John Brooks has already started the proceedings for our photographic review of 2009 so I thought I’d also do my part and start rummaging through my own snaps from the past 12 months. You’ll need to remember I’ve only been shooting photos for just over one year now and am rather inexperienced a photographer compared to some of my fellow Speedhunters. That said, I’ve shot a lot of video in my time, so part of the exercise for the year has been to learn how to translate my own personal camera shooting philosophy to the medium of photography. Hopefully this is resulting in an acceptable standard of work. Anyway, enough of the art-school banter… let’s get started!

Bonneville Speed Week, Wendover, Utah, USA: The above photo was the first desktop release of a Rod Chong snap on Speedhunters so it holds a special place in my heart!

Formula D, Irwindale Speedway, California, USA: A lot of people in the US drift scene have much respect for Joon Maeng. I’ve never met such an optimistic person before! This slogan on his dashboard says it all.

4 & Rotary Nationals, Auckland, New Zealand: The most perfect wastegate/exhaust setup on a rotary powered FC drag car.

BMW Museum, Munich, Germany: In my books, the BMW Museum in Munich is one of the wonders of the automotive world. This photo gives a small feeling of the gems on display there and the type of multimedia experiences on offer.

SEMA, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA: I maintain this dropped Caddy was one of the coolest and most stylish cars at SEMA this year!

Redline Time Attack/Just Drift, Willow Springs, California, USA: Will Roegge tries a Red Camera on for size.

ALMS Petit Le Mans, Road Atlanta, Braselton, Georgia, USA: The pit crew for the Rahal Letterman Racing BMWs waits for the cars to return to the pits during one of the qualifying sessions for the 2009 Petit Le Mans.

Access Zero 42, Houston, Texas, USA: A crew of local Texas drifters hanging out at the Access Zero car show.

Monza Banking, Milan, Italy: The world’s ultimate Temple of Speed? This is a hallowed ground for our religion of velocity.

Ferrari Galleria, Maranello, Italy: Is Ferrari the most important automotive brand in the world? Go to Maranello and tell me if you don’t come away believing this.

Planet Zero, Houston, Texas: The boy-genius Linhbergh checks out some proper Texas slammage during our recent Houston visit.

ALMS Long Beach GP, Long Beach, California, USA: My first experience of the BMW M3 GT2 at the Long Beach GP. It’s a car we got to know very well over the course of the year.

BMW Classic Collection, Munich, Germany: You know me and Group 5 cars… I just love them!… Especially when they are running period correct 19 inch rear wheels.

Twins Turbo Motorsport, Long Beach, California, USA: The world’s most extreme Supra looking nasty in its living room.

Senna Memorial, Imola, Italy: An outpouring of emotion and devotion trackside at the Autodromo in Imola.

Bonneville Speed Week, Wendover, Utah, USA: This is the salt… a substance that seems to have gotten into my veins.

Formula D, Long Beach, California, USA: It was our goal to adorn racing and street cars around the world with Speedhunters stickers and we’ve been largely successful with this goal. Here Falken Drifter, Tyler McQuarry hams it up to the camera.

Drift Mania West, Western Speedway, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada: A Vancouver drifter won the Pro Am Nationals at Irwindale a few weeks ago… but what would have happened if the two drifters on the left, Chris Scremin and Kohei Nakamura also made it down? They were invited to Pro Am and are reputed to be some of the top drifters in the local West Coast Canadian scene.

Near Birmingham, UK: This past January I hitched a ride up to the Autosport Show in Birmingham with Andy Barnes from the European Drift Championship. This was the view out of the back window of his Landcruiser.

Bonneville Speed Week, Wendover, Utah, USA: The Dandy Tanaka RX7 disappears over the horizon at Bonneville. It had no problem passing the 200 mph mark but spun on this run.

Formula D, Wall Speedway, New Jersey, USA: The Voice of Formula D, Jarod DeAnda works the crowd in New Jersey.

Formula D, Irwindale Speedway, California, USA: Matt Powers represents!

Formula D, Wall Speedway, New Jersey, USA: The Falken crew watching one of their cars during practice at Formula D New Jersey.

Diver’s Hot Rods, Seattle, Washington, USA: Works of art… some in progress builds at Diver’s Street Rods.

Hope you enjoyed this journey with me across 2009… much more to follow!

:R