FERRARI CAVALCADE // 2025
In 2025, Ferrari has chosen Andalusia as the playground for the Cavalcade, and it will be its capital, Sevilla, that will host them. I've never been to a Cavalcade, so I wasn't sure what to expect. I was asked if I was going to go, as I live in the area. I said I probably wouldn't because I was going to be in Italy and I'd miss the start, so I'd only see them the day they go to Ascari as it's near where I live.
You have to know that I like to do things from start to finish, and that if I miss 1 or 2 days of an event, it breaks the mood a bit. But you should also know that when it comes to cars, before I even start thinking about whether or not I'm going to see them, my body has already made up its mind to go and see them. So here I am, after an intense weekend in Italy spent at Lake Como for the fuori concorso and the concorso d'eleganza, chasing more than 100 Ferraris through the landscapes I've been enjoying for half my life.
day 2
So here we are on the morning of the second day, driving over 2 hours to a lake for our first spot photo, enjoying the sunrise over the landscape. Once there, the lake is indeed very beautiful, the water as smooth as a mirror. However, taking photos is going to be more difficult than expected... On the lake side, the vegetation is dense, leaving little visibility from the road over the landscape. On the other side, the mountain is full of tall grass and plants that want to kill you (you should know that most of the vegetation here is ready to fight, with spikes of all sizes and leaves that are sharper than razors). So I have very little distance on this spot, where you have to climb and avoid being sliced up by the vegetation. I ended up finding a place that wasn't ideal, but I couldn't do much else. What bothers me most is that the spot, although beautiful, doesn't give you much to play with. One of the worst things for a photographer (in my opinion) is to stand still and shoot all the cars in the same place. You end up with 50 shots of the same image with a different car, and that's not what you want. I'll live with it this time. The place is pretty quiet and I do a few tests to get my settings right. I tell myself that the next car that goes by, I take some photos to see what it looks like and BIM, the first SP3 goes by in complete silence ! Luckily I'd decided to do a test, otherwise I'd have missed it!
Not knowing how this kind of rally with so many cars was organised, I waited, stayed in the same place but tested different framings, etc. Sometimes cars passed in groups, sometimes there were more than ten minutes between each car... I don't really know what to do. I decide to get back in the car and move. I missed several cars, but that's the game and I'm learning the rules. Arriving at the first coffe break, I realise that the first ones who arrived have already left! I still take a few photos in town, happy but I can do better, to quickly leave for the next spot. I'd seen a rather characteristic spot with beautiful trees, but when I got there it was a complete washout, it didn't look anything like what I'd seen on maps. Fortunately there were some nice clear fields, and I was able to fall back on them, otherwise it was going to be very complicated.
After a lunch break that wasn't very photo-friendly, given that the place was private, and a fairly ordinary return route, the day came to an end, happy even if it was rather chaotic (and I burnt quite a bit in the field). I go home to prepare the following day, very excited, the one I'm most interested in as I know the area like the back of my hand.
day 3
The sun rises over the Sierra de Grazalema. Today, the Cavalcade passes along one of the most beautiful roads in the area. I scouted out the location the day before, so I know what I want. All I need now is a bit of luck. Unfortunately, the first difficulties arrive in the morning. The light becomes very harsh sooner than expected, and the shadows of the trees start to be quite pronounced. I still managed to get through it, having learnt from the day before, I found myself doing more than a dozen spots in the morning. Not all of them were successful, and I could still have done better, but at least I managed to do what I wanted !
The coffee break was in Ronda, and lunch in Puerto Banus, but I chose to give priority to photos in the mountains. Knowing the routes they take, I didn't want to miss out, considering the potential of the spots. Whereas I'd more easily have other opportunities in the future to take photos in Banus (or even Ronda). So we went from a rather green scenery this morning to a chain of orange-coloured mountains in the afternoon. I'd been told that Spanish cops have a pretty bad reputation abroad when it comes to this kind of event, and now I understand why... I must have been flashed by an unmarked car, on a road lost in the middle of nowhere... but that's the game some would say. The end of the day, like the day before, was rather chaotic and not very productive. So I decided to go home and rest up for the last day.
day 4
The last day was supposed to be the calmest, and yet...
This time I discovered a new area, not very far from my home, which was really lovely. As usual, I found a great viewpoint, some fields and a spot that gave me some game. It wasn't all easy, but I had plenty to do. The programme included some driving in the morning, a coffee break in a village and a parade through the centre of Sevilla to round off the event. As I hadn't taken any photos in Ronda and Banus, I didn't want to miss the parade in Sevilla. So after the first spot in the morning, I skipped the coffee break and headed towards Seville.
This time I discovered a new area, not very far from my home, which was really lovely. As usual, I found a great viewpoint, some fields and a spot that gave me some game. It wasn't all easy, but I had plenty to do. The programme included some driving in the morning, a coffee break in a village and a parade through the centre of Sevilla to round off the event. As I hadn't taken any photos in Ronda and Banus, I didn't want to miss the parade in Sevilla. So after the first spot in the morning, I skipped the coffee break and headed towards Seville.
Today the thermometer reads.... 44ºC. Luckily there are drinking water fountains all over the city, otherwise it would have been complicated! The cars arrive in town in groups. It's not as easy as it was in Siena this time, and I'm having a bit of trouble getting anything satisfactory done. After the last group, I head for the Plaza de España, where the cars are parked. Except that it's about a 30-minute walk in the sun, it's over 40º and I've got a lot of fatigue accumulated. I had a few ideas in mind because up until now, I've hardly had the chance to take any static photos. But on the last day, the cars were neither cleaned nor arranged by model, so I wasn't able to do what i wanted. I went round several times to see what I could capture for photos, and ended up settling down on a bench in the shade as I was starting to feel unwell and dizzy. It was probably the most intense rally I've done. The fact that there were more than 100 cars made the exercise different; on the one hand it was easier to change spots and get different photos, on the other hand it was more complicated to catch all the cars. All in all, it was a great adventure, with a fine line-up. Special mention should go to the spec cars, there was something for everyone, and what can I say about the SP3s!
