Friday symbolizes a lot of fun just over the edge. It’s the precipice we’re all happy to stand on, and for most it marks the blurry line between the working week and the freedom of the weekend. There is no single correct way to spend this free time, but in my case all the best weekends have included cars to some degree, even if it takes the gloss white form of a rented hatchback only used to chew miles and sip gas on the way to the end destination. But before we step into the bubble called Saturday & Sunday, we need to spend a few antsy hours “working for the weekend.” Why not take an early break and ditch the spreadsheets and inboxes for some car photos on Instagram?
This week’s edition of Instagrammers Worth Following is a clumpy one; there is a pair of profiles that have mastered the nebulously-defined art of “feel,” a pair of owners who travel in their classic cars like modern RVs, and finally a photographer who frankly shoots all kinds of cool shit, including the automotive stuff we love most. If there are people out there you feel should be included in the future editions of this weekly, we’re always interested in hearing about them. Here is the selection for this week:
Gregoire Thorel’s photos all have a tinge of nostalgia to them without resorting to the cheap filters that butcher the tones and overlay everything with too much sepia. The style here is one that’s obviously been honed in on, and it works perfectly for the subject matter, rendering the scenes with a layer of emotion that can only come from a sense of wistfulness. The almost hazy colors still retain some depth and richness to them too. They are technically sound, so it’s not like his page is one big contrivance that plays off our longing for the past.
Nico Schminke’s page also has a distinct feel to it, and it’s one of those every-once-in-a-while gems that I love to stumble across. You can’t help feeling a bit special in some weird way when you find something artistic that many others are unaware of, but I’m not trying to brag about how much I sift through Instagram. Instead, let’s all appreciate the beautiful and thoughtful portfolio of the Motor.Tourist. To balance all this brightness with clarity, to give that airy look to every photo without making anything appear washed out, is a sign of real skill and restraint. It’s an account full of monochrome contrast and an overall mastery of light, and it’s the most intriguing I’ve seen in a while.
Kile Brekke’s account name gives a big hint at its contents, as inside you’ll find plenty of photos of his little blue 2002. And while the same car might appear frequently, it’s always doing something new. Here’s somebody who takes a car almost a half century old and wrings more use from it than many modern workhorses. It’s fun to track the car across new places, and it doesn’t hurt that Kile’s a more-than-accomplished photographer.
Jeff Suhy has some things in common with Kile above. Namely, he drives an old car all over the place. That “old car” happens to be the still avant-garde Citroën DS—if you’re going to mostly shoot one car, it might as well be something that isn’t tiring to look at! The lines and creases and big scultped surfaces catch light in a new way with seemingly every angle of the sun, and the car is one of those timeless designs that fits in with every piece of scenery both manmade and not. From the bleached back roads of Monterey to the harsh cliffs further north, this DS21 always has time to have its picture taken.
Dom Romney rounds out this week’s batch of Instagrammers, and I think it’s a fitting one to end with given how he shoots an encompassing selection of the massive world of cars. He’s a professional photographer no doubt, but his page doesn’t cater only to those looking for his finished work. It’s there of course—and it really is remarkable—but there is also a lot of looks behind the scenes at the locations, the gear, and the setup. It’s fun to watch a project’s outcome while having the pieces of its making right there next to the final shot.
As always, check out the official Petrolicious Instagram page to find more of the quality photography you’ve hopefully come to expect.
