Event Coverage | Hot Import Nights 2012

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

---

Ah yes! It felt great going to a car show again after 2 months of being MIA. Well, actually, I've been going through blogs, sites, etc. to keep myself updated with what was going around in the car scene today. I really didn't notice a new 'trend' thing, so it seemed like nothing has changed that much for this year. One thing for sure though, were new rides popping up here and there and of course, aftermarket companies and just car enthusiasts buying the all new Subaru BRZ or/and Scion FR-S. I was looking forward to see some modded BRZs and FR-Ss at the next car show I planned on attending, which was Hot Import Nights that happened last Saturday.

I'm sure many of you guys know about HIN (Hot Import Nights). As I've mentioned in my previous coverages on HIN, HIN was the first show I've ever attended and this was back in middle school. My friend's sister was actually modeling so a few friends and I got in for free. I think during this time period was when Tila Tequila was trying to be an import model or something. All I remember, were shit load of lights from every angle, bunch of cars with lambo doors, and neon lights and other things in and out of cars. I mean...I thought those things were cool back then because seeing any car that was other than its stock form was awesome to those who just got into the car scene. Anyways, things have changed tremendously throughout the years and as of today, comparing the attended show cars for this year to back then in middle school, it's absolutely shocking.

Event Coverage | Hot Import Nights 2012

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

---

As mentioned in my coverage, I attended Hot Import Nights right after LTBMW's 2012 meet. I was thinking about staying longer at LTBMW because cars were constantly coming in and the quality of cars were so much better compared to last year's meet, but realizing how much of a struggle I had at HIN 2011 when all the lights were off and tons of people walking back and forth in front of the cars I wanted to take photos of, I left at around 2:15pm to arrive a bit early and take an advantage of my media pass. The actual show started at 3pm, so going in at least 10 minutes earlier was good enough for me.

Now, many of you guys might not know this, but last week's HIN was supposed to happen at Irwindale Speedway along with XDC. What the hell happened? Irwindale Speedway filed bankruptcy, so the place is now gone! Well...not gone, but it's basically closed down. What HIN planned to do got fuked up and instead of cancelling the show, they decided to rent out a different place, which was at Fairplex in Pomona, CA. I'm just glad the show still happened because many enthusiasts missed out on HIN last year and wanted to attend this year's event. I enjoyed myself checking out some new rides when HIN was at Los Angeles, but what I really enjoyed was the overall mood of HIN because it brought back memories when I attended HIN back in middle school! Although I got into the scene last year, my first car show was HIN, so it was pretty dam epic to attend it again last year. I think I went right when the show started and left late because it was so fukin dark inside the convention center I had to wait until the lights were back on to do coverage.

So~ being excited while driving to Pomona, CA, I arrived, got in line to get my pass, and entered a building where HIN was taking place. What I usually like to do before I start a coverage is to walk around the whole area and check out the cars. After taking a quick glance, I walked around and took some snaps. While doing my coverage though, I don't know what the fuk happened, but I lost interest in the show within 40 minutes and this is when the show actually started. I'm not saying the car show sucked at all because it was actually dam good. Tons of models, cars, and people, but I think it was because most of the cars that did show were the ones I usually saw at other car meets/shows. I mean..I've been doing this for months now, so had no clue why this feeling struck me. Am I getting tired of this scene already? or is it because I want to see something new? Ah...fuk it..I don't know what the hell I'm talking about right now, so let's get on with the coverage. The lighting wasn't as bad as HIN in Los Angeles, CA but my camera has its limit, so I did have some difficulties taking shots here and there. Yeap~ the photos will be shitty! I tried to take photos of cars I've never seen before, but like I've just mentioned, most of the cars you will see today are the ones you guys have seen in the previous coverages.

Event Coverage | HIN 2011 (Pt. II)

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

---

Welcome back to Night Import! Hope you guys are visiting the blog often to catch up with my articles, because things are about to get serious! Just playing~ As long as I can entertain you guys while at work, home, in the bathroom, with your girlfriend, ... you get the point v(^-^)v
My last partly coverage on Hot Import Nights will be a good one because the photos I'm about to share with you guys came out pretty decent considering the short amount of time I had to cover the whole area when the lights were on during the award ceremony. By the way, congratulations to all the winners! It's always unpredictable to know who will win which category because judges aren't the same for every car show event. Each judge has a different perspective when it comes to certain makes & models, so hope no one was frustrated with the judging and stuff. It's all about having fun and enjoying the time spent with friends and family right? Let's get on with the cars and see what was up at different areas of the huge ass showcase lot. The cover photo for Part 2 is the well-known VIP team in SoCal, BP VIP. It's been a while since I got to know a few members in this team, and I was surprised to see some of their rides with a new look! Click on "Read More" at the bottom right to see their rides.

Event Coverage | HIN 2011 (Pt. I)

Night Import: Photography and Words by William Lee

---

It's here, it's new, and most importantly, it's back! I couldn't even believe HIN (Hot Import Nights) was happening yesterday after all the drama the event organization went through for few years. I don't actually know much about this event, except the fact that I attended one back in middle school, so that's about 10 years ago! (I'm not that old...). Listening to stories from close friends of mine, HIN was the biggest car show event of the year with well-known cars in specific regions coming up or down from miles away, just to participate. It wasn't only cars that took over the convention center, but tons of top-name models and celebrities as well. Having a reputation that literally left a mark in the automotive scene, HIN was 'the' shiet! Now I have no clue on why HIN left the show scene, but many were glad it came back with new people organizing the event.
A few of you guys already know I'm with crew Low N Slow in SoCal, and I was supposed to show with them at the event, but because of my car acting like a little biatch and not wanting to listen to me, it's in its worst phase, so I decided to give it a rest and cover the event like I always do with major car shows in CA. A lot of my friends participated at HIN with their sexy rides and I did get a chance to talk with many of them while walking around. It seemed as if roll-in was a pain in the ass because of staffs being unorganized, but because I wasn't actually there and don't want to speak my butt out, all I gotta say is give it another year and I'm sure it will get better! HIN is back with new people so I'm sure they're already aware of this and working on it. Anyways, just wanted to put that out for ya'll, because I wanted to (^-^)
Now before I get into the photos, let me tell you I had a really difficult time covering the event. Nor did I only miss an early access time for Media, but it was dark as fuk like every HIN event we know of. My flash wasn't working too well and I didn't want to use a tripod because of so many people walking back and forth. Luckily, and I mean very luckily (if that makes sense), the lights came on during the award ceremony, so I was running around the whole Hall like a person who had to use a restroom; squatting down, making awkward poses, and some positions I never thought of doing, taking photos as much as possible in a short amount of time. How did they come out? Well you be the judge. There will be a mix of horribe and decent photos, so please understand the change of flow throughout the coverage. To start it off, I used a photo I took when The Next Hot Import Nights Model contest was going on. I did take some photos of Models for a change, so you'll see them later on.