5 Frames… In the pits at Brands Hatch motor racing circuit on FP4 PLUS (35mm format / EI 125 / Nikon L35AF) – by Nik Stanbridge

I started marshalling at motorsport events here in the UK about ten or so years ago. It followed going to a very sparsely attended event on a very cold, windy, and wet September day when the rain was horizontal and spiteful. I was hoping that the racing would take my mind off the weather, but in reality, it was an endurance race. Possibly to test the endurance of the punters like me standing around waiting for the cars to trundle around — which they did in ever-decreasing numbers. As for the spectators, it was a test of attrition slowly being lost.

I’d been dimly aware of marshals before going to Silverstone that fateful day and had often wondered how they managed it. How they ‘got in’. At Silverstone they were the only people who seemed to be enjoying themselves. Crucially and unlike me, they appeared to be dressed for the weather. And either because of that, or just because they were marshals and were therefore ‘in’, were basking in warm banter and camaraderie.

Chatting to them, it transpired that anyone can be a marshal, and it’s surprisingly easy to get in. Unless, of course, it’s the end of the season, which it pretty much was. So, the following March, there I was, a trainee marshal.

Fast forward ten years, and many race meetings and circuits later, there I was in the pit lane at Brands Hatch, Kent, in southeast England.

There are many marshalling disciplines but incident (running towards a burning car when everyone else is running away from it) and flag (analogue communication with a racing car driver ) are the main ones. And then there’s being in the pit lane and on the starting grid — which is where I currently volunteer.

I occasionally sneak a point and shoot into my pocket to use in whatever downtime there is between qualifying or race sessions. The Nikon L35AF is perfect in these situations because it auto-everything, and fast and wide with its 35mm f/2.8 Sonnar design lens. Whip it out, frame the shot, press the button, and it’s back in the pocket. The reassuringly solid — and brick-like — L35AF handles focus, exposure, and film wind-on duties all by itself.

What it’s not so brilliant at is reading your mind and knowing when you want deep or shallow depth of field, and guessing where you want the focus point to be. That said, I think it does have an AF hold capability that I’ve so far failed to take advantage of. Some of these images suffer from these 1980s limitations and my inability to use the camera properly.

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The five-element/four-group Sonnar lens is lovely and sharp; and it delivers images from the slabby little Nikon far above its lowly point-and-shoot status. The whole package is a marvel of form, function, usability, and image quality.

At the circuit, with both the pit lane and paddock doors open, there’s generally plenty of light, and of course, there’s always plenty going on. And every garage is different. And being club-level racing, there are surprisingly few people about it. Yes, some teams have a generous coterie of mechanics, friends, and family. But others are often just the driver and their mechanic. For this article, I was covering a ‘historic’ meeting for the 1960s and 70s sports racers and single-seat Formula Fords and Formula 5000s. Picture, if you can, the sights and sounds (the extraordinary noise) when you’re as close as these photos.

If you’re into motorsports and want to ‘get closer,’ then maybe give marshalling a go. Or, if you don’t fancy that, just get yourself to a club meeting and have a walk around the paddock, where you’ll find everyone friendly and accommodating. You can’t get closer unless you get behind the wheel!

All images are from a single roll of ILFORD FP4 Plus developed in 510 Pyro and scanned with a Nikon D810 and Nikkor 60mm f/2.8 AF-D macro at f/8. Converted in Negative Lab Pro. Very minimal post-processing in Adobe Lightroom.

Thanks for reading!

~ Nik