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Randy Wells is well known worldwide as a car photographer based in Seattle. His automotive photography has been voted among the best in Seattle and the Pacific Northwest.

Randy Wells, Seattle, Santa Barbara, Car, Photographer, Best Automotive, Photography by Randy Wells

PORTFOLIO

Randy Wells has the good fortune to photograph, film, and write about cars and transportation for the best manufacturers, advertising agencies, collectors, auction houses, and magazines full-time. His work has appeared more than 20,000 times worldwide, including magazines like National Geographic. All his work is personally handcrafted. See the link above for 65 galleries featuring thousands of stock images available for prints and licensing.

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THE GALAPAGOS

As has been reported, overcrowding at selfie spots in Italy and Greece has led to pushback from locals. Consequently, aware travelers are veering away from the perceived artifice of major hotspots in favor of more authentic experiences. Here’s one for the adventurer who wants to get off the beaten path. Quito, Ecuador is a well-preserved city that is the oldest capitol in South America. It is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site that is a gateway to the Galapagos Islands. The islands are very protected with just a few groups allowed to visit each week. There you will see but not disturb primeval wildlife that exist no where else in the world. Not a bad way to go.

(Photo: Ernst Haas)

WHO SAYS YOU’RE TOO OLD TO ROCK AND ROLL?

The Rolling Stones and their latest album Hackney Diamonds just won Best Rock Album at the Grammy Awards. I get that, because it is a great album (their best in decades), but what’s with the award for “Now and Then” by The Beatles? Hey, I’m a huge fan, but that’s just an old song put together with AI. It does sound good though. 😉

(Photo: Mark Seliger)

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L.A. FIRES

My heart goes out to everyone impacted by the fires in and around L.A. Several people I know lost their homes or recording studios, including Howie Idelson and Bernie Grundman. Others lost family heirlooms. I was just in Topanga Canyon and Malibu last month to photograph some Porsches. It’s a devastating loss and not always preventable. Mother Nature is not happy.

(Photo of burnt out mostly plastic car on PCH: Michael Christopher Brown)

AMERICAN TUNE

Paul Simon performed this song at the pre-inaugural concert for Jimmy Carter, held at the Kennedy Center, the evening before Carter’s swearing-in as president. That was a long time ago, and the signs were already there. By 2014, the die was cast. Today is just the last chapter in the book on America.

BBC News

ANALOG MAN IN A DIGITAL WORLD

Here’s my airport security tray shot… Apparently this is the coolest thing to post on the web since your meal: Stuff in a gray bin that you think people might like.

I’ve always been different. My motto is to do the opposite of what everybody else is doing. You can probably tell I don’t follow fads, since I’ve been using one of these Leicas since 1984, and my cellphone is not made by Apple.

My tray is filled with stuff I’ve owned for years that I actually use. These cameras cover the film days to digital to the good enough cell phone camera. To be honest, I’ve never sent all this stuff through airport security on the same flight, but they’ve all been around the world.

R.I.P. CONTANTINE MANOS

Constantine “Costa” Manos passed away peacefully at age 90 last week. He was a brilliant pioneer of color photography and a member of Magnum Photos. Along with Ernst Haas and Alex Webb, his color work influenced me deeply.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Image of the Porsche Effect exhibit at the Petersen Automotive Museum, Los Angeles, California, America west coast by Randy Wells

Here’s is a holiday celebration at something called the “Porsche Effect” in the Petersen Museum in L.A. a few years ago. Porsche’s open-tail design on the 917-30 is the background. Have a good one!

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ORIGINS – SEARCHING FOR THE BEGINNING OF PORSCHE HOT ROD HISTORY – A PERSONAL VIEWPOINT

Congrats to Dan Macdonald for his feature in the latest issue of Panorama. It was a pleasure chasing his 1957 Porsche Speedster around the hills of Marin, California. The photo shoot went exceedingly well with lots of possibilities for publication coverage. What makes this Porsche special is its history of being the 1968 E Production Regional SCCA Champion during the “Speedster Wars” of the mid to late 1950s and 1960s.

Before the early 911 hot rod club R Gruppe, a Porsche 356 crew was founded in the Oakland area called the East Bay Grease. Several members were followers of something called “The Speedster Wars”, a mostly west coast phenomenon that paid homage to driving stripped down, hopped up versions of the Porsche Speedster to and from airports and temporary tracks where they would compete for how well they were driven that day.

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PERSONAL WORK 2024

Followers of my blog know that at the end of each year I post a series of three personal photographs made at a non-assignment single location. Here’s a selection from one evening last month on the east side of California’s Sierra Nevada range.

PRO BONO WORK

It’s important that I do at least one pro bono assignment a year. It’s always for a non-profit organization or a worthy cause that cannot pay my standard fee. Like volunteer work for a local food bank or trail club, it helps me feel as though I’m contributing to my community. Look for some photos I made for the PNW region PCA magazine Spiel featuring a TechEd session with my friends Rod Emory and Cameron Healy.

EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE

Every so often I get an inquiry from someone I know who has a friend who wants to be an automotive photographer. I like to help others when I can, so I usually start with something like this:

Success means something different for everyone. For me it means being paid well for doing what I truly believe I was meant to do.

As you know, I have been and continue to be very fortunate working non-stop in the automotive media business. That doesn’t mean I am any less compassionate to those starting out. Here’s why. Continue reading “”