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Photographer Shoots Formula 1 With 104-Year-Old Camera, And Here’s The Result
If ever there was a sport that required rapid-fire photography, Formula One racing is it. Which makes what professional photographer Joshua Paul does even more fascinating because instead of using top-of-the-range cameras to capture the fast-paced formula racing sport, Paul chooses to take his shots using a 104-year-old Graflex 4×5 view camera.
The photographer clearly has an incredible eye for detail, because unlike modern cameras, which can take as many as 20 frames per second, his 1913 Graflex can only take 20 pictures in total. Because of this, every shot he takes has to be carefully thought about first, and this is clearly evident in this beautiful series of sports photography.
“I received this old camera from my instructor James Fee while I was studying photography at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California,” Joshua told Bored Panda. “Another student and I cleaned his darkroom and helped him print his editions, in exchange for this vintage camera. I got lucky with this one because the bellows are very long and I can shoot macro with it. It’s also the same camera Margaret Bourke-White used and is posing with on the Chrysler building.”
When asked how difficult it is to capture these black and white photos, Joshua said, “It's not that it’s difficult, but it’s a process, which sometimes goes well and sometimes not. To pan an F1 car at speed is very difficult and I can go through a lot of photo film with no results. I’m not trying to document the race, but F1 itself, so I’m more interested in the people, the cars, the tools, trucks, and atmosphere.”
Despite having shot over 3000 frames, the photographer never actually intended to shoot Formula 1. “I came to Barcelona in 2013 to see Blur play at the Primavera Sound Music Festival. Knowing the race would overlap, I applied for accreditation with Road & Track magazine. It was approved three days before my trip, and when I arrived, I was immediately invited to the Monaco GP, and subsequent races after that. That was the first time I shot a car race.”
He’s now so passionate about the sport that he’s even launched a magazine called Lollipop, a publication for Grand Prix racing enthusiasts. Check out some of his amazing pictures below. You can also find him on Instagram.
More info: Lollipop Magazine | Instagram (h/t: PetaPixel)
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Galeanthropy2017 8 years ago
This looks better than if the picture was taken with a newer camera!
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#2
Martyn Lacey 8 years ago
These add a whole new dimension to this kind of action Photo. Works well giving a soft focus whilst the rest of the world shoots hard edge sharp photos.
Robin Ellison 8 years ago
Love the grainy effect. Also love the wheel marks on the road as they climb the bank
Mark Shubin 8 years ago
Love it, remember these images are a lower resolution scan to put on line!
#3
#4
Robin Ellison 8 years ago
Beautiful shot, expression, 5 o'clock shadow make this a perfect portrait
Joanna Lea 8 years ago
Joshua Paul has a true talent for capturing these images with such an old apparatus. DSLR's make it SO much easier for photographers today..this took skill. The lighting here is everything! Great job!
Wesley Lira 8 years ago
Ficou perfeito, já que o Ricciardo tem um visual bem conportado, casou bem com o efeito retrô
#5
Angelina Wilkins 8 years ago
I can't explain it but there's something about these moving shots that I really like. That look really cool, for lack of a better word.
Matt Barnes 8 years ago
That's because it's real photography, not just pictures. In the age of digital, we've forgotten what an artform it can be.
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Jan Virtue 8 years ago
That hundred year old camera adds a different element to the pictures; almost like it can't capture the scene with clarity, but it adds a type of vintage look/effect to the pictures. Very nice. This looks like the old pictures from back in the day.
Preetam Sikdar 8 years ago
something in it.....this picture already portray the motion present in it.......
#6
Jan Virtue 8 years ago
That hundred year old camera adds a different element to the pictures; almost like it can't capture the scene with clarity, but it adds a type of vintage look/effect to the pictures. Very nice.
#7
Wayne Reid 8 years ago
These images are exactly as you would see it with your own eyes. If the focus point is exactly where you are looking , the periphery is a blur, as it is naturally when we look at something. Its fantastic.
#8
Jan Virtue 8 years ago
That hundred year old camera adds a different element to the pictures; almost like it can't capture the scene with clarity, but it adds a type of vintage look/effect to the pictures. Very nice.
#9
Ken Larson 8 years ago
All these shots are great! I also played Grand Prix on a 30 year old game system and it was better than today's pc game.
Jan Virtue 8 years ago
That hundred year old camera adds a different element to the pictures; almost like it can't capture the scene with clarity, but it adds a type of vintage look/effect to the pictures. Very nice.
Sean Kirby 8 years ago
This is an evocative shot; the old camera makes the stands look like those of a board track of yore.
#10
Delta Force 8 years ago
Epic.... moment and the shot.... says a ton.... like not in the competition or i compete myself...
Jan Virtue 8 years ago
That hundred year old camera adds a different element to the pictures; almost like it can't capture the scene with clarity, but it adds a type of vintage look/effect to the pictures. Very nice.
#14
Michel M. Prins 8 years ago
I love this shot, simply because they're not posing, but just having a simple conversation
Michel M. Prins 8 years ago
That's true Nadeem, but the way they are standing makes it clear that they were having a conversation, probably continuing it while looking at the camera
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Steph Daigle 8 years ago
WoW! This Shot though! It Genuinely looks like it was shot 100 yrs ago!
#15
#16
M O'Connell 8 years ago
Is this lens flare, or some sort of reflection from within the camera's innards?
Michael Barrett 8 years ago
The glowing white's and softness is the way the uncoated old lens handles highlights. This is why I love old cameras.It does look like he is shooting through a protective screen.
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#17
#18
Ana Fuentes 8 years ago
This camera makes the moment captured in the picture seen like it was 50 or 70 years ago and not just a few days ago. They are all TIMELESS!!
F1_Sucker 8 years ago
I agree. Wrong team, bad season, etc., but a good guy I think. Nice shot none the less...
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Linda Turner 8 years ago
the blurred backgrounds make all these photos so cool............I love them all.
#19
#22
#23
Ana Fuentes 8 years ago
This picture reminds me of one my mother has of my grandparents taken in the 50's
F1_Sucker 8 years ago
Photographed by the other Toro Rosso Press Officer, Tabatha.
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#27
Roberta Espinoza 8 years ago
I didn't comment on each. They are all perfect in b/w. And the age of the camera gives it a softer tone. Never stop using it. Beautiful
TheFakeSteveRogers 3 years ago
I remember the Mercedes-AMG GT being used as a Safety Car, but what is that E-Class Wagon on the top for?
#29
Sean Kirby 8 years ago
This shot has the ancient look - but it is otherwise thoroughly modern in sensibility.
#36
Andrea Van Delden 8 years ago
Did racecar drivers have sponsors "back in the day" or was this a sport only for the rich or determined?
Sharon Lucas 8 years ago
They've almost always had sponsors (called "liveries"). It used to be common to be sponsored by tobacco companies, but those types of ads are now mostly banned. Newer companies have taken their place.
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Add New Image
What do you think ?
Sohobooks Soho 8 years ago
Its amazing because even the images look time warped, especially the portraits. great choice by far!
Wayne Bart 8 years ago
I really enjoyed this shoot. By doing this with old equipment, I think it hammers home that photography is an art, and that simply owning a camera doesn't make you a photographer. I know if I were shooting F1, I'd be using DSLRs with a long lens, and rattling off *thousands* of frames, picking out only the best. With these old boys your supply of frames is limited to what you brought, and you don't want to waste on a throwaway shot. Takes time to compose, and compensation for the technical challenges. I really do like this
Sohobooks Soho 8 years ago
Its amazing because even the images look time warped, especially the portraits. great choice by far!
Wayne Bart 8 years ago
I really enjoyed this shoot. By doing this with old equipment, I think it hammers home that photography is an art, and that simply owning a camera doesn't make you a photographer. I know if I were shooting F1, I'd be using DSLRs with a long lens, and rattling off *thousands* of frames, picking out only the best. With these old boys your supply of frames is limited to what you brought, and you don't want to waste on a throwaway shot. Takes time to compose, and compensation for the technical challenges. I really do like this
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