CHADBEE'S BLOG

CHADBEE PHOTOGRAPHY: Velgen Wheels + IS250

Chad — Tue, 07 May 2013 01:54:52 +0000

I was contacted last week by the guys over at Velgen Wheels with a request to shoot a local IS250 that is rocking their VMB5 wheels in the beautiful matte gunmetal finish. Of course the date we scheduled the shoot for it just happened to start raining within a few minutes of me meeting up with Tung, the owner of the IS, so we retired our shoot to a local parking deck. Enjoy the photos!

CHADBEE PHOTOGRAPHY: Frank-Insight Honda Tuning Feature

Chad — Sat, 04 May 2013 22:08:09 +0000

A few months back I got an email from my editor over at Honda Tuning telling me he had an unusual car he wanted me to shoot for a magazine feature. My interest was peaked and I had to inquire what the project was, when he told me it was a Honda Insight with a J35 V6 VTEC engine from a Honda Odyssey swapped into the hatch area and converted to rear wheel drive my jaw almost crushed my desk. What neither one of us knew was while the car had already been approved for the feature that did not stop the owner from continuing to modify the car. By the time I contacted the guys over at Mini-Tec, the people responsible for this mad creation, they told me they had to get it retuned because they just added a 35R turbo to the swap! Within a few weeks the “Frank-Insight” was tuned and was now pushing 400whp to the rear wheels and ready for its feature shoot. Little did I know this would be one of my favorite cars I had ever shot yet also one of the most difficult. While this car is incredibly cool and badass, it also is still an Insight and not the most photogenic car on the road, haha. Regardless I think photos came out pretty well and I know the guys over at Mini-Tec loved the shots. When you get a chance, make sure to pick up a copy, check out the photos and read the article because the story behind Frank-Insight is pretty amazing.

The layout in Honda Tuning Magazine:

CHADBEE PHOTOGRAPHY: TX2K13 PHOTO COVERAGE

Chad — Sun, 24 Mar 2013 23:24:31 +0000

As most of you are aware, I left Atlanta bright and early on March 13th to start my journey to Houston Texas for what I consider to be the best automotive based event in the world, TX2k. This four day event is basically heaven on earth for the performance automotive enthusiast where you are able to see, experience and compete against some of the country’s fastest street cars.

The Omni Hotel, which is basically TX2k’s fortress, is THE place to be through out the weekend if you were not at an organized event. The Omni was a 24 hour car meet, party and of course a great place to find a few runs in “Mexico” if that is your thing.

Thursday morning I arrived at Texas World Speedway for the TX2k13 HPDE and Time Attack event. This has always been an impressive event filled with some incredible machines piloted by some very talented drivers. While most people in attendance were participating in the HPDE to just go enjoy their cars on track we also had a brave group of individuals ready to go to battle against each other and the clock. The highly competitive and talked about Time Attack started with all drivers strapping transponders to their cars which would record their lap times. When the dust settled our six fastest drivers would move on to the finial round of competition.

Congratulations is in order for the top fastest drivers of the day:

Paul C – tube frame Camaro racecar 1:45.62

Nathan C – (TopSpeed Motorsports GT-R) – 1:48.21

John M – (GT-R) – 1:50.378

Greigh K – (GT-R) – 1:51.705

Khib K – (GT-R) – 1:52.389

Jeremy R (SSP GT-R) – 1:52.428

On Friday Hennessy Performance once again hosted the TX2k dyno day and car meet. This event always brings out the biggest vendors and an always impressive collect of vehicles to be strapped to the rollers.

Later that night Lonestar Motorsports Park opened its gates for the TX2k13 night meet. Activities included a burnout contest, live music from local bands, lots of alcohol and the bikini contest.

Saturday and Sunday was when all the big boys came out to play for the Tx2k13 Drag Race Event. This notorious event brings competitors from all around the US and puts some of the most fierce machines against each other for two days. While it was clear to see the heavy GT-R influence this year the Supra, LSx and Mustang guys still represented to the fullest and we saw more than 20 8 second passes made during the event.

After the event was over, me and the guys from GT-R Heritage, AMS, Topspeed Motorsports got together for a couple quick photos before we were kicked out of the track.

Polivoks’s 4.4L Alpha 10, Tim Sanders legendary Alpha 12, and the 1600whp AMS Alpha Omega! Count THAT horsepower in one picture!

ATL GT-R’s TSM Built Alpha 12, which took home first place in the GT3 Unlimited Class and the AMS Alpha Omega which brought home honors of the highest trap speed of the event, crossing the 1320 marker at 172.9 MPH.

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FOR THE FULL GALLERY OF 100+ PHOTOS ***CLICK HERE***
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CHADBEE PHOTOGRAPHY: Caffeine and Octane February 2013

Chad — Sun, 03 Feb 2013 22:46:40 +0000

This morning I crawled out of bed at 8am and made a fashionable late appearance at Caffeine and Octane, which is Atlanta’s premier automotive enthusiast get together. This month I took a very casual approach and spent 95% of my time socializing with friends, which was a extremely refreshing change of pace. Keeping that casual attitude, I’m not going to give you 8 paragraphs about how amazing this event is, I’m sure you already know, and if you don’t then that isn’t my problem =P

Here are a few random photos that I did take this morning:

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***ALL PHOTOS TAKEN WITH MY IPHONE***

CHADBEE PHOTOGRAPHY: Daniel & Julia’s Engagement

Chad — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 21:40:42 +0000

My friend Daniel and his beautiful girlfriend, Julia recently got engaged. Naturally, they requested me to be the official photographer for their special day. Part of the process of photographing their wedding is the traditional engagement photo session. We chose Stone Mountain Park as the location for their photographs, as this place is very special to them. This is where they went on their first date and have spent many wonderful days there since.

Congratulations Daniel and Julia, I hope you enjoy the photos!

Here is a small sample of some of the images from their engagement session.

I love my car

Chad — Sun, 13 Jan 2013 05:32:44 +0000

I have been buying and modifying cars for 15 years….but I have always been that guy that bought a car, did mods, drove it for a 6-12 months and sold it. It was never a big deal to me, it is just a car. I even went this route with my 2004 track edition 350Z back in 2006.

About 8 months ago I bought another Z. A mint condition, one owner, low mileage 2004 Silverstone Touring. I bought it because I wanted to get involved with HPDE Events. I replaced all the fluids with Motul goodness and slapped on some NAPA blanks and Carbotech XP10 and XP8 pads in my single piston calipers. I did 9 HPDE events last summer like this, on all season tires and was faster than the majority of street car Porsches.

Today it was just PERFECT weather here in Atlanta and while the rest of my friends had to work or were just lame I was not going to let it go to waste. I Spent the day with my Z in the North Georgia mountains. It was a beautiful day in the high 60’s and sunny. We cruised, we drove hard, took pictures, and left a S2000 CR edition in our dust. Tires squalled, Carbotech brake pads left the rotors pouring smoke and went through an entire tank of gas. The Z also hit 40k miles on the way home. It was a very memorable experience with a car that I just absolutely adore…the 350Z is a truly amazing sports car when driven hard the way it was meant to be.

For the first time in my life, I feel a real true emotional attachment to a car. I love my Z.

Iphone pics from today, it looks stock, but that doesn’t bother me.

CHADBEE PHOTOGRAPHY: Countersteer Motoring 240sx Steering Knuckle Video

Chad — Sat, 12 Jan 2013 01:54:05 +0000

I recently had a local up and coming performance automotive shop known as Countersteer Motoring book me to do a feature video of the production of their steering knuckle for the S Chassis drift cars that allows more angle mid-slide. The result is a very interesting concoction of grinding, sparks, welding. Check it out and share with friends!

Countersteer Motoring 240sx Steering Knuckle from Chad Burdette on Vimeo.

CHADBEE PHOTOGRAPHY: Porsche GT3RS4.0 Wallpapers!

Chad — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 05:01:06 +0000

Yesterday I left my house to go for a short drive in my 350Z and somehow ended up at my favorite place: Atlanta Motorsports Park. Upon arrival I instantly spotted what is in my opinion the best car in production, currently, and possibly ever. It is clear I have a major crush on Porsche’s GT3RS4.0. It is without a doubt the textbook example of the perfect drivers car and I was very pleased to see it being put to use the way the manufacture intended instead of sitting in somebodies garage being a showpiece.

I decided to make a desktop wallpaper for myself and others but I couldn’t decide on which image so this is what I ended up with:

Enjoy!!!!

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CHADBEE PHOTOGRAPHY: A German Christmas

Chad — Tue, 25 Dec 2012 22:45:16 +0000

This past Saturday there was a Volkswagen R32 owner missing his car….that is because it was stolen by his son and driven into downtown Atlanta, I know that sounds bad but this story does not end with a chopshop. Danny wanted to do something special for his Dad for Christmas 2012 and knowing how much his Father loves his mint condition, low mileage, modified 2004 Reflex Silver VW R32 he contacted me about using my services. We decided a shoot was in order and some framed poster sized prints would make the perfect gift. Danny’s Father has been a long time Metro Atlanta resident and loves the city skyline so we headed deep into downtown to set up at a local spot that has an epic view. After the shoot was completed we ended up printing three 20 inch X 30 inch posters which Danny had framed, I’m sure they will look amazing hanging up in the garage next to the R32.

Enjoy the photos, and this stunning .:R32

CHADBEE PHOTOGRAPHY: My Type of Vacation…

Chad — Fri, 14 Dec 2012 15:37:33 +0000

Those that know me know I work a lot, and while it isn’t hard work and it is fun, it still completely consumes my life. First world problems, right? Yeah I know. Regardless, a small getaway was in order, and I needed to stare at something other than Photoshop for a couple of days. For a driving enthusiast and a photographer, Fontana Dam, North Carolina is essentially heaven on earth. This city is home to the world famous Highway US 129 aka Tail of the Dragon, one of the best driving roads in the world. People come from all over the United States to cruise this scenic passage that borders the Great Smokey Mountains, which is an incredibly gorgeous area with multiple must see and photograph locations.

I left my house Wednesday at 6am with my friend Kelsey riding shotgun in my 350Z and my friend Brendan driving his modified S2000….

After a calm three hour drive through the back roads of North Georgia we arrived at Fontana Village Resort where we checked into our cabin and unloaded all unnecessary items from our vehicles. It didn’t take long to see that our time here would be unlike any other Dragon trip we had experienced. We were basically in a ghost town. All restaurants, gas stations and stores were abandoned with signs in the door that stated they were “Closed for the season”. Thankfully Brendan and I both had full tanks of gas that we were ready to waste on the deserted mountain roads.

My Nissan 350Z and Brendan’s Honda S2000 at Fontana Village Resort:

Brendan’s S2000 is such a beautiful and functional machine:

Piloting my Z:

A lot of people will recognize this route, it is known as The Hellbender and is the road from Fontana Village to the base of The Dragon:

Chasing the S2k:

The Tail of the Dragon has 318 curves in 11 miles:

Kelsey was gripping my Nikon D800 camera as tightly as she could to attempt to capture some video. The result is by no means professional quality videography, but then again that was never the point. Enjoy a short section of the Dragon chasing Brendan’s Honda S2000!

CHADBEE PHOTOGRAPHY: 350Z & S2000 on The Tail Of The Dragon from Chad Burdette on Vimeo.

I rarely take photos of my own car, well because its just a stock 350Z but the scenery in this area is just so stunning and the car performed so well I thought it deserved to be in the spotlight a little. It may be stock and it may be dirty but when driven hard it is just….absolutely amazing:

While I did come to Fontana, North Carolina to drive these amazing roads, the environment is just the icing on the cake. On this trip I made sure to take the time to properly photograph some of my favorite views and locations in the area. I hope you enjoy these images, and I have included some desktop wallpaper versions of my personal two favorite photos.

A couple photos of the Cedarwood Dam, which is located by the Tail of the Dragon Overlook:

The amazing view from the overlook location:

…desktop wallpaper versions here:

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Of course I couldn’t post scenery photos without including a couple of Fontana Dam itself, which size and beauty is just breathtaking:

…desktop wallpaper versions here:

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If anybody would like to purchase a 20 inch X 30 inch poster print of these landscape photographs, email me for a discounted rate: Chad@Chadbeephotography.com

While my miniature vacation was only a two day event a single state away it was just what I needed. Till next time,

Chadbee