1965 R Model Press photo - Questions

[silverton_ford]

I think this came up on the forum a few years ago before the big crash, so please excuse me if this has already been talked about.

This past weekend I was reading Chuck Cantwell's book.  In the book there are some amazing high quality photos.   One in particular is the staged R-model shop scene showing 5S003 up front, 5R002 in the back and guys acting like they are working on the cars for the photo.



My questions:

1. - Why would SAI take off the grille and headlight buckets to convert a car to an R-model?   Was it just staged for the photo, or is it necessary to install the front valence?  The car on the right has the entire front grille off and laying on the ground and the mechanic on the left side of the photo is working on a headlight door.

2. - The second car on the right.  There is a definite patch or paint repair on the quarter panel where a 1966 lower scoop would go.   Do we know the serial number to this car?  Why is this patch or bodywork here on this car?  Vern and I were talking about this earlier today and he informed that SAI experimented with side scoops on 5R001, is this car 5R001?



Far left side of the photo.  Working on a headlamp door.

[6s1640]

Hi Brain,

I have heard or read, as you said, the photograph was staged.  IIRC, the entire shop was cleaned up as well to make the photo look good.  It is not reality.  I am sure the shop area was a mess, with parts, tools and supplies scatted everywhere.  It is likely the posing mechanics were instructed to look busy.  Their actual busy work might be meaningless.  So its hard to say if what they were doing was even real.  It still is an awesome photo.

Cory

[silverton_ford]

Cory,   True, I understand that, I am pretty sure when 5R002 and 5S003 were being put together back in 2013 we talked about the staged photo (notice how everyone is nice and clean too).

Mark Hovander talks about this staged photo on his website as well, about 3/4 of the way down, http://1965gt350mustang.com/history.html

Here is a snip from Mark's website:


......but that doesn't explain why the grille is still off and sitting on the ground and the second car on the right quarter panel still has some sort of patch or primer spot.   

[SFM6S]

The headlights and grill filler removed make for an easy installation of the race apron. In addition, the race cars had the radiator support opening for the radiator enlarged for the bigger radiators . Also on the earliest cars, the ducting for the cooling for the front brakes went through the radiator support.

Joe

[silverton_ford]

The headlights and grill filler removed make for an easy installation of the race apron. In addition, the race cars had the radiator support opening for the radiator enlarged for the bigger radiators . Also on the earliest cars, the ducting for the cooling for the front brakes went through the radiator support.

Joe

Thank you Joe.

[CharlesTurner]

Can't remember where I read it, maybe in Mark's notes or website, but Friedman did not take these photos.

[silverton_ford]

Can't remember where I read it, maybe in Mark's notes or website, but Friedman did not take these photos.

Correct.  Gordon Thorne developed the press kit.  Dave Friedman was out of town that day the photos were taken, so they hired a local photographer to come out to LAX to take the photos around the plant for the press packet.

[mustang7red]

when we restored 002 we found evidence that at one time they had a side scoop and a duct running through the floor to the rear brakes...john brown

[Szabo]

Cant get a good answer but would like to say that this Chuck Cantwell book is very
fine, with great pics and very good written.

I also have it (hard to get in Germany)

The Pics of the Press Pac are closley make between 1965 05 21 and 1965 05 25

the "Staged Photo" Theme is new to me ... but i guess it was closley after working has started
on LAX and so everything is nice and clean ...
when i look on the other Pic from the same shooting i find to much people working
and things lay around for a really staged pic.

[J_Speegle]

Believe "staged" for many only or mostly relates to the people in the picture. When I've been involved with this sort of thing people were positioned at certain places and told to stand "this way" or " position your hand or hands where and look this direct" Also, often they are told to stand still and not to move.

If you are trying to show or hide other things in the final picture that can be removed or added depending on how or what they want to show.

All of this would be very different from action shots which often don't have the definition we see in staged ones.

Just my experienced with staged pictures that we did at work.

[Side-Oilers]

^^ +1 on Jeff's comments.   Heaving done shots like this a bazillion times myself, the more people and equipment you get together, it is (obviously) more difficult, exponentially.

Trying to position the cars and people, and telling them all what to do and not do takes a long time. But, once you start clicking the shutter, and bracketing shots, and changing lights, the people get antsy and start moving...even if just little bit. All of a sudden you have blurred people, and/or a covering (or exposing) of something important, and so on.

Imagine how hard it would be to yell to the guys at the far end of the shop, have them hear you, and do the thing you want. You first have to walk all around and stage everything, talk to everyone. Place the people and their appendages and tools just right. It's not easy.

All of those people have shop jobs that they're now behind on because of this stupid photog (you) who is screwing up their day. So, expect some of them to be at least mildly cranky. And a few of them to be VERY cranky.

Notice that CS and Miles aren't in many of these type of shots.  Is Remmy? I'd kinda doubt it. He had real work to do.

Then you get the shots back, and Murphy's Law often has the one best shot messed up by some movement, or something moved out of place.

In the days before computers, about all you could do was to cut and mask the print. Few photogs had real airbrushes to touch up with. Those were mostly with the magazines and ad agencies. 

Then, everyone in the photos, once it's all over, wants copies of the prints for themselves. And who pays for that? You, the friendly photog who hopes to get to shoot more pix for the company.

[mgreene]

Wow, in that last pic, the Cobra under construction at the bottom with the two batteries in the back - That gauge to the far right of the dash would be kind of hard to read while driving, wouldn't it?

[Bob Gaines]

Wow, in that last pic, the Cobra under construction at the bottom with the two batteries in the back - That gauge to the far right of the dash would be kind of hard to read while driving, wouldn't it?

The speedometer didn't matter much .

[JJH]

That's the flip top Cobra at the bottom of the photo