SEMA 2016- The Conclusion

SEMA is a wrap and I’m exhausted! I tried to get to the show early every morning to avoid the major crowds. That’s the main reason why my shots don’t have too many people in the background of the photos. I want to thank my friend Ilia from IND for getting me in touch with Eneos. It was a tremendous honor and privilege to have my Hakosuka in their booth. Having the opportunity to meet and talk to other enthusiasts across the country was also one of the highlights of this trip. My general thoughts of the show? Overall, it was a good event but it didn’t seem there were too many major import builds that caught my eye. Secondly, the wide body trend is alive and well. I remember when seeing a Liberty Walk car was rare. That is NOT the case anymore…. Anyways, below are my last batch of pics.

CLICK on the photo for the high res version.

My Hakosuka at the Eneos booth. After SEMA, it’s heading over to JDM Legends for some changes…. stay tuned.

2JZGTE swapped 260z Gnose built by Dominic Le. This was definitely one of my highlights from the show.

Their were a significant amount of GTR’s at SEMA, but this one was the best in my opinion. Well executed GTR by Fury Automotive/Bulletproof. This is running the Varis Kamikaze-R Super Sonic Kit.

The OS Giken booth was ironically right next to the Eneos booth. It was cool to see my street hako next to this fully built race car by Z Car Garage. The L28 with OS Giken TC24 head isn’t something you see everyday.

Another shot of my Hako in the Eneos booth.

It was an honor to have Masahiro Sudo and Shunsuke Matsutani from Number 7 GTR Race Team (Japan) to visit the Eneos Booth. Their GTR’s are two of the best I’ve ever seen- style/performance go hand in hand with them.

Very cool twin turbo 1966 Chevrolet C10 by Classic Car Studio from St. Louis.

This 1972 Datsun 510 not only caught my eye, but had an interesting motor swap- Mazda 13B Rotary with Weber 48mm carbs. The copper plated 15″ BBS RS’ was also a nice touch.

This was one of the most interesting Porsche builds at SEMA. If you’re a fan of the air-cooled slant nose look, this car is for you. The 997 features the “old and new” kit.

Kuhl Racing brought their infamous engraved GTR with an STi friend.

Blood Type Racing from Chicago brought this EVO to support the Enkei booth.

Last but not least, Liberty Walk shipped their Gnose s30 to SEMA. Very cool to finally see this in person.

SEMA- Behind the Scenes

As you guys may know, my Hakosuka is being featured in the Eneos booth at this year’s SEMA convention. I arrived early yesterday (Halloween) to help situate the car. These are some of my highlights just from the Central Hall. Keep in mind there were many more builds I would like to share, but they were covered up or debuting through a press event later today.

On a side note, I wanted to use a wider angle lens, but unfortunately forgot that and my CP filter in the hotel. Luckily the day before the show is just setup/last minute staging and no crowds. I was able to pretty much step back a bit and shoot without worrying about people being in the shot. Tons more photos to follow over the next several days. Enjoy these previews for now.

CLICK on the photo for the high res version.

The above two RWB tandem looked almost identical, but note that they are two different builds. RWB was EVERYWHERE and they still catch my attention

“Enhanced Body” RCF. Tons of cool carbon fiber and this was repainted to Lexus’ Ultra Sonic Blue.

Another RWB…..

Brian Redman/Ronnie Peterson 1975 BMW 3.0 CSL

The above 930 turbo was amazing. I kept on coming back to take closer looks at this car.

Very cool 1949 Ford F1 Road Racer with Compound Turbo 1200hp at the Autometer booth.

Fish’s RWB 964 at the airlift booth.

Bagged e30 M3.

I met up with Big Mike and checked out the debut of his 1992 Prelude. The color and details were amazing. I loved the widebody that was custom made for this car.

Chris Forsberg’s Datsun S30 with the Carbon Signal Moonbeam Kit

Umbrella Auto Design debuted their menacing widebody R8.

Season Closer Meet

Hope to see eeryone at our season closer event in a few weeks. Details on our facebook event page.

Chen Huang’s 2000 Acura Integra Type R

Congrats to Chen for making the current issue of Super Street Magazine. Chen met up with me a few months ago in Chicago. After some coffee and what not, we drove to the city to get the feature done. I would have loved to have gone to Chen’s backyard (Iowa) for the shoot, but unfortunately my schedule was tight. Luckily, Chen is a very laid back and flexible. As you’ll come to find out, he’ll go just about anywhere with his Type R.

I was actually surprised Chen’s car was published so quickly. Usually when I shoot a car, it takes 6 months+ to get published due to the amount of planning that goes into an issue. Sam Du (editor of Super Street), really loved Chen’s car and wanted it for the 20th anniversary issue. I had only a few weeks to complete my editing, but luckily I was able to get it done on time. Pick up an issue today to get more details on this incredible build, written by Joey Lee from the Chronicles.

Here are some bonus shots from the feature. Click on each image for a higher res version.

FNL Saturdays- August 20, 2016

Our next BIG meet is coming up soon! Click here for more info.