On November 30, 2016, General Motors unveiled its newest sports prototype race car, the Cadillac DPi-V.R. The 600-horsepower racing machine marked Cadillac’s return to prototype racing for the first time since 2002. Some of the car’s features include Brembo brakes, performance wheels, and vertical lighting elements—all inspired by Cadillac’s line of V-Performance automobiles. The Cadillac DPi-V.R competed in North American endurance racing events from 2017 to 2022. Its successor, the Cadillac V-Series.R, debuted the following season as the brand’s next-generation prototype racer.
One of the Cadillac DPi race cars is currently on exhibit at the National Corvette Museum, along with a photograph captured by Richard Prince. Prince’s photograph features the automobile on display, along with four other Cadillac prototype race cars, on the high banks of Daytona International Speedway in 2022. Prince typically handles preseason photography for Cadillac and Corvette Racing each year before Daytona’s 24-hour race in late January. The photograph shows all five cars in motion, moving at speeds around 50–60 miles per hour.
Capturing an image like this one presents significant challenges for a photographer, even one with decades of experience like Prince. First, the photographer must coordinate with teams and racing officials to reserve track time. The drivers of each car receive instructions regarding where they should be positioned and how fast they need to go. For this image, Prince shot out the open door of a minivan while tethered to the vehicle in a full safety harness. This setup allowed him to make adjustments by giving additional directions to a representative of the race teams, who relayed instructions via radio to the drivers of the cars and the minivan. Although he used a gyro stabilizer system to help steady the camera, he noted that bumps in the track and the turning of the vehicles made it difficult to hold the camera still.
Prince’s goal was to get the cars in focus while capturing enough blur in the road surface and surroundings to create a sense of motion. He calls this photograph a winner due to the pleasing composition of the race cars, the centering of the Daytona branding on the wall, the framing created by the wall and double yellow lines, and the overall sharpness of the image.
