Night Photography

[SD70MAC]

Next weekend im going to see the CP Rail Christmas Train at Saratoga, NY. I dont really take night shots but i have a Canon Rebel Ti. I have 200 Speed Kodak Elite Chrome loaded in it. Any suggestions on what to do to take some really good pictures of this train at night? Thanks,

http://railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=37814

http://railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=37807

[E.M. Bell]

First thing would be a decent (sturdy) tripod, and second a remote shutter release for the camera. Either 200 or 100 speed film will work fine (higher ISO's will often produce unwanted grain in the dark areas). Try to compose your shots in such a way that there is not a lot of ambient background lights, and stay away from mercury vapor lights iif you can (these will give everythng a green hue). If there is not a lot of ambient light, you can "paint" areas in with a flashlight if you have time.

If tiime allows, try to take several shots of the same angle, bracketing your shutter speeds and exposure. The built in light meter in the camera can be fooled easily at night, so bracketing will help to see that at least one shot will be close to what you want. I will "usually" start out at at F5.6, and go up and down a stop or two, doing each exposure setting at several differnt shutter speeds. Personally, I have found that that getting good night shots is more luck than skill....sometimes you get what you want, and other times you come away shaking your head...

I am sure more folks will be glad to share advice with you....good luck!

[genefromclarkston]

I agree about using a sturdy tripod and some sort of remote release. I would also start out with fresh batteries in the camera and carry a spare just in case.

As for exposure for available light, I'd start with f8 @ 4 seconds or f 5.6 @ 2 sec. and bracket in full stops by halving or doubling the exposure time and repeating this again and again ... (f 8 @ 4,2,1,1/2 sec. and @ 8,16,32 sec. etc.). Keep the aperture constant (f 8 in this example). Try to use the same starting point for each series of photos and keep notes. That way when you find the exposure that you like it can be used as your new starting point for your next night session.

One nice thing about night photography is that there is really no such thing as "proper" exposure so bracket like crazy. If conditions permit, try as many different compositions as you can. Some of the old time photographers would probably tell you that film is cheap so "work the subject' and "throw the book at it"! Of course some of them also didn't have to buy their film either. Better pick up another roll or two of film just in case.

In order to reduce unwanted reflections you should remove any filters from the lens (color correcting filters can wait for a later session) and check the viewfinder for any objectional reflections or flaring caused by bright light sources outside of the field of view.

Study some of the night photos at this site and see what works for others, take notes and have fun.

Gene

[Ken Carr]

Both of the above replies offer great advice. The only additional suggestions is the use of a hood, Ive found that it helps with cutting out some of the surrounding light sources. And patience.
I've used the Rebel TI for most of my night photos on RP and either Fuji 100 or 200ASA film. I've found that for my taste it has less grain than Kodak products.
My most recent night photos were taken with the Canon 300D
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=83823
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=83790
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=83223
while below are some of the film shots:
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=81404
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=74676
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=58981

[SD70MAC]

Awesome Photos! And thanks for the advice. Im just confused on the F stop thing. I have no idea how to set it. I usually just use the automatic focus, etc with my Ti. Could anyone with a Rebel Ti point me in the right direction on how to set up the F stop, etc? It will be greatly appreciated. Thanks,