What to wear
Dark, plain and non-reflective, because whatever the photographer and the subject wear appears in the paintwork. A white shirt reflects across an…
In short: Dark, plain and non-reflective, because whatever the photographer and the subject wear appears in the paintwork. A white shirt reflects across an entire door panel and is the most common invisible mistake in car photography.
Colour. Dark and plain — for the photographer as much as the subject. Whatever either of you wears is reflected in the paintwork, and a white shirt appears across an entire door panel.
Fabric. Matte. Anything reflective adds a second highlight to every curved surface in the frame.
Footwear. Clean soles if anyone is leaning on the car, and something you can crouch in — most good car frames are taken from knee height or lower.
The thing that ruins frames. A high-vis jacket or a bright bag left in shot. On a reflective surface it appears three times: on the door, on the window and on the bonnet.
In the bag. Two microfibre cloths and quick detailer for fingerprints, a black jumper for the photographer to kill reflections, and a torch for blue-hour interior frames. Wheel cleaner if the car came off a motorway.