Celebrating the National Park System

The US National Park system is celebrating 100 years this year. I’ve always treasured these parks and have visited a lot of them here in the Western US. They never cease to amaze me and I feel absolutely lucky to have the freedom to go to these places and capture their wonder and beauty. It’s nature at it’s finest. I am often speechless when I am in these places. Zion is one of my favorite places. This past visit, I hiked to Angels Landing which is an accomplishment, as I had my Alpa on my back. Here are a couple of images from my time in Zion.

Volvo XC90 & social

As part of my Volvo XC90 shoot this past October, I also documented to project for social media purposes.  During the course of the shoot, I shot and manipulated images on my IPhone to be posted on Instagram.  It was a behind the scenes documentation of the road trip and provides a way to connect with the XC90 without it being directly about the vehicle.  Social media allows for the potential consumer to identify in a way that is more authentic and true to their heart and emotions.  These images are meant to draw the viewer into the funnel of prospective consumer and client with images that they can personally relate creating a connection between the consumer and the idea of the vehicle.

 

Volvo XC90 Trek through Pyrenees

I teamed up with Spanish producer Dany Vives Jenny of Beeline Productions based in Barcelona for a 5 trek through the mountains of Spain and France.

An epic journey that spanned 1400 kilometers of amazing roads.  Starting in the French Pyrenees for a sunrise lakeside shot, we struck just the right angle and perspective in the dark while we watched the sun hit the mountain peeks.  From there, we moved to a mountain ski resort town for a dramatic sunset along a mountain road.  The view of the alpine town below was amazing as the sun set and the golden leaves glistened in the warm light.  From there it was a string of small medieval towns that just blew my mind.  What a contrast between this highly technologically advanced car and the old 1000 year old roads and buildings.  We ended in Barcelona just in time for my flight back to the states.

 

Retouched by Gloss Post Production.

Retouched by Recom Framhouse NYC.

F is for FAST

Lexus vehicles have some really amazing lines right now. I’ve had a keen eye on them for a while. The whole line up of vehicles have such nice look and feel. To add some personal work to my portfolio, I shot the RC-F coupe. It was two hot days reaching 95+ degrees each day of the shoot. First day was focused on the car itself shooting for strip into existing backgrounds and some details showing off those lines I love so much. The second day was an exploration with talent. Shooting the car and talent in different spots within a larger location and with wardrobe variations to tell different stories. Gloss Post Production retouched the hero shots and did a fantastic job putting them together and giving the images a beautiful look.

 

Nissan NV

Earlier in the year, I had the pleasure of working with Matt Archuleta on a Nissan location shoot.  Working in Big Bear, we found a great location that provided several different looks to create the variety of images.  It’s a large van and we really packed in a lot of stuff.  So if you have a large family or like to bring a lot of stuff camping, I would recommend this van.

Behind the Scenes with Medium Duty

I was fortunate to be selected by Team Detroit to shoot Medium Duty Trucks for an update to the site. Shooting real vehicles is always a treat, adding the scale of these trucks made for an exciting challenge. Working with a great team from Team Detroit was Monica Malden-Stevens and Ross Kurtis, we collaborated to create some great images. Here’s a few images from behind the scenes.

Olympic Peninsula; A walk in the woods

After wrapping a project in the Pacific Northwest, I paid a quick visit to the Olympic Peninsula for a day and a half. I had been so close many times before but hadn’t had the time to make a visit. This time things worked out and I was able to visit. After driving for a few hours without exiting my vehicle, I stopped just outside the entrance of the Hoh valley rain forest. Upon opening my door, I was overwhelmed by the pure oxygen of smell and the green in the air. At exactly that moment, I could feel the muscles in my neck melt and my whole body seemed to shimmy and relax into a new posture as the stress left my body. Then, I proceeded to strap on my 35lb backpack full of camera gear (my alpa with lenses, my wonderful new Nikon 810 and my trusty Iphone for my instagram pics). I choose the trail I hoped was the least traveled given the full parking lot of vehicles. Impossible to escape the people but the deeper I got, the less people I saw on the trail. The light was coming in and out of clouds as I hiked along the trail. What I loved the most was how the light would come through just windows into the forest and illuminate just bits and pieces of the forest. It made for some really great pictures.

Hoh Rainforest in the Olympic Peninsula

Hoh Rainforest in the Olympic Peninsula

Hoh Rainforest in the Olympic Peninsula

PDN article about how I shot both stills and motion simultaneously

An article in the “How did I get that shot” PDN August edition has an article about my work.  Specifically, the article talks about how I executed a project that included both still photography and motion for web.  Teaming up with Leo Burnett, I was given the task to create all assets for the launch of a new GMC Fleet vehicle.  This included both still and motion assets.  The idea was to create continuity in all marketing assets ranging from website, print advertising and social media.  Over the course of 12 days, I created a library of images and video to launch this new vehicle, the City Express.

It’s a great article and Holly Hughes has done an amazing job of translating all of what I have to say into a concise article.

PDF of the article:  pdn_article_how_i_got_that_shot

The site is here:  http://www.gmfleet.com/chevrolet/2015-city-express-cargo-van.html

A montage of some of the video content is here:

Chevrolet City Express gifs from David Westphal on Vimeo.

Low Res Records drops a new album with my cover art

Released on July 8th, a new compilation album from Low Res label featuring my photography for it’s album cover art.  So happy to have a chance to collaborate with the label and Justin Ivey to create the imagery for the album.  Great collection of music as well featuring artists from around the world.

The Calm

At the end of the day, there’s a calm that washes over as the adrenaline fades.  The sun falls out of the sky and we are left to reminisce the day that has just passed contemplating the next one.