Wanted: High-Res Images of Classic Race Cars (Lotus 49, 246Dino, etc)

[superbike81]

Google image search is failing me, and I'm having a hard time finding any sites with high resolution images.

I want to decorate my gaming/office room a little with images from vintage racing (all the way up through the 1980's) but am having trouble finding anything high-res enough to print to poster size. I would want a minimum size of at least 8x10, but preferably much bigger, 16x20 or larger would be nice.

Something like these pics, just bigger:

http://i47.servimg.com/u/f47/12/87/04/61/lotus410.jpg
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-B1Uv-X7sw...BnLlq0Uu7g/s1600/002+Gold+Leaf+Team+Lotus.jpg
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2423/3528232157_a01995769b_o.jpg
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-n4ChpKJ8sKQ/TlT5lkI_W2I/AAAAAAAACmU/DsO565hvX9o/s1600/F1_75_1.jpg

etc, etc, etc.

Would appreciate any links or leads.

Thanks!

 

[TheCracker]

As these images are going to have been taken on pre-digital cameras, i'd have thought that hi-res versions of those images just don't exist. Not freely available online anyway.

 

[superbike81]

Huh? Any old standard film camera takes images that can be blown up to poster size, that is one of the advantages of film.

 

[TheCracker]

Huh? Any old standard film camera takes images that can be blown up to poster size, that is one of the advantages of film.

Yeah, but anyone doing that specifically to go online is likely wanting to make money from it. Which is why i stated freely available.

If you are scanning an old print into a digital copy, you can only make a quality, enlarged copy of it if it's taken from an original photographic print. Anything scanned from a printed copy of the image (from a book or poster etc) is going to show an enlarged print screen (obvious dots) or display a moiré pattern.

 

[daan]

What TheCracker said.

You can, of course, feel free to purchase prints. (Other print shops are available...)

 

[MatskiMonk]

You could try googling stuff like the "Silverstone Classic", or other such events where these cars may have been shown, and photographed digitally.. rather than searching just for the cars.

edit: like Daan says, to get the best results you may be best off purchasing decent images in the first place.

 

[daan]

You could try googling stuff like the "Silverstone Classic", or other such events where these cars may have been shown, and photographed digitally.. rather than searching just for the cars.

Yeah, but 60/70's cars don't look right at current circuits. There should be haybales/catch fencing in the background and no barriers.

 

[superbike81]

What TheCracker said.

You can, of course, feel free to purchase prints. (Other print shops are available...)

I'm all for supporting the original photographers, but the prices websites like this are asking is ridiculous (in my opinion of course). I'll just take what I can get, print it myself or at a local print shop, and spend $2 or $3 for a 8x10 vs $30+ that they want on these sites.

 

[homeforsummer]

Yeah, but 60/70's cars don't look right at current circuits. There should be haybales/catch fencing in the background and no barriers.

Goodwood Revival images might be better...

 

[TheCracker]

I'm all for supporting the original photographers, but the prices websites like this are asking is ridiculous (in my opinion of course). I'll just take what I can get, print it myself or at a local print shop, and spend $2 or $3 for a 8x10 vs $30+ that they want on these sites.

I think that's going to be your best bet.

These threads have some older race car images, but they're of varying size and quality and you'll have to scroll through pages and pages of slammed VW's to get to the good stuff 👍

https://www.gtplanet.net/forum/showthread.php?t=7833&page=1147
https://www.gtplanet.net/forum/showthread.php?t=83417&page=137

Goodwood Revival images might be better...

You still mostly get modern racing helmets though.