Decotora!
By Zio
Photos by Roger Snider
Photographer Roger Snider and his fantastic images of souped-up big rigs are featured in issue 17 of SWINDLE. Roger also traveled to Japan to shoot decotora, or art trucks, there. Check out these web-exclusive photos, as well as the story behind them:
“These photos were shot in Aichi, Japan, during a truck show for Boy’s Day at the end of the traditional Golden Week. Aichi is a large industrial prefecture a few hours west of Tokyo on the Shinkansen. Trucks came from all over the country to attend and left later that night or early the next day. Unlike here in the States, there are various truck clubs in Japan that attend these charity truck shows all around the country.
“I actually traveled to Japan twice in three weeks to shoot this whole story. The first time I went I had meetings with two guys in one of the most famous clubs in the art truck scene. I also had an opportunity to photograph their trucks in the Japanese countryside. I returned 10 days later to shoot the truck show, which was some of the worst weather I have ever shot in. During the light show finale, it rained so hard that I had to shoot with one hand while I held an umbrella in the other, and my tripod was set up in a foot of water. Ultimately this water on the ground took the images to a whole new level, so the risk paid off.
“I chose Japan as my first overseas shoot because I am really impressed with the imagination and use of technology that goes into the art truck design. I have plans to visit several other countries soon, and will be traveling all over the U.S. this summer shooting the best custom rigs right here at home as well. Stay tuned!”
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For more visit www.ultrarigsoftheworld.com