BILL PHELPS PHOTO ESSAY W+W

Photographer extraordinaire, the enigmatic and moody work of Brooklyn's Bill Phelps has been featured previously on The Vintagent.  He brought those images, and quite a few newer ones of women in the sea, to Galerie Treize Avril in Biarritz, as a featured artist for this year's Wheels+Waves.  Bill was a quiet presence during the event, stalking photos and taking portraits, keeping all of us mesmerized as he shared his latest images...even in the tiny in-camera view screen, we could tell he was producing a stunning body of work, and all of us with cameras (that seemed to include most participants at times) were inspired to do better work ourselves!  Without further ado, The Vintagent is very proud to present Bill's photo essay, just a sampling of the many hundreds of amazing compositions he carried away from the sea, the mountains, and the motorcyclists.

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CANNONBALL WET PLATES #1

Shooting with two plate cameras; an 8"x10" and a 5"x7", the larger one an original 1890s model, the smaller a new Chamonix using an 1860s Petzval portrait lens.  Photos by Paul d'Orléans / Susan McLaughlin.  The top shot was taken with a just-coated plate which was accidentally dropped on the van floor (by me! Big plates are awkward to handle), but I'm a fan of the unexpected, so went ahead and made the shot; I love the unexpected chemistry.  The bike is a 1928 Indian 101 Scout, with 1940 Sport Scout barrels and heads.  It was recently purchased sight unseen on Craigslist, and is now being prepared/fettled during the Cannonball.  While all participants are a little bit crazy, some are braver than others...

17 Excelsior-Henderson 4-cylinders make up the second largest group of machines, after the mega-gang of Harley 'J' models.

Another shot of the charismatic Indian Scout, here with a full complement of tools and rags...

The Mule is the only overhead-camshaft machine on the rally, and the only Velocette,  although there are two Rudges, a BSA, and a Triumph along...

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