Private view

A ‘You were there’ special
Colour photography has existed since the 19th century, but it remained a relative rarity on spectator terraces of the 1960s…

For all that it might have been scarce, however, a few adventurous souls were prepared to pay extra for rolls of Kodachrome or Ektachrome rather than the grainy black-and-white charms of Kodak Tri-X. Keith Pyman was one such – and is keen to share the fruits of his trip to the 32nd running of the Le Mans 24 Hours, on June 20-21 1964. Now 70 years old and based in Jersey, Keith writes: “Although I have looked after them carefully for some 50 years, you will appreciate that the original images were of an amateur standard. I took them on an Ilford Sportsman camera with exposures set by a Sixon light meter – all this in the days before 35mm cameras commonly had built-in light meters and so on.

“I do hope they will be of interest and it would be good to let other enthusiasts see some of them.”

They are, Mr Pyman, and we are more than happy to oblige.