Interview: Photographer Todd McLellan

We recently spotted Todd's photographs on the always pleasing Motart blog. Tod has just shot a 'Classic Motorcycle' series that features some of the sweetest bikes money can buy. We loved his subject matter and photos so much that we wanted to find out a little more about Todd McLellan. 

Could you introduce yourself to our readers? Who are you? What do you do? Where do you live?

My name is Todd McLellan, I was born in the western Canadian province of Saskatchewan. I now live in Toronto where I am a full time Photographer. I photograph a lot in the advertising field and have concentrated on transportation the first part of my career. I am very much into the design of the objects I shoot and I think that what gets me going when photographing something. When the light hits the object it can do wonderful things.

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Indian Retro 47

Earlier this year we featured an Indian Bobber built by Shane at Speed Demon Cycles, and now after 600 hours of "busting his knuckles and burning brain cells" he has finally completed this immaculate Indian project. "The bike has a vintage pushbike theme, with its wide pull back bars, curved frame rails and mid mount foot controls that forces the rider to be transported mentally, back to the past" Shane says. Like many before him, Shane chose the PP100 engine to be the centrepiece for the build. "Many of the top bike builders in the world, have chosen the PP100 engine as the heart and soul for some fantastic build projects. My vision was to design a frame and fork that would compliment the Indian heritage. The hand crafted exhaust system incorporates a punched louver baffle at the top to aid in reversion, while the curved perforated core is packed with ceramic wool to help mellow the bark of this beast. A Biltwell leather seat is mounted on spring dampened shocks for that little bit of ride comfort. The Billet exhaust tip, Gas tank cap, oil filler cap, and outer primary cover, where machined to match the bottle cap rocker boxes". Shane believes this is "definitely some of my finest work" but is already planning his next Indian build "I'm thinking a salt flat racer, but who knows what will develop". We look forward to seeing it – whatever it is.

You can also check out loads more beautiful photos and details on Shane's Indian-Retro47 blog.

Indian Bobber

This old school Indian Bobber was built by Shane Cooper from Speed Demon Cycles who are based in Queensland, Australia. Shane started customizing his own motorcycles in 1976 and hasn't stopped since. Over the years he has owned nearly 30 motorcycles, and every one of them has been customized in some way. "You're looking at the culmination of about 10 months work" explains Shane. "The plan was to build a modern hot rod Bobber. I chose a Harley Softail style frame and springer forks for their timeless looks and ride ability. Not because they suited any type of Indian heritage, purely because I like the look." The bike was built mostly from parts Shane bought on ebay. The frame is a V-Twin Reproduction FXST, rigid rear fender from the infamous jessy James, 1970's shovel superglide gas tank, a 1991 refurbished HD springer and 2008 dyna superglide wheels 17" rear & 19" front. He added 6 degrees to the frame neck and hand made that mean looking hot dog 2-1 exhaust. Lastly, the horsepower is produced by a 2003 PP100 Indian engine purchased from Blackhawk Motor Works in Florida. If you want to see more photos of this formidable beast, check out Shane's Indian Bobber Blog. 

Bonneville Speedweek

This breathtaking photograph is just one in the series by Los Angeles based photographer Jerry Garns. If this shot doesn't inspire you to head to the 2010 Bonneville Speed Week then nothing will. Jerry tells us that someone once said that "if you are a Buddhist you go to Tibet, but if you are a motorhead, you go to Bonneville". Jerry had been wanting to go to Bonneville since he was a kid so when he finally arrived last year this is how he described the life long dream: "Once you leave the paved road and roll out onto the salt, you feel like you are in another world. The expanse and flatness, along with the history of racing, creates a sense of place that is beyond written description. Everyone should go to the salt flats at least once in your life to experience it for your self". To see the other spectacular shots in the series, including legendary Shinya Kimura and Randy Speranza check out Jerry's portfolio.