SPRING 1989 – Black-and-white photo of a speed trap with a Volkswagen Golf I rushing through the image. Photo © Mark Zanzig/zanzig.com
The story behind the image
This is one of my early photos. I had written an article on speed traps, and how they are often positioned in locations where there is no real danger for the people. To illustrate the text I captured a genuine speed trap in my hometown, Kiel in Germany. Of course, the idea was okay, but the execution… My, my.
My goal was to have it all in one image: the light barrier (which measured the speed of the car), the photobox (which took the photo), and a car rushing through (ideally releasing the flash). Soon I realized that this was only achievable by using a wide angle. This, however, dwarfed the photo box (which you can spot next to the tall pole of a street lamp). I had to use a longish exposure time to blur the cars rushing by. And I never caught a car that actually released the flash of the speed trap.
What’s more, I did not realize that the image was not only empty in large parts but the use of black-and-white film made it even more boring.
Needless to say, the image was rejected.
Design ideas
The high resolution image
| Capture Date | Spring 1989 |
| Location | Kiel, Germany |
| Camera | Canon AE-1 Program |
| Image Source | Ilford FP-4 Negative Film |
| Digital Image Source | EPSON Perfection 4870 Photo |
| Digital Image Source Format | TIFF, 48 bits/pixel, sRGB |
| Edited Image Format | JPEG, 24 bits/pixel, sRGB |
| Edited Image Dimensions | 6838 x 4766 Pixels |
| Copyright | © by Mark Zanzig/zanzig.com |
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