WINGS' N WHEELS

It had been over a decade since I last stepped foot into the automotive scene as a photographer.

In those ten years, I owned plenty of cars and motorcycles, but I always struggled to find a community where I could share that love and passion without feeling judged for having an unmodified car or bike. Somewhere along the way, the automotive community had started to feel like something I was on the outside of.

Then I came across Wings N Wheels.

I had lived in the Iowa County area for four years, yet somehow, this was the fifth year Wings N Wheels had taken place and I had never even heard of it. I started doing a little digging into the event, the organizers, and the community behind it. Everything I found pointed to a group that genuinely seemed welcoming to everyone, regardless of what they drove or rode.

So I reached out and asked if I could photograph the event.

I walked into Wings N Wheels feeling rusty. I hadn't worked around the automotive community in years, and I wasn't entirely sure how I was going to feel stepping back into that environment with a camera in my hand.

Those nerves didn't last long.

From the moment I arrived, the staff was friendly. I met with the event organizer to get my credentials, and I was greeted with a smile and a genuine welcome to the event. There was no feeling of having to prove myself or explain why I was there.

I started walking through the hundreds of cars, motorcycles, and people, taking everything in. Before long, I found myself talking with fellow Harley riders, who were more than happy to give me advice about some issues I had been dealing with on my own bike. I wandered over to the motorcycle dyno, watched what was happening, talked with people, and somewhere in the middle of all of it, something just clicked.

It felt like home.

A home I hadn't realized I'd been missing for a very long time.

And it wasn't just the cars and motorcycles that made the event feel different. Everywhere I looked, there were people simply enjoying being there. Kids were running around, looking at the cars and motorcycles, taking in everything that was happening around them. Families were spending the day together, enthusiasts were talking with complete strangers, and nobody seemed concerned with whether the person standing next to them had a fully built show car or something completely stock.

The vendors added to that same feeling. OTC Nutrition out of Dodgeville was there, and the people working the booth were friendly and easy to talk to. Hibachi Time kept people fed throughout the day, serving up some seriously good food to a crowd that had worked up an appetite walking around and taking everything in. It was those little interactions that made the event feel less like a collection of cars and more like an actual community gathering.

While walking around the event, I met another photographer, Nick from EMS Photography out of Cedar Rapids. He had traveled quite a distance to be there. I told him a little about myself and admitted that I was nervous about working the event. After being away from automotive photography for so long, I didn't feel completely prepared.

Nick could have easily just continued doing his own thing, but instead, he took the time to talk with me and help me get comfortable again. He gave me advice on what to look for throughout the event, talked through camera settings, and even handed me an ND filter to help me keep my exposures cleaner in the conditions we were shooting in. We talked photography, shooting cars, and the challenges of working an event like this, and that conversation gave me a little more confidence as the day went on.

That small gesture meant a lot.

When another photographer is willing to stop what they're doing and take the time to help someone else, especially someone who is finding their way back into the scene, it says a lot about the person. More importantly, it says something about the community they're part of.

And that was really my experience with Wings N Wheels.

The Black Plate Society didn't just put on an event filled with cars, motorcycles, aircraft, vendors, and people. They created an environment where enthusiasts, families, kids, vendors, photographers, and newcomers could all feel like they belonged there.

I went into the event wondering if I still belonged in the automotive photography world.

I left feeling like I had found my way back into it.

Sometimes, you don't realize how much you've missed something until you're standing in the middle of it again.

Wings N Wheels reminded me why I fell in love with photographing this community in the first place.

Full album: https://darkstudiofilms.com/album/wings-n-wheels