Only maybe 2 people on this whole blog could probably do this successfully and know their records while nailing tricks but it would be a great time just fooling around with it. What i’m more interested in is ambient type music with this and adding delay and reverb.
via DjTechTools
Allan de la Plante was a photographer during one of motorsports heavily transitional eras, at a time when F1, CAN-AM, and Indy Car chassis builders were just starting to grasp what they could do with these fiberglass tubs in the way of aerodynamics. A close personal friend of the late great Gilles Villeneuve, Allan captured alot of beautiful images that turned me onto racing to begin with, he always focused on getting a different perspective from the hundreds of other photographers attending any given race.
-Rory
In sports car racing, there is a wonderful thing called ‘homologation’. Manufacturers hate it, car collectors love it. It means that in order to enter a car in sanctioned sports car races, it has to be based on a production model. Without going into a lengthy explanation, just appreciate the fact that it has brought the world some of it’s most prized street-legal race cars. The 300SL is undeniably one of the most iconic. In 1952, Mercedes Benz was feeling ambitious and decided they wanted to win alot of races. So they built an incredibly streamlined, lightweight, and reliable race car using some of the most exotic materials at the time – the homologated street version that was sold to the public a complete afterthought. It was then entered it into many of the most prestigious, and difficult, endurance races of the day. They succeeded, taking 1-2 victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Carrera Panamericana to name a few. Above are a few photos of the 300SL in action at the aforementioned races (the 2nd of which is the variant used in the trans-mexican rally, where the windshield had to be reinforced with wrought iron bars due to ‘buzzard collisions’). The second group of photos are of the oldest 300SL in existence, serial number zwei. It never saw any racing, rather it was used as a training car for the very capable Hermann Lang & Fritz Reiss (along with the rest of the Silver Arrows) who went on to take many checkered flags. Dragged out of the broom closet by Mercedes, it underwent an extensive 9 month restoration for it’s 60th birthday, and in celebration of the new SLS AMG. What a timeless example of German design – both in form & function.
When I first saw the Icon 4×4 CJ series a while back I was temped to post but never got around to it. Seeing their new 1964 Bronco reproduction tipped the balance though and I had to get these up here. Icon create idealized versions of a few of the great 4×4 of yore (Bronco, CJ, and FJ) with a modern slant and an eye for detail. Don’t ask how much they cost unless you’re reading this on the front deck of a yacht or all your emails end with “Sent from a horse”. Nike was somehow involved. Also, you get a free shoe with one of them apparently.
More pics and some insight into the process of designing the Bronco can be found here
CollectSpace gives us one last look at the now defunct Shuttle Atlantis. Incredible detail in these interiors, I can’t even imagine the level of engineering and testing that went into even the smallest components on this spacecraft. More images here.
Further reading / viewing – Discovery: A Visual Eulogy
You may remember Swiss flickr user Afghtiga as the guy who collects various design icons in the form of consumer electronics and catalogs them with beautiful photographs. Well he also has an equisitely detailed scale-model collection featuring Le Mans cars from the 60’s and 70’s which he has ben photographing as well.
I used to do a fair amount of model building as a kid but I never got anywhere near this level of detail. I wonder if he build them himself or if these are just those super-expensive ones you’d see pre-built at model shops. Either way, love the shots.
More models at Afghtiga’s Flickr
Atelier Olschinsky shot some beautiful editorial work for Nevertheless Magazine at the 1000KM Red Bull Ring. Love this sort of washed out style, I’d call it cross process but it seems like something else. Really cool technique.
Stumbled onto this interesting find while putting together the CN logo post. The CN Turbotrain was a high-speed train build in the late 1960’s. Really interesting lines and I loving the paint on these. I think that last one (B&W) is some earlier version or prototype.
Awesome imagery archive of Czech motorcycle maker Jawa (short for Janeček and Wanderer). Great logos and type treatments, some nice inspiration in there.
Jawa Owners Club via Jakub’s Dad
Just watched the documentary on Ayrton Senna (great film) and I’m really digging the whole F1 aesthetic. These images are from The Cahier Archive, a father and son team that has covered the Formula One Championship from the 1950s to the present.
It’s interesting to see how the sport has changed over the years but my favorite decade has to be the 80s. Check out the previous post on the Porsche 917 for more vintage racing goodness.