The ACE Café first opened in 1938 on the London north circular road to cater for the passing motorists and soon became a hang out for motorcyclists of the time. The Second World War was not kind to the café due to the nearby Willesden railway marshalling yards that were heavily bombed resulting in the café being destroyed in 1940. Rebuilt and opening in 1949 catering for the Rockers of the 1950 and 60s it closed its doors in 1969 only to reopen in 1997.

ISO 400, Focal Length 55mm, F2.8 at 1/250 of a second, images from the ACE Cafe museum. Credit RP Watkinson Photography.

One of the successes of the ACE Café is the regular events they hold where like minded bike and car enthusiasts meet up for a brew and chat while checking out each others rides. The event we attended was the GTR Owners Club (GTROC) first meet of the year at the café. The GTROC regularly have meetings at the ACE - check out their website for the next one if you would like to attend.

ISO 640, Focal Length 45mm, F9 at 1/250 of a second.

Rolling out of Lincoln with a R35, R33 GTR and a GT370 Skyline the weather was not kind to us but progression down the Queen's highway was brisk and exciting. Watching the 370GT trying to put its power down coming out of the roundabouts in the rain kept me hugely entertained on the way there.

ISO 200, Focal Length 68mm, F10 at 1/200 of a second. Credit RP Watkinson Photography.

ISO 200, Focal Length 22mm, F14 at 1/15 of a second. Credit RP Watkinson Photography.

Arriving at the ACE Café early got us a good parking space and a good view of the GTRs and Skylines arriving in style. The meeting attracted a lot of attention from joe public and I spent a long time chatting to people about my 23 year old Datsun. Most were amazed that I use it as a daily, but cars are for driving.

ISO 640, Focal Length 18mm, F5 at 1/800 of a second.

So onto the photography, the location has two main areas the interior and exterior these will require two very different techniques to acquire a great picture. 

ISO 800, Focal Length 26mm, F4.5 at 1/80 of a second. Credit RP Watkinson Photography.

Look for interesting shadows and try and use the light you have available instead of using a flash. If you are not getting the f-stop and shutter speed you need for the shot you are after remember the exposure triangle and adjust your in camera ISO settings.

ISO 640, Focal Length 34mm, F4.2 at 1/40 of a second.

A higher ISO will give you a faster shutter speed reducing camera shake and a smaller f-stop (larger number). A smaller f-stop will give you more of your subject in focus this is generally called the depth of field (DOF). Large DOF is good for interiors as you will get more of the subject in focus.

ISO 640, Focal Length 40mm, F4.5 at 1/40 of a second.

On most DSLR there is a DOF preview button next to the lens usually bottom right. This helps you see what the image will look like before the photo has been taken regarding DOF. When you press the button, the lens will stop down to the aperture that you have set. Then you will be able to see a preview in the viewfinder. 

ISO 100, Focal Length 18mm, F4.5 at 1/250 of a second.

Outside is quite urban with some nice features. As the day was rainy, overcast and not great for photography and the event had attracted a lot of photographers, I started to look for something different to capture as the standard pictures would be swept up by the hoards of young photographers in skinny jeans. 

ISO 640, Focal Length 18mm, F9 at 1/250 of a second.

Looking around for something different the main area of interest for me were the reflections, detail on the wet cars and puddles. However, I will always recommend standing back at an event and taking time to chat to people before shooting. This will give you an insight to what is happening and might give you a opportunity not available to others, a bonnet opening or access to the interior of a car.

ISO 100, Focal Length 80mm, F5.3 at 1/50 of a second.

ISO 100, Focal Length 80mm, F8 at 1/80 of a second.

ISO 640, Focal Length 50mm, F9 at 1/80 of a second.

ISO 640, Focal Length 56mm, F9 at 1/80 of a second.

ISO 200, Focal Length 22mm, F14 at 1/15 of a second. Credit RP Watkinson Photography.

ISO 200, Focal Length 22mm, F14 at 1/15 of a second. Credit RP Watkinson Photography.

I hope you have enjoyed this write up of the London ACE Café. As always I don’t claim to be an expert on this subject it's just my enthusiastic observations of a day out in the city.