GEAR FOR AUTOMOTIVE PHOTOGRAPHY

Automotive photography is an amalgamation of multiple genres - product, landscape, composite, but as the name suggests, the centre of attention is an automobile.

- ANIRUDH IYER

To shoot them would require as much acumen as any of these genres standalone, if not more. But gear-wise, this is one of the most democratic genre to approach. In this article, we'll explore what you need to get your bucket shot. The exact equipment will vary depending on the type of shot you wish to achieve, however, a lot of these shots will have gear which overlap one another. The focal lengths mentioned are in full-frame terms, and you can use equivalence to determine the focal length for your sensor size. Ideally a full-frame camera is preferred for a variety of reasons, but is in no way a "need" if you're just starting out.

A high-resolution camera body

No, resolution isn't everything. However, a high-resolution camera gives you more flexibility while shooting as well as in post-production. High-end cameras also give you plethora of options to shoot with, for example, subject detection autofocus using Al, to automatically focus on the automobile you're shooting, taking the guess-work out of your mind. We recommend a minimum of 24MP for all the reasons mentioned above.

35mm prime lens

A very versatile focal length, 35mm gives you the option to take environmental portraits of subject, in this case, a car. Falling in the "standard" focal range, the images will mostly be free of distortion. This lens can be substituted with a standard zoom lens like a 24-70mm, especially if the automobile is moving and sticking to one focal length may make you to miss shots. However, what a prime lens does is it puts you into that mindset of where you strive to find the perfect composition instead of "lazily" changing the focal length to suit your wants.

85mm prime lens