Author: Randy Wells

SADE’S AURAL APHRODISIAC

When Diamond Life burst onto the scene in 1984/1985 it provided a calm oasis. This was not post-punk or techno-pop. This was an album of lush and lovely music with smooth jazz moods and world beat underpinnings. Superficially cool, the Latin tempos trapped in the grooves simmered with a passion just waiting to explode. Continue reading “”

KING CONE

Honest, I did not come up with the title for this article! Still, I’m very honored that Excellence featured my 1972 Porsche 911T/ST in their latest issue (#205).

In addition to the magazine, you can read more about Jeff Barstow’s top class win and our great adventure together in SLC on an earlier blog post.

Fast runs at 2012 PCA Parade, mine first then Jeff’s:

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MAGNUS CUM LAUDE

When it comes to the early Porsche 911 community, it’s pretty hard to ignore the large elephant in the room when there’s a loud buzzing cloud over its head emanating from social media gone berzerk. Facebook fans, press, ads, films – Magnus Walker has accomplished more in a year than most of us do in a lifetime.

I love the guy. Who doesn’t? He’s got it all going on: tats, dreadlocks, a ZZ Top beard, hip clothes, and a “rules is for fools” attitude. Heck, he’s even got a British accent. He’s everything we are not. Continue reading “”

ONE DAY AMONG MANY

We are now ten years beyond the unthinkable, the World Trade Center attack, thirty years past another example of a world gone wrong – the murder of John Lennon, nearly fifty years on from the assassination of John F. Kennedy, and seventy years after the one that first jolted the U.S. out of its reality, the attack on Pearl Harbor.

The world is certainly a different place today because of those events. Hopefully it will be much, much longer before we encounter another act of senseless violence.

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AN APPROACH TO AUTOMOTIVE PHOTOGRAPHY

Number four in my series of RANDY’S PHOTO TIPS a.k.a. his creative photographic process:

When approaching automotive photography, one of the first challenges is the belief that you can fix everything in post-processing. Unfortunately (or fortunately), a car’s complex bodywork and glossy paint reflects everything, especially on dark colored vehicles. So, unless your location and background are clean and well thought out beforehand, you could be left with an image that needs a lot of complicated retouching. Continue reading “”

HERB ALPERT’S COVER GIRL

Forty-seven years ago Herb Alpert released a record on his A&M label that went on to sell over six million copies. The playfully erotic LP cover, which was risqué at the time, featured a whipped cream-covered fashion model named Dolores Erickson. The image, now a pop culture icon, certainly didn’t hurt sales. Continue reading “”

WHY WE NEED HEROES

Neil Armstrong’s passing on Saturday left me wondering: Who are our heroes in this country today? Man’s first walk on the moon in 1969 seems long ago, and maybe a bit distant to our growing global challenges. Yet it was the natural culmination of a journey that started less than 110 years when the Wright Brothers flew for the very first time. Continue reading “”

LEICA M10 TO BE ANNOUNCED?

Recent reports that a new Leica digital rangefinder will be revealed at Photokina next month (with autofocus aids, live view, and video capabilities) started me thinking about my life with these German cameras.

The first Leica I purchased was a M4-2 rangefinder in 1979. I was just back from the best King Crab fishing season with my dad and had a little money to spend. A Leica M3 joined it shortly after. I still own and use those cameras. Continue reading “”

VACATION

Vacation. From the Latin word vacatio, meaning freedom or exemption. A restful respite. A period of exemption from the world. A soulfully fulfilling experience of freedom.

An island in Washington state’s South Puget Sound holds a recluse that my wife and I can escape to for a couple of days every month. Once or twice a year we spend two or more weeks at a time there. Continue reading “”

THE LUCKY AMERICAN

The latest issue of Excellence Magazine (204) carries a story of mine on the 1965 Lucky Lager 911 and the early racing career of driver Bruce O’Neil.

Bruce is certainly “The Lucky American” when it comes to racing the early 911 in Europe in 1967. His was a unique experience that would be very hard (if impossible) to repeat. Racing has changed so much. Continue reading “”

PART III. CREATIVITY AND THE DIGITAL CAMERA: A LOOK BACK – Randy’s Photo Tips

For the third installment on creativity and the photographic process I revisit my first professional digital camera in an article I wrote for PC Photo Magazine:

“What inspires us to photograph in a more creative way? For some it might be the realization that we are seeing something anew for the very first time. It might be as simple as connecting with a new country or culture. Maybe this inspiration is a reward for venturing outside of our comfort zone. For others, it might come from trying out a new technique, or viewing a master photographer’s work, or being forced to overcome some challenge that compels us to aspire to heights we haven’t reached for previously. Continue reading “”

THE DOORS ON 45 RPM VINYL

Check out the link below for a review by Michael Fremer on the new Analogue Productions release of the seminal The Doors first album.

Mastered by Doug Sax on 45 RPM 12″ LP and SACD from analog tape, and overseen by original recording engineer Bruce Botnik, this reissue is a killer diller. The only thing that might be better would be Sax cutting it from the master tape, but that’s apparently unusable. Yes, the original Elektra gold label LP with no RE in the dead wax pressed at Monarch is a little more “alive” since it was cut from the original master, but this one will still light your fire. Continue reading “”