Steve Reyes
Steve Reyes began shooting drag races in Northern California in the early 1960s when the sport was still in its formative stages and long before there were any photographers who were dedicated to the sport. Up until Steve became involved, most of the photos taken look pretty much alike, and frankly most of them were pretty boring. The standard photo was a side shot with the driver in the car and the crew around it, a side shot with the tires smoking, or an angle shot that left the viewer wondering whose car it was. Steve began shooting the cars and crews in off-track settings, restaurants, parks, airports, etc. He also proved that having a tree or a building in the background added to the overall effect. He also managed to put together a lot of photos that included great-looking ladies but more in the way the fashion photographer posed them then the usual “stiff” pose. Steve also had a way of anticipating where to be at the right time to capture some of the most outstanding action photos of the sport. When everyone else was at the starting line; Steve was either partway down the track or at the finish line. When everyone else moved down the track he was at the starting line, somehow knowing there would be some special action. Steve admitted part of this was luck, but he also studied the cars and drivers and was aware of their strengths and weaknesses, such as when they were experimenting with something new or there was a problem in the prior round that couldn’t be fixed. Steve also worked very hard at his job. At one time he attended 52 drag races a year plus several street rod events and sprint car races. In 1973 Steve went to work full-time for Argus Publishing, where he was photo director for 20 years, during which time he filled the pages of 6 to 10 magazines each month.
It was because of his spectacular and unusual photos, layouts, and contacts that a lot of formerly unknown racers began showing up on the pages of magazines such as Popular Hot Rodding, Super Stock, and Dragstrip Magazine, just to name a few. Steve was also responsible for a lot of the photos that found a place in the racing newspapers. Truly a pioneer in the world of drag racing photography, Steve set the benchmark for future photojournalists to aspire to. There’ve been a lot of photographers who have entered the sport since Steve started his version of photos, and there will be others to come, but none of them will ever be able to replace Steve Reyes and his knack for being where the action is and capturing it on film. Steve knows other sports as well, having photographed Major League baseball for the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York from 1981 to 1985 and the National Hockey League from 1991 to 1995.