In My Element - The Photomobile
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
Mark Twain
My base is San Diego but I make my way all around the state in what I call my Photomobile. I'd like to share the bed platform I've designed in it with the aim of traveling and sleeping in during photo projects.
My idea was to remove the rear seats and build a 4 by 4 foot flat platform that meet the front seats when folded fully back to provide a long, wide and flat sleeping area.
I built the platform with basic Home Depot material including 5 steel legs about 10" tall, 47x45" plywood board with lumbar wood to add extra support, and 4 turnbuckles to lock the platform to the floor. Cost me about $100 in material:
On top of the plywood board I put the same kind of material you put under a carpet. The reason is simply to prevent the plywood from tearing the mattress I put on top of it.
Under the platform are two 42" long, 6" high, plastic drawers that can be pulled out either rearward from the trunk area or forward at the front of the platform to provide easy to access storage space whether I'm inside or outside of the car.
Here's the rear view:
Here's the front view (behind the front seats). The 1/4" piece of wood serves a purpose. It evens out the floor, provides extra weight distribution from the front legs, and acts as a stop to prevent the trays from sliding forward during hard braking.
Notice the attention to detail. I shaped the platform to nicely fit the shape of the element. The precise fitting with the natural curves of the Element adds an extra functional benefit of locking the platform in place without any additional hardware.
Lastly, the width of the narrowest part of the trunk space is 47" wide. I found a perfect, 3" thick, foam mattress that got excellent reviews and was 48" wide which allowed it to "fit like a glove." It's really firm and comfortable - good for the back. At 48" wide, it's wider than a twin but narrower than a full - enough to sleep two people side by side in many cases. Read about it here if you'd like:
Cabela's Deluxe Camp Bed
Here it is in my Element.
The tray slides forward or back. Here's the back sliding view. Sorry but I forgot to include a picture of it sliding forward..
With the platform installed, I have plenty of space behind the front seat to store more things! That's my new temporary storage, or trunk area!
Did you notice how the front end of the mattress was folded over on top of itself? I had to cut the foam inside a couple inches of length to make it foldable. Why the heck did I do that? Well consider that the length of the platform is 45" long which is a bit less than 4 feet - and I'm taller than that. As shown in an earlier photo, the front seats fold all the way back so I can rest the part of my body below my knees on them.. That was my original idea but it didn't satisfy me - I wanted supreme comfort for all parts of my body! Are you getting it??!
So with the front seats folded all the way back and the foam mattress flipped forward, here's what I get!
My head goes to the rear where there is a beautiful, large moonroof above me. How many of you have a glass ceiling in your room to see the stars!
The front end of the mattress rests perfectly on front seats. The very last bit of the foam mattress is amazingly held up by the headrest which is held into place because the two metal prongs stick right into the middle of the front seat. It's as if this car was designed with this in mind.
With bottom half of the rear closed. Notice how the mattress is flush with the bottom rear closed so when I'm laying down on it with the top half open, I get an unobstructed view of the ocean with it's fresh air rushing into me. I just have to figure out how to open the rear without getting out of the car..
The bottom half of the rear open. Easy rear access to my stuff.
Here is how it looks folded from the front.. That's me in the shadow :)
You may be wondering where I shower when I live in my PhotoMobile. I usually park my car and sleep at my local YMCA where I get up, walk over to the gym, brush my teeth, meditate occasionally, take a shower and head out. A lot of YMCAs have very nice facilities and it's great to end my day with a nice class of yoga, a quick swim and some relaxation time in the Jacuzzi. I feel really lucky if the one I'm in has a steam room :)
This said, there are many more adventures I have had and am having traveling in my Photomobile then simply photo projects - but that's for me to say and you to imagine..
Mark Twain
My base is San Diego but I make my way all around the state in what I call my Photomobile. I'd like to share the bed platform I've designed in it with the aim of traveling and sleeping in during photo projects.
My idea was to remove the rear seats and build a 4 by 4 foot flat platform that meet the front seats when folded fully back to provide a long, wide and flat sleeping area.
I built the platform with basic Home Depot material including 5 steel legs about 10" tall, 47x45" plywood board with lumbar wood to add extra support, and 4 turnbuckles to lock the platform to the floor. Cost me about $100 in material:
On top of the plywood board I put the same kind of material you put under a carpet. The reason is simply to prevent the plywood from tearing the mattress I put on top of it.
Under the platform are two 42" long, 6" high, plastic drawers that can be pulled out either rearward from the trunk area or forward at the front of the platform to provide easy to access storage space whether I'm inside or outside of the car.
Here's the rear view:
Here's the front view (behind the front seats). The 1/4" piece of wood serves a purpose. It evens out the floor, provides extra weight distribution from the front legs, and acts as a stop to prevent the trays from sliding forward during hard braking.
Notice the attention to detail. I shaped the platform to nicely fit the shape of the element. The precise fitting with the natural curves of the Element adds an extra functional benefit of locking the platform in place without any additional hardware.
Lastly, the width of the narrowest part of the trunk space is 47" wide. I found a perfect, 3" thick, foam mattress that got excellent reviews and was 48" wide which allowed it to "fit like a glove." It's really firm and comfortable - good for the back. At 48" wide, it's wider than a twin but narrower than a full - enough to sleep two people side by side in many cases. Read about it here if you'd like:
Cabela's Deluxe Camp Bed
Here it is in my Element.
The tray slides forward or back. Here's the back sliding view. Sorry but I forgot to include a picture of it sliding forward..
With the platform installed, I have plenty of space behind the front seat to store more things! That's my new temporary storage, or trunk area!
Did you notice how the front end of the mattress was folded over on top of itself? I had to cut the foam inside a couple inches of length to make it foldable. Why the heck did I do that? Well consider that the length of the platform is 45" long which is a bit less than 4 feet - and I'm taller than that. As shown in an earlier photo, the front seats fold all the way back so I can rest the part of my body below my knees on them.. That was my original idea but it didn't satisfy me - I wanted supreme comfort for all parts of my body! Are you getting it??!
So with the front seats folded all the way back and the foam mattress flipped forward, here's what I get!
My head goes to the rear where there is a beautiful, large moonroof above me. How many of you have a glass ceiling in your room to see the stars!
The front end of the mattress rests perfectly on front seats. The very last bit of the foam mattress is amazingly held up by the headrest which is held into place because the two metal prongs stick right into the middle of the front seat. It's as if this car was designed with this in mind.
With bottom half of the rear closed. Notice how the mattress is flush with the bottom rear closed so when I'm laying down on it with the top half open, I get an unobstructed view of the ocean with it's fresh air rushing into me. I just have to figure out how to open the rear without getting out of the car..
The bottom half of the rear open. Easy rear access to my stuff.
Here is how it looks folded from the front.. That's me in the shadow :)
You may be wondering where I shower when I live in my PhotoMobile. I usually park my car and sleep at my local YMCA where I get up, walk over to the gym, brush my teeth, meditate occasionally, take a shower and head out. A lot of YMCAs have very nice facilities and it's great to end my day with a nice class of yoga, a quick swim and some relaxation time in the Jacuzzi. I feel really lucky if the one I'm in has a steam room :)
This said, there are many more adventures I have had and am having traveling in my Photomobile then simply photo projects - but that's for me to say and you to imagine..
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