A bespoke Land Rover Defender is much more than a standard vehicle with a few upgrades. Every detail, from the wheels and bodywork to the interior and finishing touches, has been carefully considered. When that much work goes into a build, the photography needs to do it justice.
I've had the pleasure of photographing several custom-built Defender 90 and 110 vehicles for Bespoke Defenders, taking them to some fantastic locations. From the striking architecture and colourful streets of central London to the mountains and remote roads of the Lake District, each setting brought out a completely different side of these vehicles.
That's what I enjoy about photographing cars. Finding a location that really suits the vehicle, working with the available light and creating images that make people stop and look. For companies building and customising high-end Defenders, it's an opportunity to show potential customers not just what they've built, but how special the finished vehicle can look.
Bespoke Defender 90 – Photography in London
One of the things I love about photographing bespoke Defenders is how well they work in unexpected locations. Most people associate a Defender with muddy tracks and open countryside, but put one against London's striking architecture and it takes on a completely different character.
For these shoots, I wanted to show another side of the Defender 90, taking the vehicles into the city and finding locations that would complement their design, colour and individual modifications.
London really comes alive after dark, and the right lighting can transform the look of a vehicle. The colourful geometric wall provided a fantastic backdrop for the grey Defender, with reflections playing across the bodywork and bringing out its shape and finish. It's a much more contemporary setting than you might normally associate with a traditional Land Rover.
The Defender's unmistakable shape is one of its greatest strengths. Its upright body, wide stance and substantial wheels look fantastic against the sharp angles and clean lines of modern architecture.
I particularly enjoy finding locations where the building becomes part of the composition, framing the vehicle rather than competing with it. There's something striking about the Defender's distinctive, upright proportions against the clean lines of contemporary glass and steel architecture.
Not every photograph needs a dramatic backdrop. Sometimes a simpler setting is exactly what's needed to show off the quality of a bespoke build.
A clean side profile allows the design, proportions, wheels and bodywork to speak for themselves. For a company selling individually customised vehicles, these photographs are just as valuable as the more dramatic shots. They allow potential customers to appreciate how all the individual design choices come together in the finished vehicle.
I also wanted to give the vehicles a real sense of London. With the Shard and the City skyline in the background, the Defender takes on another character entirely. There's something I really like about seeing such a distinctive, traditionally designed 4x4 against one of the world's most recognisable city skylines.
For the bronze-coloured Defender, I chose a riverside location overlooking Canary Wharf. The warmer colour of the bodywork works particularly well against the cooler tones of the buildings, creating a very different feel from the grey Defender photographs.
And that's one of the great things about photographing bespoke vehicles. Every build is different, and the photography should reflect that individuality.
For a specialist vehicle builder, this variety is valuable. A single finished Defender can produce a whole collection of photographs, from dramatic images for advertising and social media to cleaner views that show customers the details of the build.
My aim is always to create photographs that make people stop and look, while giving the company a useful collection of images that helps present and sell the vehicles it's worked so hard to create.
Bespoke Defender 110 – Photography in the Lake District
For the Defender 110, I wanted something completely different from the London shoots. Somewhere with a real sense of space, where the landscape could become as much a part of the photograph as the vehicle itself.
The Lake District was a fantastic choice. Surrounded by mountains, with dramatic scenery in every direction, it's an incredible place to photograph a Defender. The changing weather and natural light also bring something to the pictures that you simply can't recreate in a controlled environment.
What I particularly like about this photograph is the scale. The Defender sits against the enormous backdrop of the mountains, yet its distinctive shape and beautifully finished bodywork still hold their own.
The clean side profile allows you to appreciate the proportions of the longer 110, the wheels, stance and overall design. It's a simple composition, but sometimes giving the vehicle space within the landscape is far more effective than trying to fill the frame with it.
Changing the angle and position brings out a completely different side of the vehicle. The front three-quarter view gives the Defender a much stronger presence, showing the details of the front end, the wheels and the way the individual modifications work together.
That's something I always look for when photographing bespoke cars. I want a collection of images that does more than show what the vehicle looks like. Each photograph should bring out something different, whether that's the design, the details or the way the car sits within its surroundings.
From the architecture and colourful streets of London to the open landscapes of the Lake District, these shoots show just how differently a bespoke Defender can be presented through location photography.
Bespoke Defender 110 – Photography Montage
I've also put together a short montage of the Lake District photography. It's a nice way to see more of the images together and shows how a collection of still photographs can be turned into a useful promotional piece for a vehicle builder's website, social media or marketing.
Photography for Bespoke Vehicle Builders and Customisation Companies
For companies restoring, upgrading or building bespoke Defenders, the photography is an important part of presenting the finished product.
A customer considering a substantial investment in a custom vehicle will want to see the quality of the work, the individual details and how the complete build looks outside the workshop.
Good photography also gives the company a useful collection of images for its website, new-build announcements, press coverage, social media and future marketing.
I can work from a specific brief, but I also enjoy taking responsibility for the photographic approach, from choosing suitable locations to producing the finished images.
For suitable projects, I can take the vehicle to agreed locations and handle the shoot independently. Rather than a company having to organise and pay for several days of photography, I can offer an arrangement where they review the finished images and pay for the photographs they select for use.
It's a straightforward way to produce a collection of high-quality location photographs without tying up the company's team throughout the shoot.
I'm based in London and photograph vehicles across the UK, working with automotive brands, specialist builders, manufacturers and agencies.
You can see more of my automotive photography, including work for luxury car brands and commercial campaigns.
If you restore, customise or manufacture specialist vehicles and would like to discuss photography for an upcoming build, get in touch.