Yesterday on the radio I heard the title song from Grease and was reminded of my fondness for that movie. Back in 7th grade I was a latch key kid and would watch that movie almost everyday single day after school. It was on a VHS tape probably recorded from the TV, with commercials that I would fast forward through. How I dreamt of acting and singing in a musical someday. Since I had the house to myself for a few hours, I’m sure I did some dancing and singing in the living room. I’ve also often fantasized about being a teenager in the ’50s instead of the ’90s. Maybe in a past life?
The song reminded me of a series of images I made back in 2004 with a square format film camera, way before Instagram. The subject was a car club gathering held along the Colorado River here in Austin at a place called Festival Beach. I’ve always loved classic cars and was somewhat fascinated by the Kustom Kar Kulture. These 10 images above are some of my favorite from that time in my life, and I definitely romanticize the idea of having shot them on film and how much harder that was compared to digital photography today.