As I sit here typing up this post I can’t help but look back at this year with a fair amount of shock at the way it passed by with blistering pace. Time is of course concrete in our human definition, yet entirely fluid in our brain’s ability to recollect it. It seems like only yesterday I was visiting Sweden, yet those were summer days and half a year has transpired since I visited the place.
With December now upon us, it’s time to look back on the year to reflect before moving into new territory in 2013. While digging through my own archives, which have grown exponentially since hopping on board at Speedhunters, I stumbled upon an unseen gem that I had very nearly forgotten about entirely.
With the amount of work I’m doing these days it doesn’t leave much personal time for me to go out and enjoy the simpler things in life, so when a friend of mine offered to locate an exotic for me to shoot in Stockholm I jumped on the opportunity. As much as I love what I do for a living, there’s something that comes with the territory and deadlines that adds a certain pressure.
Most of the time this pressure can be leveraged into productivity, but often it’s a burden that one could interpret as a creativity – and somtimes fun – killer. Having an entire afternoon to myself with no real mission in mind, I met up with my friend and fellow photographer Dan and we set off towards Stockholm’s 13th-century old town, Gamla Stan, where we were to meet up with Steffen, the owner of a very special car.
Not surprisingly, I heard the wail of the V8 echoing off the cobblestone roads and ancient buildings long before I ever caught a glimpse of the prancing pony. But all you need is a small blip of the unmistakable engine note to realize you’re in the presence of an Italia. All it took was that sound to get my heart pumping.
Prior to this I had seen at least two dozen road versions of the four-five-eight, almost that many more in racing guise and even sat inside one; but I never had the opportunity to properly photograph one until now. Once the car was parked the man driving it jumped out and introduced himself, a very tall and equally kind German fellow who seemed to be about as eager as I was for the shoot to commence. It was going to be a good day.
For an American, someone who lives in a country that is less than 250 years old, you have to remember that the location itself was just as exotic as the car, if not more so. While I was setting up my gear I had to pinch myself to make sure I wasn’t in a dream! Not only was the location intriguing, but it was actually quite good looking – the car and the city would spend the rest of the day competing for my attention.
Obviously the car isn’t exactly a slouch in the looks department either, which is a nice change from its mundane predecessors. I might take some heat for this, but I don’t think there has been a good looking “sporty” Ferrari (think lightweight, MR etc) in quite some time. Actually I haven’t liked much since the F50 if I’m honest, that was until the Italia came along. Its radical curves are something that have to be seen in person to be fully appreciated.
Something this extreme is great fun for a photographer because you have to be very careful at how you align these shapes in a frame. Like most supermodels, from the right angles the car car is drop dead gorgeous, but if you’re not careful you can wind up with a mutant on your hands. Luckily the Italia has far more “good sides” than it does bad ones.
Even the engine is a work of art, if a simple one. The thing I’ve always appreciated about Ferrari is the way they place importance on design and performance but take special care not to come off as cheesy or overdone. Sure there might not be any carbon or polished stainless, but there’s something to be said for understated performance.
Besides, I think we can all agree that the exterior of the car is loud enough to do all the talking.
Amusingly enough, the most extravagant part of the car is actually the interior. It seems as though this is where the engineers really cut loose with carbon fiber trim accents and double-stitched paneling, lest we forget the famous “Manettino switch” on the steering wheel.
Yes the cockpit is quite an extreme environment to find yourself placed in, but one that is still somehow very well refined. There is nothing about the setup that negates creature comforts and you don’t find yourself thinking “okay, I’m in a serious race car” like the performance numbers of the 458 might indicate.
As with most modern supercars, Ferrari’s offerings are also packed with the very latest infotainment systems on the market which aim to make your drive more pleasurable. Front and center is the tachometer, right where you’d expect it to be in such a vehicle, and on either side of that binnacle are additional screens capable of displaying virtually every parameter you could possibly imagine.
After taking a ride through the miserably bumpy streets of Gamla Stan, I have to admit the car was shockingly comfortable. More so in fact than the BMW 3-series which I was chauffeured to the location in. That probably has more to do with the sophisticated magneto rheological electronic suspension than anything, but I digress.
I continued to shoot without putting too much thought into the process, I just let the car and the city speak to me. I was after all, just a tourist and these are simply what a Speedhunter’s version of travel photos look like. In that sense when I looked back on these images I found they had a certain candid feel to them that isn’t typical of my work, which makes sense as these weren’t shot with the intent of ever being shown to anyone.
I suppose this post could even be viewed as an extended “cutting room floor,” a series comprised entirely of out takes. I guess the lesson I’ve learned here, if there was one to learn in the first place, it’s that even when I’m not on the clock, I’m a Speedhunter through and through. It’s something deeply engrained in my DNA, something I cannot (nor do I wish to) escape. This time, I don’t think I’ll forget.
-Sean
photo by Sean Klingelhoefer
photo by Sean Klingelhoefer
photo by Sean Klingelhoefer
photo by Sean Klingelhoefer
photo by Sean Klingelhoefer
photo by Sean Klingelhoefer
photo by Sean Klingelhoefer
photo by Sean Klingelhoefer
photo by Sean Klingelhoefer