It's Back!

Cad, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

Rumors of the old rusty Cadillac's demise were premature. It seems that the owner hooked it up to a tractor and pulled it around to the back of the barn, to facilitate the harvest season. It's now parked back out front, in almost the same spot as before.

Incidentally, it seems that in the meantime the owner has painted some greyish-blue primer onto some of the rustier spots, particularly on the hood and roof. So....is the restoration finally starting?

Fading Glory

Fading Glory, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

So, I've bored a number of you with photos of this old rusting Cadillac sedan, parked picturesquely in front of a barn in rural Illinois. It sat there for at least five years, probably longer, occasionally moving around a bit as the owner moved his boat in and out of the barn. I've literally shot thousands of photos of this car, stopping whenever I happened to drive past, sometimes testing out some new gadget or technique I picked up. Seriously, though, four digits.

Anyway, long story slightly longer, I found out earlier this evening that the old Caddy's gone, leaving behind a rectangle of bare dirt in the lawn. I can only hope that the owner finally got around to restoring it, but most likely he sold it on.

What's to become of Fading Glory? I've no idea, but I leave you with this, the last photo I took of her, back in May.

Dreams Of A Shinier Yesterday

Dreams Of A Shinier Yesterday, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

It's that Cadillac again.

Cadillac Dreamland

Cadillac Dreamland, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

A new(ish) picture of an old friend.

Faux Retro

Fading Glory, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

It's that Cadillac again. I pass it fairly frequently when I'm out in the countryside, and I often stop and shoot a couple of frames, just for kicks. This despite having literally hundreds of different photos of it, taken over the last couple of years. I like to use it to test out new toys or techniques, but also, I've learned that you never know when something you like will disappear. So shoot it when you see it.

Cad Nebula

Cad Nebula, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

I seem to have found several old Cadillacs through the years, or they have found me. This is a '62-ish sedan.

I thought the rust spot around the logo looked like a bit nebula-esque. The title was a tossup between this and "The Pillars of Cadillac", which wouldn't make sense if you didn't know about the "Pillars of Creation".

Snowy Glory

Snowy Glory, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

The Old Rusty Cadillac, wearing a fresh coating of snow. I seldom manage to get out here first, before other people walk around it and leave footprints or wipe the snow off. It was nice to do so, just this one time. I tried to not leave footprints all over the place.

I also like how the melted bits on the windshield and grille form a smiley face. It was a fleeting smile, too, as it warmed up and rained the next day.

Staring at the Sun

Flare, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

Cloudillac

Cloudillac, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

Great sky day that afternoon.

Fins

Bel Air, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

Long a symbol of jet-age Populuxe America, the tailfin is probably the one thing people think of when you ask them about cars from the 50's. Fins and chrome. They started off small with the '48 Cadillac, just little fins inspired by the Lockheed P-38 fighter plane (or so Harley Earl said), and eventually grew to rocket-like proportions, right along with America's fascination with the Space Race. And they weren't just an American phenomenon-auto makers the world over used this styling cue, although for not nearly as long.

Anyway, all this is really just an excuse to show some of my favorite fin photos. Up top is the classic '57 Chevy Bel-Air.


This here's a '61 Imperial. The wiggiest fins in my book, with those little hanging gunsight taillights.


The famous, melting fins of the '59 Chevy Impala, with those excellent teardrop taillights.


Cadillac had the first, and always seemed to have the biggest too-the towering fins of the '59 Biarritz is almost a cliche. I prefer the subtler looks-relatively speaking-of the '60 Eldo, as seen here.

Fading Glory

Fading Glory, a photo by William 74 on Flickr.

I haven't visited the old Caddy in a while, so I felt that the new Argus was as good a reason as any to drop by and see the old girl again.

Through the Viewfinder Tuesday!

Caddy, originally uploaded by William 74.

An old favorite. I should shoot through frosted glass more often.