Photography

Types of photography

There are basically three types of photography for the railway scene.

• Record - simple composition, fills the frame and generally shows a clear view of the subject. The Grab shot is one taken on short notice with little preparation. Generally a distant view, maybe blurred, exposure may drift and objects may obsure part of the view.
• Scene - well composed and could be artistic, records the action within the environment; the approaching train, the main subject or area within the general environment.
• Detail - records the detail of the subject - closeup views of equipment or operations to record within the scene: loco, wagon, lettering, bogie, door, handbrake, loading, couplers, signal, lever frame, &etc.

The type of photo can be answered from the question: "Why are you taking this photo?" The styles are totally different due to expected composition, rail access, focal length, angle of view and selective framing.

Lenses

The types of photography can be achieved with different focal length lenses vary according to experience. There is nothing worse than having the wrong lens on which does not show the subject correctly. I refer of course to having a set of fixed focal length lenses, plus a large camera bag and tripod for when the 'heavies and longs' are used. Zoom lenses are a boon and provide good value for coverage and weight reduction. One of the prime considerations of 'fixed lenses vs zooms' has been the aperture difference. Fixed lenses can be 'faster' which is a reference to their maximum wide open aperture. For film photography there is a constant juggle with cost, film speed generally used and lens aperture. All three define the choice of equipment for each person.

Fixed lenses

• 8mm/16mm Fisheye - 8mm circular or 16mm 'full frame' (diagonal angle is 180^o). Suitable for some scenic shots when care is taken and a special coverage may be desired. Ideal lenses for record and detail shots where space is limited such as rooms, buildings, cramped loco cabs, passenger compartments, etc
• 15mm - 21mm Wide angle - Very good for cramped locations. Distortion corrected when held parallel to horizon. Good for overall views
• 24mm-40mm Wide angle - Good for cramped locations and overall views
• 50mm/55mm Standard - Basically set for 'what the eye sees' which means there is no magnification change for the camera /eye to subject distance. Rarely used as it should be dispensed with for a good zoom, or used in conjunction with a 28/35mm fixed lens and a 135mm medium tele.
• 75mm-105mm Short Tele - Fixed lenses in this range are good for loco portraits (85mm/105mm) and short tele train shots
• 135-200mm Medium Tele - Good lenses for general train photography as they require the subject to be some distance away fromthe camera. This has the effect of 'pushing' the subject into the background.
• 300mm - This perhaps would be the best train photography lens to use. The angle of view allows subjects to be easily framed from most vantage points. Probably the extreme focal length at which general three quarter train photography can be easily done.
• 400mm-1000mm+ Long Tele - Difficult to use for train photos but great lenses for events unfolding at a distance. More use for long distance 'scene' photos.

  Zoom lenses

• 21-35mm Zoom - Great short zoom for detail photos and cramped locations
• 28-100mm Zoom - This range is great as a general purpose 'family' lens and a very good 'loco depot' lens where a variety of vantages points may be limited and/or cramped. Generally 28-90mm or 35-105mm. Range depends on whether it is more important to have a greater 'wide' or' longer' tele.
• 70-210mm Zoom - Very good general purpose tele lens. Can quickly adapt to changing photo possibilities that fixed lens changes cannot deliver. There are more possibilities for intermediate framing of subjects.
• 100-300mm Zoom - Good for stable train shooting where a single vantage point has been established. Can obviously be used elsewhere but this lens requires a long telelens mindset for specific action coverage.

For digital photography the focal length and apertures quoted do not compare to 35mm lens characteristics. This is due to a smaller 'film size' area of the CCD and respective change in optics. Usually the 35mm equivalent distances are applied. So something like 6mm becomes a 35mm focal length. The aperture measurement also changes. With lens length and aperture being ratio measurements, f2 on a digital would be similar to f5.6 on a 35mm lens. f8 on a digital becomes f22 at 35mm size. Smaller apertures than f8 on a digital result in reduced image quality due to diffraction.

For digital cameras there are three important considerations for the lens:

1. F stop - the smaller the number, the more low light photography
2. Maximum wide angle - the wider the angle, the better for overall views or cramped locations
3. Optical zoom magnification - the larger the better. Usually this value might be combined with 'digital zoom'. Values of 1.5X to 2X can enlarge the image with minimum loss. Anymore and the image quality degrades to be unusable. However there are some advantage with digital editing when enlarging portions of images for detail. It must be remembered that the quality of the digital zoom/enlargement may look good on the tiny camera screen but 'falls apart' so to speak when presented on a large crisp computer screen.

Film based

Many of the comments provided are from a film based heritage. It is difficult to break with a known medium which is often well understood. However for those starting in a 'digital' era of computers, CD and DVD the use of film would probably not be considered.

Digital

Digital photography adds a new dimension for the railfan. Not only are the costs reduced but the previous barriers of justification are removed. With 35mm and the limited film supply all photos were subject to a priority determined by available light, remaining film, lenses on hand and access. With digital, this has been exploded by the versatility that the medium can provide. With extra batteries and memory cards, the main choice is one of image size. More photographs are possible and images can be discarded either on the spot or at a later less hectic time.

There are many options available in digital cameras and it is not possible to recommend any. It is up to the user to establish a list of priorities, wants and trade-offs.

There is a large established camp of 35mm and large format film users that decry the use of digital as not being of sufficient high standard. I can certainly agree with that. However there are several factors usually ignored that are worth considering:

1. A large number of film photographs never get used or see daylight. What use quality that never gets used?
2. There is an immediate bias when a digital image is enlarged 25X or more. Very rarely in the past has film been available for perusal beyond the 2-8X barrier. Even then an 8X loupe can't show detail an 8X digital image can.
3. Photography does not have to be prioritised based on cost or film limit. Extra batteries, memory cards and downloads to laptop allow many more photo opportunites for given tasks without the problems generally associated with film cameras: limited exposures available and film change time. Mind you, the negative aspect of this is that five to ten times more bad photographs can also be taken.
4. Convenience. It is quite obvious that the ease of image storage and use is a factor
5. For the majority of photographs taken, about 80%, the resolution provided by 35 mm is wasted.

Photographic Tips

These tips have been generated from a film based background. The same rules apply for digital work except the values change. For example a 300mm lens could handheld and photos taken at a minimum 1/300th second. For digital,the same photo coverage would only require say 60mm focal length or 1/60th second shutter speed.

Scene

• Keep the camera square - ie frame is set horizontal, except for sharp angled photos that have a particular emphasis
• Use a fast shutter speed; 1/250th second plus, particularly for action.
• To avoid camera shake in hand held photography, the minimum recommended shutter speed is the reciprocal of the focal length. i.e., 50mm lens requires a minimum "1/50th" second shutter speed. This is a guide and when pushed to the limit due to circumstance, lower speeds can be attempted.
• Don't place the the focus of your interest in the centre of the photo. That's OK for exposure and focus. For a given camera to subject distance, the image will remain the same size. Therefore it makes sense to vary the camera angle to reframe and include other objects/structures.
• For action photos, don't press the shutter when the moving subject hits the centre of the viewfinder. Hold the camera position and let the subject move to a point midway between centre and frame edge.
• For action photos anticipate the probable train position a good photo before the train arrives. This allows for prefocus and exposure. Then its a matter to wait for the train to hit the focus spot.
• Don't take a series of photographs as the train approaches. All those photos will not compensate for one good photo taken at the right time. Photo series is just excitement value. You could also run out of film before the train/subject arrives. How bad did you want that shot?
• Perspective of a photograph is governed by subject to camera distance, not the focal length of the camera. Fish-eye photos and tele lens photos all have a use and when used properly can provide a range of photos not otherwise possible.
• Ignore trying to look and enjoy the unfolding event. This is done through the camera to determine best photo moments. The enjoyment will come years later looking at the well composed work.
• Prepare - plenty of supplies spare batteries/film/memory. Always have a brush and cleaning cloth
• Have a plan - Many unexpected photo opportunities will undoubtedly arise. While one can anticipate all unfolding events, some set photo framing techniques may make the difference between 'no photo' and a 'good shot'
• NEVER APOLOGISE - if you are compelled to apologise it clearly shows you know how bad they are, which also shows you could do better. Obviously the photos you show are the best you could achieve under the circumstances. If you have to apologise, DON'T SHOW THEM !

Record, Grab and Detail

• Fill the frame
• If the identity of a numbered object is not easily discernable, take a closeup of the number.
• Organise a standard photo routine to capture maximum action/detail with the minimum number of photos.
• Include landmarks in photos to identify locations with the subject: train/building/skyline. Often a unique event does not look unique because there are no landmarks shown.
• Take a series of photos tell a story
• If you can't remember that you have taken a shot previously, take another one. Two is always better than NONE
•  Record the people operating the equipment.
• Equipment that moves has several actions. Photograph EVERY action, preferably as a series. Why try and explain what you saw when a couple more photos would clearly show it.
• What is here today is gone tomorrow. Everything you see today will disappear. I'd rather you show me the photo of what you saw than hear you say "Gee I saw that but...".
• Regrets - while it is not possible (at least not yet) to rewind time, the only regret should be when the opportunity was available but no photo was taken. That is, the subject was there, the observer had film, time and access but did not take advantage of the opportunity.

The above comments are made after having photographed for 40 years and are my own opinion. In that time some 120,000 35mm and 6x6 photographs have been taken on both B&W and colour slide/negative. As for digital some 40,00 images have been recorded in 24 months, with about half those being saved. This action 'burnt out' one camera and 'another ones on the way(out)'.