAW (that that is hasn't been said already :P )

[fotobydave]

Manual, RAW, & tripod.
If it's open on Friday (1st day), try to shoot then.

Here's one of the few from a show that I like & there are just too many lights reflecting in it. It's not even close to what I can get shooting outside after the sun has set:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v218/PhotosGuy/Car%20Stuff/39-Lincoln-Zephyr-comp_26.jpg

Where is the eye candy?