Walkways that twist through treetops, zigzag along mountain paths and climb skywards feature on our new Pinterest board.
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Walkways that twist through treetops, zigzag along mountain paths and climb skywards feature on our new Pinterest board.
Follow Dezeen on Pinterest | See more walkways in our archive
Dutch firm Studioninedots has renovated a 1970s office building in the Dutch city of Hilversum, removing sections of the existing walls and floors to create a four-storey void crisscrossed by steel staircases (+ slideshow). (more…)
Milan 2016: Japanese designer Naoto Fukasawa has created a sheepskin armchair and London studio Doshi Levien has produced footstools shaped like "marine creatures" for furniture brand B&B Italia's 50th anniversary collection (+ slideshow). (more…)
When shopping for a used vehicle, there’s no such thing as having too much information about its past. After reading the seller’s narrative of this 1991 Chevrolet Suburban Silverado, for sale on Hemmings.com, we have a vivid picture of how this truck has spent the last 25 years (and why it’s in the remarkably well-preserved state pictured in the photos). Purchased as an occasional-use vehicle by a Texas ranch family, the Suburban proved too nice for regular use, spending much of its time indoors in a windowless garage. The current owner, an automotive engineer, inherited the truck in January of 2014, and has since replaced brakes, fluids, belts, tires, shocks, and serviced the air conditioning system. Even the factory radio was pulled and sent to Delco’s service center for a rebuild, meaning that this rig is as much of an early-1990s time capsule as you’re likely to find. The only drawback we see is the truck’s rear-wheel drive instead of four-wheel drive. While that’s a plus for fuel economy, it may discourage shoppers in Snow Belt states (though honestly, this truck is too nice to drive on salted roads). From the seller’s description:
In 1991 Grandpa and Grandma went to Fredericksburg, Texas to Hein Chevrolet for a new vehicle. This one would probably be their last new one so they splurged. On the showroom floor was a new Suburban Silverado loaded with every available option. This one had the 350 V8 with the Automatic Overdrive Transmission, PS, PB, AC front, AC rear, third seat, PDL, PW, chrome mirrors, barn doors with rear window defrosters (that nobody can ever remember seeing on a Suburban in 1991), Delco premium am/fm, cassette player with graphic equalizer, velour interior, two tone paint, alloy wheels, bumper guards and rub strips, underhood removable trouble light, full size spare with cover mounted in the carpeted cargo area.
The dealer took it to a local shop and installed a Class 3 hitch and brake controller and wired the vehicle so they could tow a 16 foot camper they owned. Turns out they only went camping a couple of times once they had it.The pictures speak for themselves, this is a bone stock, unmolested vehicle that when you look at it would only guess it to be about five months old. It was always kept in a windowless garage with a concrete floor so it was dark and dry the whole time.
They bought it with the intentions of taking it to Fredericksburg, Texas on Sundays to go to church. The only problem with living out on a ranch in the Texas Hill Country is that if you drive all the way into town to go to church you might as well take the ranch truck and pick up a few things while you are there. Because of this the Suburban never got driven a lot. When Grandpa and Grandma had passed and we got the Suburban, it only had a little over 78,000 miles on it. That was in January of 2014.
My wife and I brought it home and I went through it over the next few months. I am an Automotive Engineer so am pretty fussy about my vehicles. This vehicle has ZERO RUST on it and the underside is AMAZING. It still has all the chalk marks on the frame. When I changed the front shocks I saved one because it looks like it was never installed on a vehicle. Break it loose with a wrench and a little oil and disassemble it by hand.Here is a list of what was done to it to get it ready for some trips we had planned-
I changed all the fluids and put a new set of Michelin tires on it and went through the brakes all the way around. Water pump, alternator, cap, rotor, wires, plugs, battery, hoses and serpentine belt, 02 sensor, Monroe Magnum shocks all the way around, new windshield, sent the factory radio down to the Delco Radio Service Center in San Antonio (one channel was out due to a blown capacitor, had all of them changed at the same time). Vacuumed the AC System down and refilled it with new oil and R12. Pulled the drive shaft and had the u-joints replaced and checked the balance of the assembly. After everything was done I installed an XM radio but hid the mount in the ash tray door so when you are not using it you can out the XM radio in the glove box and close the ash tray door so it looks bone stock inside.
Since we have had it we have been to Florida twice with it to see our daughter and in 2014. We took it for a tour through New England for a few weeks in July of 2014. We get comments on it wherever it goes.
On the road at 70 we were getting just over 18 miles per gallon. It went on all of these trips without using any oil at all. I have been changing it every 3,000 miles and it stays really clean between changes. This is a VERY nice rig and it rides like a Lincoln on the road. Vehicles like this are once in a lifetime finds in this condition. It should really go to somebody who would appreciate and cherish it, like Grandpa and Grandma did for so many years.
Find more Chevrolets for sale on Hemmings.com.
When shopping for a used vehicle, there's no such thing as having too much information about its past. After reading the seller's narrative of this 1991 Chevrolet Suburban Silverado, for sale on Hemmings.com, we have a vivid picture of how this truck has spent the last 25 years (and why it's in the remarkably well-preserved state pictured in the photos). Purchased as an occasional-use vehicle by a Texas ranch family, the Suburban proved too nice for regular use, spending much of its time indoors in a windowless garage. The current owner, an automotive engineer, inherited the truck in January of 2014, and has since replaced brakes, fluids, belts, tires, shocks, and serviced the air conditioning system. Even the factory radio was pulled and sent to Delco's service center for a rebuild, meaning that this rig is as much of an early-1990s time capsule as you're likely to find. The only drawback we see is the truck's rear-wheel drive instead of four-wheel drive. While that's a plus for fuel economy, it may discourage shoppers in Snow Belt states (though honestly, this truck is too nice to drive on salted roads). From the seller's description:
In 1991 Grandpa and Grandma went to Fredericksburg, Texas to Hein Chevrolet for a new vehicle. This one would probably be their last new one so they splurged. On the showroom floor was a new Suburban Silverado loaded with every available option. This one had the 350 V8 with the Automatic Overdrive Transmission, PS, PB, AC front, AC rear, third seat, PDL, PW, chrome mirrors, barn doors with rear window defrosters (that nobody can ever remember seeing on a Suburban in 1991), Delco premium am/fm, cassette player with graphic equalizer, velour interior, two tone paint, alloy wheels, bumper guards and rub strips, underhood removable trouble light, full size spare with cover mounted in the carpeted cargo area.
The dealer took it to a local shop and installed a Class 3 hitch and brake controller and wired the vehicle so they could tow a 16 foot camper they owned. Turns out they only went camping a couple of times once they had it.The pictures speak for themselves, this is a bone stock, unmolested vehicle that when you look at it would only guess it to be about five months old. It was always kept in a windowless garage with a concrete floor so it was dark and dry the whole time.
They bought it with the intentions of taking it to Fredericksburg, Texas on Sundays to go to church. The only problem with living out on a ranch in the Texas Hill Country is that if you drive all the way into town to go to church you might as well take the ranch truck and pick up a few things while you are there. Because of this the Suburban never got driven a lot. When Grandpa and Grandma had passed and we got the Suburban, it only had a little over 78,000 miles on it. That was in January of 2014.
My wife and I brought it home and I went through it over the next few months. I am an Automotive Engineer so am pretty fussy about my vehicles. This vehicle has ZERO RUST on it and the underside is AMAZING. It still has all the chalk marks on the frame. When I changed the front shocks I saved one because it looks like it was never installed on a vehicle. Break it loose with a wrench and a little oil and disassemble it by hand.Here is a list of what was done to it to get it ready for some trips we had planned-
I changed all the fluids and put a new set of Michelin tires on it and went through the brakes all the way around. Water pump, alternator, cap, rotor, wires, plugs, battery, hoses and serpentine belt, 02 sensor, Monroe Magnum shocks all the way around, new windshield, sent the factory radio down to the Delco Radio Service Center in San Antonio (one channel was out due to a blown capacitor, had all of them changed at the same time). Vacuumed the AC System down and refilled it with new oil and R12. Pulled the drive shaft and had the u-joints replaced and checked the balance of the assembly. After everything was done I installed an XM radio but hid the mount in the ash tray door so when you are not using it you can out the XM radio in the glove box and close the ash tray door so it looks bone stock inside.
Since we have had it we have been to Florida twice with it to see our daughter and in 2014. We took it for a tour through New England for a few weeks in July of 2014. We get comments on it wherever it goes.
On the road at 70 we were getting just over 18 miles per gallon. It went on all of these trips without using any oil at all. I have been changing it every 3,000 miles and it stays really clean between changes. This is a VERY nice rig and it rides like a Lincoln on the road. Vehicles like this are once in a lifetime finds in this condition. It should really go to somebody who would appreciate and cherish it, like Grandpa and Grandma did for so many years.
Find more Chevrolets for sale on Hemmings.com.
The Rubicon is one of the most punishing and challenging trails this side of Moab. Understandably, it's not for everybody, even if they have a four-wheel-drive rig. But for those who still want to experience it, Google strapped its Street View cameras to a rig crossing the Rubicon and added the resulting images to its Street View app. (via)
* Tracking down long-lost cars is a task that rarely produces results, but TravelDriveRace's Dave S. Clark was able to find his father-in-law's Volvo 142 race car decades after his father-in-law sold it, and discovered that it still tears up the track today. (via)
* Following up the Mustang II was either the most difficult or the easiest thing Ford ever had to do, depending on your view of the Mustang II. DrivingEnthusiast has more on the process behind and context surrounding the Fox-body Mustang's development.
* Even if you're Australian, it's almost guaranteed that any top 10 list of Australian cars – such as this one from D'Marge – will include something new to you.
* Finally, it's odd we don't see more engine swaps using the Vortec 4200, the Trailblazer's inline-six engine with serious potential. Engine Swap Depot, however, did profile the swap of a Vortec 4200 into a Vega wagon for drag-racing duty, and it seemed to pay off with 11-second timeslips.
The Rubicon is one of the most punishing and challenging trails this side of Moab. Understandably, it’s not for everybody, even if they have a four-wheel-drive rig. But for those who still want to experience it, Google strapped its Street View cameras to a rig crossing the Rubicon and added the resulting images to its Street View app. (via)
* Tracking down long-lost cars is a task that rarely produces results, but TravelDriveRace’s Dave S. Clark was able to find his father-in-law’s Volvo 142 race car decades after his father-in-law sold it, and discovered that it still tears up the track today. (via)
* Following up the Mustang II was either the most difficult or the easiest thing Ford ever had to do, depending on your view of the Mustang II. DrivingEnthusiast has more on the process behind and context surrounding the Fox-body Mustang’s development.
* Even if you’re Australian, it’s almost guaranteed that any top 10 list of Australian cars – such as this one from D’Marge – will include something new to you.
* Finally, it’s odd we don’t see more engine swaps using the Vortec 4200, the Trailblazer’s inline-six engine with serious potential. Engine Swap Depot, however, did profile the swap of a Vortec 4200 into a Vega wagon for drag-racing duty, and it seemed to pay off with 11-second timeslips.
This week on Dezeen: fashion designer Stella McCartney revealed her kit designs for British athletes competing at this year's Olympics, while a new logo for the Tokyo 2020 games was finally selected after the original design was ditched. (more…)
New York 2016: New Zealand and Dutch design duo Sabine Marcelis and Brit van Nerven have created a range of mirrors from layers of coloured glass that create ombré effects across the surfaces (+ slideshow). (more…)
When it comes to contemporary architecture, San Francisco is a stubborn town. But could change be coming at last? Proposals by high-profile architects such as OMA, Studio Gang and Foster + Partners could bring a more dramatic skyline and a transformed waterfront – if San Francisco's notoriously persnickety planning system and pressure groups let them (+ slideshow). (more…)
A cropped view of the 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T seen below. Photography by author.
Spring has arrived, it's warm and sunny and hopefully soon there will be leaves in the trees. You've likely already dug out your weekend cruiser from its winter slumber and prepared it for the road. Possibly you've even driven it a bit.
While it's still fresh from its latest detailing, it's the perfect time to take some photographs of it for posterity. They make great screen savers, too. You can also take some photos with your phone. You may not always have your car with you when someone asks about it, but you'll likely have your phone, and this way you can have car photos at the ready. Take a few extra of the car with your family, and you'll cover two bases in one photoshoot.
If you are using a camera that offers some manual control and you need a quick refresher in basic camera settings, refer to the blog Take better photos of your car, today that was posted in October of 2014. In this blog, I'll simply offer up some background examples you may have yet to consider that can add some more interest to your car photos.
Outdoor, ambient light photoshoots force us do the best that we can working with the backgrounds and light that are available to us. Though I find cars in my area to photograph from time to time, by and large, most of my car features are shot away from home. That means suitable backgrounds have to be found once I arrive for the shoot. It's great when it happens, but the truth is I rarely find a good one right away. Normally it takes some exploration of the owner's town—sometimes an hour or more of driving around. Happily, persistence often pays off and I find a background that will work well with the size and color of the car I'm there to photograph.
We've all likely used green trees and grass backgrounds (car on the pavement or gravel not on the grass) and we likely will for many years to come in situations when that's the best option that presents itself. There's nothing wrong with that background except that it's used frequently. When I do use a grass and tree background, I still try to add more interest by varying the shooting angle, for instance.
Other popular backgrounds over the years have been barns, lakes, brick buildings, office buildings etc., all of which can still work very well. My favorites of the more popular ones are still gravel pits, dilapidated structures or walls and autumn color.
Regardless, I still try to locate other unique backgrounds whenever I can just to add more elements of interest to the photos. However, I also try to ensure the background doesn't become a distraction and compete with the car for attention.
Late day or early morning when the sun is low are generally the best times to shoot. If the sun is out remember to keep it at your back when shooting, so the car and background are lit by it, unless you purposely want some artsy shots of the shadow side of the car. This means that it's important to note if your background gets morning or afternoon sun and to plan accordingly.
You can shoot on an overcast day, just before sunrise or just after sunset as well, which will reduce the shadows, but there are other considerations when doing that. I'll discuss them in more detail when I cover some aspects of lighting and reflections in the next blog.
Other tips for choosing backgrounds and preparing the car can be found in the previously mentioned blog above.
With all that said, here are a few backgrounds I've used over the past few years. Some of these styles you may have seen before, but others may be new to you. Take a look at them and then think about your town. Perhaps you have similar structures or stuff close-by, that you may realize brings out the best in your car.
Just remember to ask permission if these locations are on private property. Most times the owners won't mind at all once you tell them what your intentions are. Usually they quickly become more interested in checking out your car than anything else. There are many more background types that I haven't discussed here. How many can you think of and list in your responses?
Photographing a car in front of train-car is nothing new, but I thought this one in south eastern Ohio worked well with this original paint 1973 4-4-2. Luckily, I saw the train car from the highway as I was nearing the owner's home.
Parking garages can provide multiple opportunities for backgrounds. This one at the Ohio Expo Center & State Fair in Columbus offered up this cityscape from the top level to photograph this 1966 Hemi Belvedere II.
About 100 feet away from the cityscape background was this row of structures. By photographing the car at an angle to them, the repeating pattern and the diminishing perspective add some interest to the background. Shooting from a low angle will lessen distractions from the parking lot lines.
The entry/exit of the parking garage offered another background opportunity for this 1970 440 Six-Pack Challenger R/T.
Directly across from the entry/exit of that parking structure is a long row of large columns. They are actually about 10 feet apart or more, but by setting the car up angled toward them, a repeating pattern emerges and diminishing perspective again adds drama. The yellow pole and the fire hydrant are far enough away to not be too intrusive, but they can also be easily removed in Photoshop if desired.
Can't find a good background? Locate a clean stretch of blacktop or gravel. Get up on a stepstool or ladder or in the bed of a pickup and shoot down on the car and the ground serves as the background, as it does for this 1970 Torino GT.
The same technique works well with a path or road, too. Get up high and shoot down, letting the road show in front and behind the car like it is with this original-owner 1974 GTO in western Pennsylvania.
Even if you are working with a typical green tree and grass background there are still opportunities to be explored. The trees on either side of this supercharged 1957 Ford and their leaves above it frame it suitably.
Framing of the subject can also be done with buildings, garages and overhangs. This 1954 Dodge Royal Sport Coupe is outlined by a vintage building that used to be an automotive repair shop.
The large-block wall is in the parking lot of an office building in Ohio. I spotted it from the road while searching for locations. With the 1967 Nova SS positioned in the sun and the wall mostly shaded, the car pops and the wall adds additional texture.
I noticed this giant metal tank in the yard of a local business that builds them. I liked the patina of the metal and thought it would look good behind this pristinely restored 1969 Z/28.
Not sure what these large round parts are, but they were on the same property as the tank and they looked interesting. This was just a quick snapshot of the '69 Camaro SS after its feature was shot at another location on the property. I just wanted to see if they would make a good background for a future feature.
Don't overlook historic tourist attractions either. This vintage-looking repair shop is located not far from where this 1965 Jetstar I lives.
Small regional airports can offer up backgrounds like this time-worn hangar replete with peeling signage. Though the color of the large doors is closer to the car's body color than I normally like, their texture, emphasized by side-lighting, ensures that the 1968 LTD doesn't become a "Where's Waldo?"