2012 CTS-V Wagon Michigan

I went into work on Saturday to get some car pictures done.  Pulling into the parking lot I noticed a CTS-V Wagon parked by the clean-up department.  After some inquiry it came to my attention that this was going to be driven by the dealership owner starting in a few days.  This was my short window of opportunity to get some pictures of this CTS-V and to take it for a test drive.

The first very cool item I noticed was a g-force meter on the dash.  I had to test this out and headed toward the back parking lot.  It was fun speeding around in circles to see how high the meter would read.

The next test was the highway.  The CTS-V Wagon handled amazingly well on the bumpy Michigan roads even at high speeds.  The seats were comfortable and with the Cadillac set to performance driving mode the ride was still smooth.

If I had $70k to spend on a car this would be one of my first choices!  Do you live in Michigan and want to take the new CTS-V Wagon for a test drive?  Contact the professionals at Labadie Cadillac in Bay City.

Need car photography done in Michigan?  Contact David Defoe

Self Pictures

How do people get good pictures of themselves with a cell phone?  I can take good pics of other people but can’t seem to get any decent ones of myself.

Mid-Michigan Repair Collision

When doing SEO research I often find it interesting what google reporting tells me what keywords people use in search.

Today I had one of the shocking discoveries.  I am working with the auto body shop at Labadie in Bay City, Michigan and trying to figure out how to get more traffic to their portion of the website.

I figured that people would search for car crash repair.  Google tells me that 3,600 people per month search for that.  Not a big number lets continue.

“Car accident repair” = 8,100

“car body repair” = 60,500 searches

How about “collision repair”? 74,000 searches.  Really more people type collision repair that car body repair?

The numbers are getting better.  How about the really big numbers?  What is the #1 keyword that if I rank well for it would really drive traffic?

“auto body repair” = 165,000 searches per month. Ok now were getting some good numbers.

A search for “paint and body” shows 823,000 monthly searches.  Now there’s a key phrase I’d like to rank on the first page for!

Do you need paint and body work done in Michigan?  Contact Labadie!

Considering A Scion

The car that I drive has over 160,000 miles on it and the transmission is starting to slip.  I would love to get a new car but really torn as to what to get.  I know that I don’t fit the 20 year old demographic but I’m really considering a new Scion xB.  The hatchback would provide enough room for the photography equipment and these Scion’s just look cool.  I built one out at http://www.scion.com and the price the way I want it would be just over $20,000 which makes it a low priced car.  However I would need to contact a local company to put leather on the seats.

Any thoughts?  In my 40’s am I to old for a Scion?  Should I get one?  Is there anyone that actually reads this blog and would like to help me make up my mind?

Mid-Michigan Scion dealership

Saginaw Non-Profit Gets Free Van

LABADIE TOYOTA SCION PRESENTS CITY RESCUE MISSION OF SAGINAW WITH A NEW TOYOTA SIENNA VAN

Get the full article at:  http://goo.gl/orPtX

Labadie Toyota Scion will be presenting a new Toyota Sienna van to the City Rescue Mission of Saginaw, as part of the Toyota 100 Cars for Good program on Thursday, August 25th at noon.  The public is welcome for this event!

The Toyota 100 Cars for Good program is awarding 100 vehicles over the course of 100 days to 100 deserving nonprofit organizations based on votes from the public. 100 Cars for Good is engaging the public to help determine how corporate philanthropic donations will be awarded.

The City Rescue Mission of Saginaw has been in the work of providing hope and care for people in need since 1905. Last year CRM provided a warm bed and place of care for over 900 residents, over 62,000 meals, and over 28,000 nights of lodging for homeless men, women, and families that had no place else to turn for help. Dan Streeter, Executive Director of CRM stated that, “Working towards solutions to end homelessness is our goal and that is why the Toyota Sienna will make a huge impact on how we work to help people every day. We will use the vehicle to pick up food donations to use for meals, to serve the homeless, take our guests to a medical appointment, assist with transportation for employment, or stop by a local church or business to pick up donated items.”

Recognizing the City Rescue Mission of Saginaw, Labadie Toyota Scion wanted to further support their positive impact on the community.

2011 GMC Sierra Truck Saginaw

It was so muggy in mid-Michigan today that I thought I was going to faint when taking pictures.  Today I had to stop after 6 vehicles.  Perhaps putting an industrial sized fan in the studio would be a good idea.

More pictures of this (and other Sierra 1500) trucks can be seen at:
http://www.labadiegm.com

GMC Yukon XL Denali Saginaw

I was out taking pictures of large SUV’s again.  The Yukon XL doesn’t fit in the car studio very well.  I am trying to think of some ways to increase the efficiency of the studio and improve the quality of the photos.  The lens I have on my Olympus E3 is wide enough to get the full vehicle without getting the lights or non-pained portion of the floor but my employees don’t have the same quality lens.

I would like the round the corner that can be seen at the rear of this large SUV and round the top of the wall (can’t see in this picture).

2011 GMC Terrain Bay City

It is still the hottest days of summer in Michigan.  Normally I would be taking my daily new car photos outside.  Fortunately I’ve gotten caught up on my picture taking, changed around some of my employees work schedules and will now take all car pictures in the studio.  Having not worked in the Bay City car photo studio for a few months it needs some re-design.  When the studio was build almost 2 years ago I was on a budget and didn’t have much experience with a studio this size.  Now 2 years later it is in need of some lighting tweaks to get even more quality out of the images.

As you can see in the image above – the lights are to direct and creating some unpleasant hot spots.  I am trying to figure out how to bounce and spread out the light a bit.  I’ll probably need to add a few more lights to keep the intensity up.

Pictures are taken for Labadie GMC Bay City Michigan.

Pizza Hut Pizza Saginaw

I love pizza and Pizza Hut is one of my favorites.  The other night I was coming home late from a Dr appointment with my son and I didn’t really want to cook so we stopped into Pizza Hut on Bay Road in Saginaw.  As always seems to be with kids, we can never seem to agree on toppings.  The one thing we agree on is the stuffed crust.  This night we tried something new which was bacon, red onions and my half with mushrooms.  This was a very tasty pizza!

I didn’t have my usual camera with me on this night so I used my cell phone for this picture.  I had purchased a use Rumor Touch but never really played with the camera.  I’m impressed with the quality of the photo from this cheap phone.

2011 GMC Yukon Denali Saginaw

Why is it that I see a lot more Cadillac Escalade’s in Saginaw than Yukon Denali’s?  Is it the status of an Escalade?  Or perhaps people don’t realize that the Yukon Denali is essentially the same SUV with a GMC nameplate?  Well the Escalade does have a little more exterior chrome and Cadillac front end.

But the Denali, like the Escalade, gets a host of lavish, exclusive materials and trims inside, along with a long list of luxury and convenience features, including tri-zone automatic climate control, a power-folding second-row seat, parking sensors, and remote starting.

At this point in my life I can’t afford to buy either an Escalade or Yukon Denali to drive around Saginaw in but it is nice to be able to drive them around when I take pictures.

This picture was taken for the www.labadiegm.com website.