I'm headed to Amelia tomorrow for the weekend car shows and am taking my wife's Nikon D60. She has the basic 2 lenses that came with the camera (Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G and Nikkor 55-200mm f/4-5.6G. With that set up, is it possible to capture some of the cool shallow depth of field shots I see from car photographers? What exact settings do I need to use? I've read several write ups online, but none of them dumb it down enough for me. 
I love shots like these:
It's all about aperture, although I think the red 356 shot got some help from photoshop. Use both lenses "wide-open" as much as you can (numerically small apertures are large openings). Try for F3.5 on the short lens and F4.0 on the long one. If using such large apertures messes up your exposure in daylight, you can either bump down your ASA as low as it gets, or try a neutral density filter, which is basically like sunglasses for your lens.
For minimum depth of field, you can:
Get closer to the subject.
Use a longer focal length.
Use a larger (lower f number) aperture.
Get a bigger negative/sensor size.
I am not a photographer. BUT:
There was a good GRM article on how to photograph cars at some point.
There are a billion apps you could use to get that depth-of-field effect. I like Snapseed.
This weekend at Amelia I'll be carrying a 17-40mm f4.0. Amelia will be packed, so you'll be working in close quarters. It's those big f-stops (small number, big opening) that help create a shallow depth of field. We have a 70-200mm f2.8 that is just stellar for that kind of stuff.
Also, shoot a lot. Don't take one photo of a car and move on. Take a few. On the other hand, learn to work quickly, too, so you're not in the way. Amelia is also a great place to work people into the shots.
Agree with the above, and will add that if the light is cooperative, the longer zoom lens will give you that shallow DOF on details fairly close up, say zoomed most of the way in on something only a few feet away. You will need a lot of light to get steady sharp shots like that, especially of dark colored items You'll want as low an ISO setting as you can hold steady for so you can avoid excessive grain and a loss of contrast. I don't know the settings on Nikon, but specifically for that type of shot, you'll want "aperture priority" where you set the f-stop value to as low a number as your zoom level will allow. This will shorten the focal length, and allow the camera to shoot as fast a shutter as possible. It will save you from the hassle of setting exposure/white balance/shutter speed and all the other variables that shooting straight manual mode brings into play.
It is possible to get bokeh with the 18-55 mm kit lens. Switch your camera to Aperture Priority mode (A), crank the dial down to as low as it goes (this changes with focal length), and get as close as humanly possible to your subject.
The poor man's alternative to aperture is zoom. Use your 55-200 mm, crank it to 200 mm, and get as close as possible to blur backgrounds.
The cheapest compatible lens that'll get you started is the 35 mm f/1.8 G. You can find them used for around $120. The f/1.8 beats the f/3.5 for bokeh and especially low light.
Finally, bokeh isn't everything. Good composition trumps all.
In addition to all of the useful advice above, play around with zooming with your feet; in other words, try wide and close as well as long and further. While you'll get similar views of the subject, the perspective and surroundings will be quite different.
Shallow DOF is useful, but don't hesitate to try something other than wide open. Too shallow and you lose the context of the shot.
Obligatory samples:
Thanks folks! I appreciate all the tips. I'll be taking lots of pictures this weekend!!
Yep what everyone here said. I've got my eye on a Cosina 55mm f1.2 to play with, but you can get decent bokeh with that kit lens if you choose your shot well.
I'm shooting at a dyno day today, i'm just taking a 35-70 f3.5 and a 70-210 f4.0.
Paddle paddle paddle...
I would love to see the OP's photos though.
Here are mine from the Saturday C&C event and the RM auction. I didn't stick around for the main event on Sunday.
http://s170.photobucket.com/user/tuckerryals/library/2015%20Amelia%20C%20and%20C
And here are some from SCD of the Saturday event.
http://www.sportscardigest.com/cars-and-coffee-at-amelia-island-concours-2015-photos/1/
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