I was commissioned by my buddie Bill (owner of Cadi) & Dean (Fabricator) to broker/sell for them this unique work of art made
by Outlawed Restorations in East Bend NC.
If you need any further information please feel free to Call/Text me at (305) 281-6440
Description is the experience (Photographer) had when we commission him to photograph this incredible piece of art.
You can find more about Greg, and his awesome photography by visiting his website Greg Kiser Photography dot com
I received a text from Dean Cornelius with Outlawed Restorations in East Bend, NC. I had just finished up a shoot from his shop the previous
weekend and that had lead to a conversation about the rat rod Caddi that I had shot in the barn. It was going up for sale and the actual owner
of the car had commissioned some pictures to be taken of the car for the broker in Florida. Well, when Dean texted me, he let me know that
the owner was now interested in me doing the pictures for the Caddi. To make a long story short, I spoke with not only Dean, but the owner
of the car and came to an arrangement. It was going to have to wait until I got back in town before I could get the pictures, and they were OK
with that.
Essentially, the assignment was simple, shoot between 12 and 15 shots of the Caddi so that the broker can post them online. They needed to
capture the spirit of the build and car, and spark the imagination of the potential buyer. These types of shoots are all about feeding the fantasy
of owning a product. It was a little different that what I was normally accustomed to, but I jumped at the chance!
A feature that I wanted to capture was the seal on the door. I had always been under the impression that it was a replica of the Presidential Seal which is on the Limos of the POTUS. Well, I was shown to be wrong by Dean. He pointed out that he had the seal
slightly altered when it was painted on the door. To avoid any possible problems with the Secret Service, the seal reads "Resident of
the United States"...I guess that is a true and accurate statement. It is a really cool feature on this limo.
I mean, this is to show off his work, so I wanted his input in the shots that I used. He started to tell me about the air horn (yes, a
road tractor air horn on this Caddi) which was located just behind the passenger front tire. OK, that was going to be easy enough to
capture. I got down low and used the whitewall tire as my anchor, and I exposed to capture the horn in the wheel well. I also got
the exhaust pipe...yes, that is my favorite part of the car I think. Does it show? The lowered stance and patina are also very visible here
in this shot.
Before going, I had a few ideas of what I wanted to shoot of the car since I had now seen it a couple of times. The biggest thing that
I wanted to capture was the exhaust pipe out of the side of the car. This is just not something you see on a Cadillac, and I thought
that feature alone would sell the car. Having the emblem below the pipe was an added bonus. I set the shot up here to showcase
the lowered stance of the car, the whitewall tire with original hubcap and the shiny bit of chrome trim. The highlight was that gigantic
hole in the side of the fender where the diesel fumes could escape.
While externally, the big exhaust pipe is the eye catcher, it is what is under the hood that makes that pipe so cool. This thing runs
on a Cummins diesel engine which is turbo powered and has several very cool touches under the hood. Most notably is the radiator
overflow jug which pays tribute to Dean's Fire Department days. Yep, you see it correctly, that is a fire extinguisher. I wonder if Kidde
ever though that they their product would be used for this purpose?
Two other little details were the plate that goes on all of Dean's builds, as well as the original VIN tag that shows that this is number 213for the '55 Caddi Limo body. An interesting side note here, the current owner of the car wanted Dean to sign below the edition plate.
This is not something that he normally does, but I really like the idea. He is an artist and should sign his work, each and every time.
At this point I was pretty much done with the require shots, but I wanted to play a little bit more with this car. I had a few images that
I shot which were more or less for me, but included in the package if wanted. They highlighted features that liked, and just a shot that
I wanted to take.
No automotive shoot would be complete without a shot of the interior. I mean that is where the owner will be sitting and spending most of their time. The burlap seats are quite the centerpiece in the car, and the texture on the dash is from the burlap pad that was
glued on it to replace the failed leather upholstery. The owner decided that he didn't like the burlap and Dean took it off which left
this residue. Honestly, it works! You can also see the air controller here in the seat, as well as some of the gauges. For those who
are interested, this was an HDR shot made up of five exposures which allowed me to get plenty of detail throughout the cabin. I think
it is a great representation of the interior.
For those that want to get up close and personal with the instruments, I got in low and shot this view of the dash. It is not quite
fine art quality, but it does a great job at showing what it needs to. This car is just so cool!!!!
What is a limo used for? Hauling lots of people, or a few of them in extreme comfort. I would be totally remiss if I neglected to include a shot of the rear of the car to show the expanse of room and the jump seats. The question was how to do this. Well, I
had a trick up my sleeve that was going to really impress Dean. I pulled out my Rokinon 14mm lens and fitted it on the camera.
I got right up on the door and set the image up. When I was done, I had to show Dean what I had captured with this nifty lens
(best $250 I've ever spent). He was amazed that is showed the entire interior of the car. Honestly, I was pretty amazed at the outcome
of this shot too.
Going down the list of details, he showed me the fuel filler which is still used. It is a standard feature on this car, but still quite cool,
and the tank has been replaced by a smaller '55 Chevy gas tank to allow for the air system to be in the trunk. I tell you, there are so
many thoughtful touches on this car! You can also see the intake vent for the air conditioning right in front of the trunk lid, as well as
the patina on this side of the car.
Speaking of the air ride suspension, Dean wanted me to get a shot of the air compressors and tank in the trunk of the car. What is so special about this is the way that the lines were plumbed. They were done to mimic exhaust headers and should appeal to any car
guy. By the way Dean, I vacuumed up a little bit on the carpet with a clone stamp tool just to clean up the appearance a bit.
This shot also shows the stance of the car on the air bag suspension and the section of a tree trunk that grew over the exhaust hole in the rear bumper. Instead of removing it, Dean just cut the wood around the corner of the bumper and left it there. While you see a
lot of rust here, there has been plenty of metal welded up behind the panels to make sure that the car is still solid.
Welcome Miayota Fans!!
The following rides below are just a few examples of what I've sold on eBay in the past. If you are looking to buy or sell a bad-azz 47-72 Chevy Truck feel free to contact me I can broker your
ride or maybe just buy it for myself. Trucks start at $10K and go up to $70K.
Text or Call: 305-281-6440
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What is "Miayota" my username on everything I do.
Mia (Miami) + Yota (I've been w/ Toyota for 19 years)
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