I'd like to learn how to take halfway decent shots of my car but don't know of any resources on how to do this. I try to gleam stuff from what other people put up that look like studio-quality shots but can't come anywhere close. Are there any tutorials online centered around automotive photography?

First, I have a crappy digital camera. I know this is going to be a big limitation but I'm not really looking to invest in a DSLR or other expensive camera when the only thing I'm looking to shoot is my car and other's at shows, meets, etc. It's a point and shoot Kodak C180 I think. I'd like a better camera, but well, I'd rather spend extra on the car itself. I do have photoshop and experience editing, though it's mainly been for web design or for work and school materials.

Here's some of my shots, I find the black sand pearl extremely difficult to shoot because it reflects everything. I have the opposite problem with the vinyl graphics, they don't reflect but the detial is only really noticeable in direct sunlight. ZFeel free to critique, just keep it constructive.

The door when opened casts a shadow and the graphic just doesn't look right.
http://img183.imageshack.us/img183/7657/newdecal007mq0.jpg

Here is a close-up of the vinyl in the shade, the detail is hard to see.
http://img253.imageshack.us/img253/5848/hpim0763ik2.jpg

The interior shots provide their own set of challenges. I'm shooting from outside so the brightness range really makes everything inside very dark, and shooting close-up through the door makes it hard to frame the image.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3379/3562092473_f415293782.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3631/3562909168_2fd168307f.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3406/3562094525_f7b6c9e1f1.jpg

Well IMO the hardest thing about shooting an automobile is to figure out WHAT IT IS YOU WANT TO SHOOT,

for example, if you want to shoot that Transformer on the side, try to "Artistically" take a picture of it, maybe a side shot of the whole car so that it doesn't just come off as a WTF pic.

The camera positioning also helps, maybe resting it on the floor with the lens pointing upwards to give a different view of the car, there are a couple of different positions to take pics.

The most essential thing is to have a CLEAR picture, none of this blurry crap, then some PS work can really bring out the best of your pics.

That was my $ 0.02

To emphasize my point on shooting positions

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i225/Sergeramirez/fifilifi.jpg

Thanks Checho, I'm really interested in figuring out what shooting positions work best. I've tried to approximate camera angle and height looking at other people's work but haven't been very successful in replicating shots. I've thought about getting a decent mount, right now I'm just using the shorty octupus one and wrap it around whatever is handy nearby.

http://www.made-in-china.com/image/2f0j00CMvtHhfRJUkBM/Flexible-Camera-Tripod-Aw702-.jpg

Also remember the Rule of Thirds. Don't center your subject 100% of the time as it makes the picture less interesting. And try to have some distance between you and your subject, it doesn't need to fill up the frame.

Yeah, I've got no clue what the rule of thirds is. I suppose though I'm looking to just do automotive, a general photography tutorial might be in order. Not sure where to look though for the theory, practice, etc. Any books or something that can be recommended? I was thinking maybe getting this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Bryan-Petersons-Understanding-Photography-Field/dp/0817432256/ref=sr_1_26?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1258665545&sr=8-26

And I also found two specific to automotive.
http://www.amazon.com/Digitally-Photograph-Cars-Performance-How/dp/1932494995/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1258665599&sr=8-1

http://www.amazon.com/How-Photograph-Cars-James-Mann/dp/0760312435/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1258665599&sr=8-2

Rule of thirds-


Simply the rule of thirds states that object of attention should be placed at the intersection of the dividing lines. (Green dots) But you can also place the object along one of dividing lines.
http://photoinf.com/Golden_Mean/Michael_Fodor/Photo_School_-_Rule_of_Thirds/ruleofthirds.jpg


In this picture, the object of attention is placed roughly on the intersections of the right vertical line and the lower horizontal line.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3362/3433941810_e40063f779.jpg

And like Checho said, try angles that are different than one would normally see. Going above or below eye level can make a picture more striking and dramatic than it would otherwise be. Cropping can be combined with this technique for some satisfying results.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2593/3725913164_1c0857aca3.jpg

very nice im going to try this with my crappy cam aswell see what i can do.man i hate my 4mp cam argh :blah: