Category: Low Light Photography
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#138 – Two Views
Despite sending in photos to the railway mags, I’ve never had any published. I presume it’s because they’re either too alternative (possible) or not good enough (probably more likely!). I’m not losing sleep over it, I don’t photograph with the intention of publication, I do it as I enjoy the challenge of doing something different.…
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#136 – Sunrise Over London 2
Panasonic Lumix LX-3, ISO 400 I’ll admit that I’m not overly happy with the composition of this, but I was in a moving plane over which I had no control, so I was reduced to taking snapshots really. Actually, seconds after this was taken, the cabin lights went on for landing resulting in all kinds…
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#134 – Sunrise Over London
Panasonic Lumix LX-3, ISO400 **Another off-topic post** There aren’t many consolations to flying back into the UK from Boston at 6 on a Saturday morning. The two things that did make it worthwhile were 1) business class (I wasn’t paying, the company was) and 2) watching the sun rise over London. Panasonic Lumix LX-3,…
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#81 – White Balance Nightmare!!
I’d only had the camera a few weeks when I took this, so I suppose that’s my excuse for not fathoming out how to take a manual white balance for this scene. In actual fact, i struggle the whole night with the sodium vapour lighting, but for the most part I was able to correct it in…
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#65 – over-reliance on technology?
Stabilised lenses (VR in the case of the Nikon system that I use) are a fantastic innovation that has allowed me to take photos in circumstances that would be impossible with a normal lenses. However, I learnt an important (but cringingly obvious) lesson the other night – by and large, they work best when the…
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#64 – Guesswork / bulb mode
Sometimes, you run out of pre-set exposure times on your camera and you have to resort to the ‘guess’ mode, AKA Bulb. This particular scene was tricky as the big floodlight in the background kept being turned on and off, which made exposure a pain. After several tests, I ended up thinking f*ck it, counted to…
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#59 – Hand held vs tripod
I’ve always regarded tripods as a necessary evil. I hate their weight and the fact they’re so big, unwieldly and time consuming to set up and such like. It’s for these reasons that some people like using tripods, as it forces them to slow down and indulge in a more contemplative type of photography. Each…
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#58 – Paddy’s Hole
Fishing boats at ‘Paddy’s Hole’ on South Gare on the River Tees. I liked the contrast between the little harbour in the foreground and industrial Teeside in the background, and of course the setting sun always makes for a nice sky:) I took this when the light was fading rapdily, and as I didn’t want…
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#57 – sunset
I always moan at how in the UK we don’t get those lovely skies we see in those fabulous photos of steam in China. This is as good as we get in Preston. I wanted to capture the young lady at work on the engine, perhaps need a bit of dodging to bring her out…
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#56 – adding a bit of atmosphere 3
More steam trains! If on the off chance you read this blog regularly, you’ll have noticed a few recent posts of steam train pictures. I love steam trains, and have done for years, although I kind of drift in and out of photographing them. I enjoy the challenge of trying to make something creative and…
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#44 – night-time mirage
Taken at the night photoshoot at the Yorkshire Air Museum at Elvington. Most of the attention was on the Victor and Mosquito, but there were some studio lights set up by this Mirage. Must admit that it looks better under these lights than natural light, doesn’t look as tatty!
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#41 – the beauty of twilight
In my eyes, the best low light photography isn’t done in darkness, it’s done just before, just after the sun has set, but before the sky goes it’s inky black. It’s for that brief period of time when the sky goes a lovely cobalt blue colour, and you can really make a feature of the…
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#36 – cold war victor
Trying to photograph people using long exposures is nigh on impossible, as it’s difficult to stand absolutely still for more than about, 1/30 sec apparently. It’s not too bad if the person is at a distance, as any movement is less noticeable, but even so there is a limit. I’d taken most of the pictures…
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#35 – Solitude
Looking for something – meaning, inspiration, warmth on a cold day. Hoffman Kiln at Langcliffe near Settle in Yorkshire.
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#33 – Las Vegas
How to capture the essence of Las Vegas in one photo? Impossible. It’s just so diverse. Each casino / hotel you visit is completely different to the next. Everything is so big, so fast, so loud, so brash, but huge fun, even if you’re not a gambler like me. It’s awe-inspiring (and tiring) just to…
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#32 – Blackpool
I love Blackpool and hate it at the same time. I love and hate it’s weather, it’s tackiness and the people that I see there. But I always love the smells, the atmosphere and the colour, especially at night. I went to see the Illuminations last night and was reminded that they are Blackpool at…
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#17 – Compact Cameras, Part 1
What have all the above photos got in common? Well, nothing visibly, other than the fact that they were all taken with a small £150 Fuji compact. You don’t need an all singing, all dancing SLR to take a nice picture, it’s only when you want to start doing more complicated things that an SLR…
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#9 – ARCHIVE MAY 2009: Long Exposures
Night photography is something I enjoy doing but don’t get round to doing enough of. Why? Something to do with Not being arsed in the evenings once I get home from work – in the winter when it gets dark early it’s normally cold and wet, while in the summer, it doesn’t get dark until…
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#8 – ARCHIVE MARCH 2009: Nikon D700 and Low Light Steam Railway Photography
One of the prime reasons I bought the D700 was it’s incredible high ISO / low light ability, matched only by the D3, with which it shares the sensor. At low ISO it’s extremely good, with pretty much no noise visible, and my first shots for the night were at low ISO’s with pretty long…
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#7 – ARCHIVE FEBRUARY 2009: Nikon D700 Low Noise Performance
After nearly 4 years of reliable performance, I’ve relegated my Nikon D70 to the shelf as a back-up camera. In it’s place, and at great cost, I’ve invested in a Nion D700. What an incredible camera! I’m more of a photographer than a camera enthusiast, but the D700 is just amazing. Yes it’s bloody expensive,…
Mechanical Landscapes 