My Xperia XA1 is, there’s no other way to put it, already outdated. 24MP and its software has been all but left behind by the current crop of new mid-range phones whose cameras (and I mean cameras, with 2 or more at the back) have more MPs and better processing power.
Still, I reckon my camera can still do relatively high-quality shots, and thanks to a brain wave once upon a time I decided to create these three shots over the course of three weeks.
Experiment 1 featured this Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo model, which I’ve been meaning to shoot in a feature for a while now.
Two shots were taken: one in low light (with only my PC providing the lighting) and another with flash. From there I filtered both low-light and flash shots, then ran double exposures multiple times, layering one after the other until I got this result.
While I still think that my camera needs some extra attachments, this is a good first step. Well, second step, because this isn’t the first time I’ve tried layering exposures. I did that a few weeks ago, resulting in my lock screen below.
Experiment 2 is done at my friend’s house, of all places, with an Aston Martin DBS V12. This minimalist shot was made with just two raw, unedited exposures, but the way I played around with the modes in Snapseed is the key ingredient.
After compositing them I ran high-contrast filters and B/W filters until the two-color result came up. I was satisfied enough that I made it my home and lock screen, and is a good basis for a poster similar to some minimalist illustrations of cars.
Experiment 3 was shot during the day, in a bid to see how flash photography can work even with generous sunlight filling the room. After two shots, I ran them through two reset filters (Snapseed has a bad habit of flipping original photos for a double-exposure) and two fancy filters.
This is arguably my most expansive compositing job yet, with about 12 layer passes of differing modes and extra image tuning besides. And the result is something I am highly satisfied with, what with the background colours matching perfectly with the cars and eye-popping textures that blend the flash and natural light exactly the way I want it.
With some more refinement, I think I can take this technique further in many more cars and environments. Still, I might need specific hardware to help take these techniques further. As it is now, the limits are still apparent in every shot.