AERO CRUISIN' AMERICANA

Photo by © Lydia Marcus
Photographed February 10, 2009 on Route 66
Cool Springs, Arizona
www.coolspringsroute66.com

TREEHOUSE

Treehouse photo by Lydia Marcus
Photographed August 23, 2008 in Los Angeles, CA

OPEN ROAD

I spotted this great RV on Sunday and instantly knew it was Polaroid worthy. If Polaroid 600 film wasn't so damn expensive and hard to come by, I would have shot a lot more frames. The graphic on the door is what caught my eye the most. Total 70's cool. When I showed this Polaroid to my friend Paul, he immediately said, "Oh, an Open Road." When I asked him how he knew, he pointed to the door graphic and said that was an Open Road marking. Good eye Paul!



Dodge Sportsman Open Road photos by Lydia Marcus. Photos taken June 15, 2008 in Lake Balboa, CA.

INSTAXIC IMPRESSION

Thursday was the weirdest day - around noon I was laying on the sand at Santa Monica beach with my friend Karen who was visiting from Seattle and at 5pm I was stuck in heinous traffic as a crazy rainstorm blew into town. End of May, torrential rain (and reports of Tornados on the news), what's next, locusts??? In between the sand and the rain, I spotted two perfect vehicle specimens for digital and analog capture. First up was a bright yellow VW Van parked next to a yellow building and a yellow street sign. Next was a pink RV fantastically detailed with angel's wings. I shot with THREE cameras: my Contax T2 35mm camera loaded with Kodak Portra 160 VC; my digital Sony T100 point and shoot pocket camera; and my new Fuji Instax 200 that continues to grow my admiration - I really like how super vivid the colors come out. In the evening, I went to my last photography lecture at the Julia Dean Gallery and after class I showed a group of five people my crazy big toy camera (the Fuji Instax) plus my five car shots from the day. The reaction to the camera was what I expected, everyone couldn't get over how damn big and goofy looking it is. The reaction to the film and my shots was way better than I expected, I think I instantly just converted everyone to want an Instax! Two of the people instantly wrote down the name of the camera and one of them said that she was going to order one for her sister. Everyone remarked how great the color looked. Too bad I'm not getting kickbacks (or at least free film from Fuji or Lomography) because I'm sure I will be helping sales!!!!





Here are some digital captures from my Sony T100. I can't get super close with the Fuji Instax (approx 3 feet is the closest focusing) so I liked the way this was cropped better because I could zoom in more with the Sony. BTW, the badge on the yellow VW Vanagon is from an Alfa Romeo - wishful thinking I guess.

A SAAB IN THE DESERT

A Saab 900 in Joshua Tree, photographed December 23, 2007. I've had a fondness for Saab's since High School. Back then, I dreamed of getting a (used) black 900 when I turned 16. Nice used Saab's were too pricey so I didn't get one, but I did get a nice used black European luxury car - a 1980 Audi 5000S instead. I've exclusively driven Audi's ever since, but Saab's - old and new - still catch my eye.