Imagine capturing the raw intensity of Ayrton Senna in his prime, the roar of V10 engines echoing through the grandstands, and the fierce rivalry between legends—all frozen in time through the lens of a photographer who never saw his work displayed as art. That’s the story of Henry Pang, a 1980s Formula 1 photographer whose stunning images were finally brought to life as standalone prints, thanks to his YouTuber son, Jeffrey. But here’s where it gets fascinating: these photos, taken during F1’s golden era, were originally shot on color transparency slides—a format designed for magazines, not gallery walls. And this is the part most people miss: the technical hurdles of transforming these slides into high-quality prints are no small feat.
Jeffrey, known for his popular car drifting YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/@runjeff), recently spotlighted his father’s work in a mini-documentary about his prized Porsche 911. The film featured Henry’s photos, which vividly capture the sport’s glory days, including the iconic battles between Senna and Alain Prost. Viewers were captivated and demanded prints, but the process wasn’t straightforward. As Henry explains in a YouTube video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHsMoxvDCI), color transparency slides from the 1980s were created for CMYK press printing, not for direct photo reproduction. ‘You needed a positive print, which meant a transparency—a slide,’ he clarifies. Fast forward to today, and the materials required for direct printing from these slides are long gone.
Here’s where it gets controversial: While scanning slides is the modern solution, the results are often disappointing. Jeffrey’s first attempt, using a flatbed scanner, produced images suitable for Instagram but far from print-worthy. Specialized scanners exist, but they’re rare and expensive. So, what’s a son to do? Enter Henry, a photographic genius, who suggested using a 36-megapixel Nikon D800 paired with a 55mm macro lens, a lightbox, and a copy stand. This DIY setup overcame the resolution limitations of traditional scanning, allowing Jeffrey to capture every detail—even the air turbulence around the cars.
The process was painstaking, requiring manual focus for each slide, but the results were breathtaking. Details like Senna’s intense gaze as he conferred with engineers were preserved in stunning clarity. Jeffrey then took the scans to Foto Box in Toronto, a film lab specializing in chromogenic printing. ‘It’s like watching an enlarger expose the paper, followed by a chemical bath and rinse,’ Jeffrey explains. The final prints were a testament to both Henry’s artistry and Jeffrey’s dedication.
While Jeffrey’s channel focuses on cars, not photography, his pride in showcasing his father’s work is undeniable. But here’s the question: In an age of digital photography, do we risk losing the artistry of analog formats like color transparencies? And is the effort to preserve them worth it? Let us know in the comments.
If you’re inspired to own a piece of this history, prints are available for purchase here (https://www.run-ms.co/). And if you think this story is remarkable, consider Jack Smith’s journey, featured on PetaPixel, who uncovered 80,000 of his grandfather’s travel photos (https://petapixel.com/2025/12/06/grandson-discovers-80000-stunning-travel-photos-taken-by-his-grandfather/), most of them color transparency slides, and is now working to bring this archive to life. It’s a reminder that sometimes, the most extraordinary stories are hidden in the past, waiting to be rediscovered.
