Fancy garden party on a beautiful summer's day on the lawn of Syon House in the heart of London - Salon Prive was back. Now in it's 9th consecutive year, featuring the world's most exquisite hyper cars as well as priceless classic collectable's cars.
The event spread over three day, The concours d'elegance, Ladies day and Supercar Friday. I was fortunate enough to receive press entry to the opening day of the event when the event was just calm enough to get some beautiful shots. After travelling in the early hours of the day to the city's west end, I was greeted by a trio of Lamborghini Huracans positioned beautifully at the entrance.
Armed with my new lens, I was quick to make the most of this press access to shoot some of these exotic cars. Behind the above mentioned trio, stood the super car I've been waiting to see for months. Placed at the end of a red carpet among a display of it's own rivals stood a magnificent green Ferrari Laferrari. Cornered by some of the world's hottest super cars - on it's left and right, a Bugatti Veyron from SuperVertura and a dark blue Pagani Huayra. In front of it, a Koenigsegg Agera R and a Porsche RUF CTR3. I'll let you make a guess how much that 200 metre of lawn was worth!
The sheer pleasure of photographing this display had set my hopes very high and I couldn't imagine what would top this off as I advanced deeper into the grounds of Syon House. The weather, surprisingly was very enjoyable, it was one of those rare sunny London days. After passing a display by BMW of their new i8 and M4 collection, my eyes peered past the brutal duo which stood majestically ahead of me, yet another Laferrari and a stunning Ferrari F12 -TRS, both in it's original deep red colour. It was easy to realise that this was Salon Prive's gem this year.
As a crowd gathered, I continued forward to make sure I could capture natural shots of the displays ahead before owners arrived with their entourage. In front of Syon house itself, lay the cavalry of famous classic cars, guarding the entrance to the next part of the show. Standing shoulder to shoulder was a Lamborghini Countach, a Mercedes 300SL and a Ferrari F40 among others. Truly taking pride in the years of history these cars have created among them.
Of course before I ventured further into the grounds Syon House, I had to take a seat and admire the the two beast I wanted to see side by side for so long, you've guessed it, another Laferrari and a Mclaren P1 in a beautiful smooth grey finish.
Salon Prive doesn't attract the hundreds it does every year without an unveiling. This year was Mini's turn. But before you get your hopes down and start visualising another small british car - think again. Taking it's inspiration from it's italian cousins, comes the all new electric Mini Superleggera. The first "open top" by mini and what a beauty it is. Timeless beauty that blends the traditional with the modern, is how they've described it. I couldn't agree more, forget the Mclarens and the Ferraris, I wanted to have a relaxing and calm drive in this cute little car through the hills of Wales - weather permitting, gushing wind brushing through my face, I could almost picture it as I stepped closer to the driver's seat. Unfortunately, after speaking to the Mini representatives, it was a shame to find out that this was still a concept and no release date had been made yet. You truly had to see it for yourself to realise that there is a market for it here and it has the potential to cause waves in the british motor industry as well as globally. Being completely electric again reflects where the future of cars lie, we do not have to settle for a box by Prius anymore, there are now far sexier options.
Salon Prive is a show that always attracts the latest and greatest metal to its annual events and will continue to be a favourite with enthusiasts for many years to come!
