Modest F1 photographer was brutal when he had to: exhibition of historic racing photos in Zandvoort

Verkuijlen (73), a photographer from the analogue era, feels honored by the invitation to exhibit his work in Zandvoort. During his time at the Grand Prix, he took many more photos than his clients, the Haagsche Courant and the Rotterdams Dagblad, published.

To make sure that visitors see his best pictures, he started sorting well in advance. Which should not be missing from the exhibition? Kill your darlings, it’s a hell of a job. The photos are all equally sweet to him.

As a foretaste of the exhibition, which covers the 1970s and 1980s, Verkuijlen has chosen four photos from his extensive collection for NH that have a special meaning for him and that have a special story attached to them.

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Photo 1: the start of the dramatic edition of 1973

The photo above marks the beginning of Verkuijlen’s journalistic career, exactly fifty years ago. In previous editions, De Hagenaar had to take his photos as a paying spectator, but on 29 July 1973 he was allowed to take to the road as an accredited press photographer.

Verkuijlen: “I chose this one because it’s my first photo as a professional photojournalist. You can see the start with Ronnie Peterson, the later winner Jackie Stewart and the French number two Francois Cevert. It’s special that I was able to get that photo up close. As photographers we were almost on the track. We had enormous freedom of movement, no longer comparable to now.”

Still, there is pressure on this race. Because Circuit Zandvoort was not safe enough, no Formula 1 Grand Prix was held in 1972. That time was used to renovate the track and install crash barriers everywhere. Despite the improvements, it will be a dramatic Grand Prix.

Futile rescue attempt

In the eighth lap, Englishman Roger Williamson suffers a blowout. His car flips over and comes to a stop, burning against the guardrails. David Purley is still trying to save his compatriot. In vain.

Harry Verkuijlen is standing in the Tarzanbocht at that moment. That’s where he thinks he can make the most beautiful images. “I heard about the accident through the speakers and went there as quickly as possible. It was not easy, I came across barbed wire everywhere. I took a photo from a distance of the black smoke and devastated people watching it. It is not standing in this top four, because I wanted to keep it a bit cheerful.” The photo will be on display at the exhibition.

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Photo 2: Niki Lauda and Alain Prost next to the track

Verkuijlen chose the photo above because of the era. “You see Niki Lauda and Alain Prost in 1985 watching the training times of other drivers on an old-fashioned monitor along the track. Nice to compare that with the enormous amount of information and the battery of screens they have available nowadays. I also had great respect for these drivers. Lauda and Prost were first and second respectively in Zandvoort that year.”

Incidentally, this is the last Grand Prix before the race returns to Zandvoort in 2021.

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Photo 3: Nelson Piquet’s speed

Harry Verkuijlen is proud of the photo above, also from 1985. “In this image by Nelson Piquet you feel the speed with which the car is driving. With today’s equipment it is easier to capture the speed. I shot this one with a low shutter speed and by moving my camera with the car. Because in my day all photos had to be developed first, you only found out later whether they had turned out well. Well, I can say that about this one.”

Unique encounter

Verkuijlen can remember that in 1985 he invested a lot of time in his photos. On the training days he was present very early. “I walked into the pit box and saw Piquet sitting there. He was very calmly looking ahead. I very carefully asked him a few close allowed to take pictures of him, without a helmet. He was fine with that. He was very relaxed. Because of that meeting, the photo I later took of him in his car is very valuable to me.”

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Photo 4: Playboy James Hunt takes a sip

Vermeulen: ”As modest as I was when I walked into Nelson Piquet’s pit box, I was so cheeky when I took this photo of James Hunt after his victory in 1976. He had just finished the ceremony, you can just see that he has the cup in his hand. I had pushed forward to get a close-up shot of him. This photo has become more valuable to me because he became world champion that year. And of course for who he was, Hunt really was a playboy.”