The Author – Bart Busschots
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Jun
13
Photo of the Week 121 – Speeding to Dublin
Filed Under Photography on June 13, 2010 | 2 Comments
For some strange reason I got an urge to post one of my winter shots today, even if it is June. In photography there are only ever guidelines, there are no hard and fast rules. Every guideline can be broken if you do it right.
A guideline I always follow is never to shoot trains as they move away from you, but to catch them coming towards you. I simply hate seeing a shot perfectly composed to imply motion towards you, only to notice the red tail lights on the ‘front’ of the train. Perhaps I’m being a bit too much of a perfectionist, but it really bothers me. This shot however proves that rule are made to be broken. Here we see an Irish Rail InterCity service making it’s way from Sligo to Dublin moving away from up in the frame towards the bridge in the background. To try to imply the motion even for those not pedantic to notice the tail lights, I composed the shot with the back of the train deliberately close to the right edge of the frame.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 55-200mm
- Exposure: 1/500 sec
- Focal Length: 200mm
- Focal Ratio: f/5.6
- ISO: 400
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
May
23
Photo of the Week 116, 117 & 118 – April in Belgium
Filed Under Photography on May 23, 2010 | Leave a Comment
With being sick for the last two weeks I’ve ended up with a triple post this week. I’ve chosen my three favourite shots from my recent trip to Belgium for this instalment’s theme.
The first shot I’ve chosen is of a lovely medeival castle in my home town of Duffel that is locally known as “Kasteel Ter Elst”. It remained intact right up until the first world war when it was unfortunately destroyed. You can read more about the castle here.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/400 sec
- Focal Length: 18mm
- Focal Ratio: f/7.1
- ISO: 200
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the second shot I’ve chosen is a train shot. In this case showing the work-horse combination of the NMBS/SNCB’s intercity services. Here we see a rake of M6 double-decker coaches (with an M6 DVT in front) being pushed by NMBS/SNCB Class 27 electric locomotive number 2725.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 55-200mm
- Exposure: 1/640 sec
- Focal Length: 200mm
- Focal Ratio: f/5.6
- ISO: 400
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
- Processing Used Topaz Adjust 4 plugin to give the shot a little more ‘pop’.
The final image I’ve chosen is a butterfly shot, specifically a Green-veined White (Pieris napi) feeding on a Dandelion flower (Taraxacum officinale agg.).
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 55-200mm
- Exposure: 1/1600 sec
- Focal Length: 200mm
- Focal Ratio: f/8
- ISO: 400
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
- Processing: Selectively applied the Topaz Adjust 4 plugin to the butterfly and the flower.
May
4
Photo of the Week 114 & 115 – Sunsets
Filed Under Photography on May 4, 2010 | 2 Comments
Since I was away in Belgium the previous weekend, this is yet another double post to get caught up. Again, double post means a single theme for both images. Inspired by all the talk of ash clouds leading to nice sunsets, I’ve picked two of my recent favorite sunset/dusk shots for this post.
The first shot was indeed taken while the recent volcanic ash cloud was making a nuisance of itself over Ireland. It was taken from Jackson’s Bridge (located between Maynooth and Kilcock) looking west along the Royal Canal. In the foreground you can see the 14th lock. 13 Locks to the east of here the Royal Canal starts at the old docks in Dublin, and 32 locks to the west it enters the river Shannon.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/500 sec
- Focal Length: 38mm
- Focal Ratio: f/8
- ISO: 200
- Camera Mode: Full Manual
- Processing: This shot was generated by tonemapping the original RAW file with Photomatix Pro, and then tweaking the resulting image with Topaz Adjust 4
The second shot I’ve chosen is a little older, and pre-dates all the ash-cloud excitement. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it’s of a train, in this case an evening Commuter service from Maynooth to Dublin looming into shot out of a spectacular sunset.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 55-200mm
- Exposure: 1/400 sec
- Focal Length: 120mm
- Focal Ratio: f/5
- ISO: 800
- Camera Mode: Full Manual
- Processing: This shot was generated by tonemapping the original RAW file (first converted to 16bit TIFF) with Topaz Adjust 4, and then tweaking the resulting image with Aperture’s Dodge & Burn plugin
Apr
4
Photo of the Week 111 – A Winter Evening Commute
Filed Under Photography on April 4, 2010 | Leave a Comment
I’ve taken shots of quite a few special trains recently, but somehow I still prefer this one, even if it is of just a plain ordinary commuter train. I really love this spot because it allows for a big sweeping composition which I really like. It helps give a nice sense of depth, and strangely also speed. I also really like the warm evening light which this shot was taken in.
The processing here is quite complicated. The first step was to take the original RAW image and tonemap it with Photomatix Pro. Secondly the RAW image was loaded into Aperture and tweaked to correct the exposure a little and to boost the colour a bit. This second version of the image was then exported to Photoshop Elements and the Topaz Adjust filter was applied to produce an alternative tonemapped version. The version from Topaz did a better job on the train and the trees in the background while the version from Photomatix was better for all the rest. This final image was generated by using Layer masks in Pixelmator to blend the two versions of the image into a third version with the best elements from each of the two other versions. This third blended version was then taken back into Aperture, given a few minor tweaks and then sent to the Dodge & Burn plugin in Aperture to do a few minor localised teaks.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/400 sec
- Focal Length: 26mm
- Focal Ratio: f/4
- ISO: 200
- Camera Mode: Full Manual
- Processing: see above.
Mar
28
Photo of the Week 108, 109 & 110 – The Big Freeze
Filed Under Photography on March 28, 2010 | Leave a Comment
Due to a few busy weekends in a row I’ve gotten very behind again, so I have a triple post this weekend to get caught up. As usual when I do a multi-week Photo of the Week, I’ve picked a theme that relates the photos to each other. In this case, they were all taken during the abnormally long and harsh cold spell at the start of January this year (you can see all my best shots in a Set on my Flickr stream).
The first shot I’ve chosen is of the College Cemetery in St. Patrick’s College Maynooth (SPCM). This cemetery is almost like a secret garden, hidden away behind some lovely old trees near the back of the grounds. It’s always a wonderfully peaceful place, especially in the snow. Fr. Nicolas Callan is buried here. He was a great scientists who worked in SPCM and is most famous for having invented the induction coil.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/60 sec
- Focal Length: 18mm
- Focal Ratio: f/8
- ISO: 200
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
- Exposure Bias: +0.7ev.
The second shot I’ve chosen was taken on a ground of Carton Estate just outside Maynooth village. I’d been cycling along the Royal Canal where the sun was beaming down and it was just a truly beautiful clear day. Then, the moment I left the canal and entered into Carton estate it was like I’d beamed to another world. There was this thin later of dense mist hovering just above the ground. Above that layer it was still a beautiful day, though clouds were starting to roll in. The layer of mist gave the whole place an ethereal feel. I’d honestly never seen anything like it. To be honest none of my shots did the scene justice, but I still really like this one.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/60 sec
- Focal Length: 19mm
- Focal Ratio: f/8
- ISO: 200
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
- Exposure Bias: +1.0ev
- Processing: This shot was generated by first applying the Topaz Adjust 4 filter to effectively tonemap the image, and then tweaking the result a little in Photoshop Elements 8 to selectively brighten just the snow.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, I’ve also chosen one of my train shots as one of my favorites. This shot was taken as the day was ending and the sun was getting very low in the sky. It shows an Irish Rail InterCity services making it’s way from Dublin to Sligo as it approaches Jackson’s Bridge just beyond Maynooth. From Jackson’s bridge you get a view of both the railway and the Royal Canal which runs next to the track for most of the way between Dublin and Mullingar.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/320 sec
- Focal Length: 18mm
- Focal Ratio: f/3.5
- ISO: 200
- Camera Mode: Full Manual
- Processing: This shot was generated by tonemapping the original RAW file with Photomatix Pro, and then tweaking the results a little using Aperture’s Dodge & Burn plugin.
Feb
7
Photo of the Week 102 & 103 – 2009 RPSI Santa Specials
Filed Under Photography on February 7, 2010 | 1 Comment
Each December the Railways Preservation Society of Ireland (RPSI) run a series of special excursions called Santa Specials. The trains run from Dublin’s Pearse Station to Maynooth and back, and are usually pulled by Steam Locomotive No.4. For three weekends in December there are up to three trips a day on Saturdays and Sundays, so lots of fantastic opportunities to get some shots of steam in action on Irish rails. This year there was a slight hitch on one of the days though, No.4 broke down on the last run on one of the Saturdays, so a Northern Irish Rail diesel loco had to fill in for the runs on the following Sunday, but by the next Saturday No.4 was back in action and was able to finish out the rest of the runs.
Since I missed posting a photo last week this is a double week, and I’ve chosen my two very favourite shots from last December’s season of Santa Specials. I have to say I really found it hard to pick just two, I’m really happy with quite a few of my shots from the month. If you want to see more than just these two shots I’ve created a set on Flickr with my best shots.
So, on to the first shot, in this case we see No.4 leaving gathering speed as it leaves Maynooth on the return leg back to Dublin Pearse. One thing you’ll note here is that the train appears to be going backwards, or “bunker first”. This is true, except it was designed to run just as well in both directions, so arguably there is no such thing as backwards. It’s this ability to run in either direction that made No.4 such a useful engine during it’s working life, because it could run to stations that didn’t have turntables for turning engines around. In the past all major stations had to have turntables, but very few of those now remain, and Maynooth never even had one because it only became an important station in the 1980s when it became the terminus for the new Western Commuter service out of Dublin.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/30 sec
- Focal Length: 18mm
- Focal Ratio: f/11
- ISO: 200
- Camera Mode: Shutter Priority
- Processing: This shot was generated by tonemapping the original RAW file with Photomatix Pro, and then using layer masks in Pixelmator to selectively blend it with the original to merge the best elements from both versions of the shot into the final image.
The second shot I chose shows No.4 on it’s way out to Maynooth running forwards. In this case the shot was taken in Leixlip just outside Leixlip-Louisa-Bridge station. This was No.4’s second run of the day, and this run had the best weather of any of this season’s runs.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/800 sec
- Focal Length: 18mm
- Focal Ratio: f/3.5
- ISO: 200
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
- Exposure Bias: -1.0ev
- Processing: This shot was generated by tonemapping the original RAW file with Photomatix Pro.
Jan
3
Photo of the Week 98 – An Autumn Evening Commute
Filed Under Photography on January 3, 2010 | 1 Comment
One of my favourite places for photographing trains is Jackson’s Bridge, it’s one bridge west of Maynooth along the Dublin to Sligo mainline towards Killcock. Jackson’s bridge actually crosses both the Royal Canal and the railway line, since the two run parallel most of the way between Dublin and Mullingar. When you look East from Jackson’s Bridge towards Maynooth and Dublin you get a great view of the the track, the canal, the towpath, and a row of trees all running parallel next to each other almost as far as the eye can see.
This is normally a very quiet stretch of line with very little traffic on it, but twice a day the level of traffic really picks up. During the day most commuter trains terminate in Maynooth, but during the morning and evening rush some commuter trains now run all the way out to Longford. The number of InterCity services also increases at rush hour so you get a few trains an hour instead of a train every few hours!
I took this shot in mid-October when the trees have their nice autumnal colours, and when the evening rush-hour over-laps with the Golden Hour. I really like how the soft golden evening light interacts with the subtle autumnal tones of the trees.
Here we see an evening commuter train, consisting of two Class 29001 four-carriage diesel railcar sets joined together, making it’s way from Dublin to Longford. The front-most of the two railcar sets is number 29415.
I think one of the reasons I like this shot so much is that the composition feels both strong and natural to me. I think the strength comes from the strong diagonal of the railway line, canal, towpath & trees, and I think it feels natural because the vanishing point is at one of the magical “rule of thirds” regions (one third down from the top and one third in from the right).
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/200 sec
- Focal Length: 18mm
- Focal Ratio: f/3.5
- ISO: 200
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
- Exposure Bias: -0.7ev
- Processing: Single RAW image first tonemapped with Photomatix Pro, then tweaked with the Dodge & Burn plugin in Apple’s Aperture
Nov
8
Photo of the Week 89 & 90 – Steam Loco No. 186
Filed Under Photography on November 8, 2009 | 4 Comments
Since I was ill last weekend I’m doing a double-post this weekend. In this case, it’s actually the same shot post-processed in two different ways.
Both shots are of the steam locomotive No. 186 which started it’s life as a mainline locomotive for Ireland’s Great Southern & Western Railway (GS&WR or just GSWR). No. 186 is now lovingly maintained by the Railway Preservation Society of Ireland (RPSI), and gets to stretch it’s legs on various Irish Rail mainlines on steam specials. This shot was taken when No. 186 was pulling the Ghost Train steam special from Dublin Connolly to Mullingar and back to Dublin Connolly. Here we see No. 186 crossing the Leixlip Viaduct on her way out to Mullingar in the morning. You can read more about No. 186 on the RPSI’s Website.
Normally when I tone-map shots I like to keep them looking natural, but in this case I really liked the result of pushing things a little further. The result is still quite natural, but yet also somewhat hyper-real.
The second version uses the first as the base for the conversion to monochrome. Because black and white shots tend to pick up a lot of texture anyway, the hyper-real look of the first version is completely lost in the second. We’re used to Sepia tone shots having this level of texture and detail in them.
You can see all my photos from this steam special in this Flickr Set.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 55-200mm
- Exposure: 1/320 sec
- Focal Length: 55mm
- Focal Ratio: f/4.5
- ISO: 400
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
- Processing (Version 1): Started by tonemapping a single RAW image in Photomatix Pro, then selectively tweaked the exposure, contrast, and saturation using the Dodge & Burn plugin in Aperture.
- Processing (Version 2): Took the veresion described above as the starting point, then converted to monochrome using the Channel Mixer brick in Apeture, then added a subtle Sepia Tone using the Colour Monochrome brick.
Sep
27
Photo of the Week 84 – Evening Amsterdammer
Filed Under Photography on September 27, 2009 | 1 Comment
This week I’ve chosen quite and old photo, from Christmas Eve 2007 in fact. I guess it shows where my priorities lie, of all the things I could be doing on Christmas eve, I’m out with my camera shooting trains during the golden hour!
This shot shows Belgian NMBS/SNCB Class 11 electric locomotive number 1185 charging through the village of Duffel in Belgium with an international express train from Amsterdam to Brussels. Locally these trains are known as ‘Amsterdammers’. The entire train used to have the lovely yellow and burgundy livery you see on this locomotive, but a few years ago the Dutch railway company (NS) started to use a new red, white and pink livery on their international carriages. The NMBS Class 11s are now also becoming a thing of the past, as more and more Amsterdammers are now being worked by red and white NS locomotives from Trax. Call me nostalgic, but I’ll be sad to see the days when Class 11s don’t come racing through Duffel on their way to and from Amsterdam.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 55-200mm
- Exposure: 1/400 sec
- Focal Length: 200mm
- Focal Ratio: f/5.6
- ISO: 800
- Camera Mode: Aperture Priority
Jul
19
Photo of the Week 74 – Commuter Reflections
Filed Under Photography on July 19, 2009 | Leave a Comment
This week’s photo of the week came close to being binned. It really didn’t look like much before tonemapping, and even then, it’s technically imperfect. ‘Pixel Peepers’ would be horrified by the noise down in the bowls of this image, they’d also notice that the focus on the nose of the train is a little soft. Also, anyone can see that the motion blur is not as strong as it could be, and indeed, probably should be. Even after tonemapping, cropping, and quite a few tweaks in Aperture, I initially gave this image a low rating, three out of five to be precise. But, each time I scanned back through the project, the image kept jumping out at me. It kept grabbing my eye. First I increased it to 4 stars. Then, recently, 5 – my threshold for consideration for Photo of the Week.
I’ve spent a lot of time looking at the image to figure out why it kept catching my eye. I’ve figured out at least some of the things I like about it. The most obvious one being, it has a train in it! I also love reflections, so that’s a definite second reason. I also love the soft evening light, it really makes for great photos, but in this case it took tonemapping to bring out that wonderful light. Finally, I’ve always had a thing for panoramic crops.
- Camera: Nikon D40
- Lens: Nikon DX AFS 18-55mm (D40 kit lens)
- Exposure: 1/50 sec
- Focal Length: 18mm
- Focal Ratio: f/18
- ISO: 400
- Camera Mode: Shutter Priority
- Processing: Generated by tonemapping a single RAW file in Photomatix Pro.