Toad Hall Motorbooks
Books

Pit & Paddock Publishers' Edition Book

2 Variants

The signed and numbered leather-bound Publishers' Edition book is presented in a deluxe cloth covered clam-shell case with silver foil blocking on the front and spine.

A Note from Peter Darley 
The photos in this book were taken in what many people described as the Golden Age of Motor Racing. It was an Age when you could wander into the Paddock and see the cars and drivers, not peer at them through a mesh fence.

From a photographers point of view life was also easier, access to corners and vantage points was allowed, and you used common sense as to where you stood in case of an incident. At Silverstone it was quite possible to get close enough to the action using just a 50mm lens. The same places to-day are either no go areas, or you need a serious telephoto lens.

Bear in mind that in those days there was no AF, AE or auto film advances, and that cameras were film, not digital, and that every shot counted. These days you can be at a corner, and the sound of motor drives sound like machine gun fire ! In my opinion there is too much of the “we can sort out any exposure/composition problems on the computer” approach, and not enough thought going into the real time image. All the photographers of my era had gone through the “wet” stage of photography , using and developing film, and then printing. It certainly made you aware of cost, and this was reflected in the care you took taking photos, thinking every time you pressed the shutter, that was another half a crown !

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