One thing I've realised through these pictures, particularly the
second one on the unlit road, is that I sub-consciously pan the camera
whenever I photograph a moving bus. I didn't even know I was doing it
- the giveaway is the distant street lights.
In both cases the buses were moving and I've no idea who the drivers
were - I certainly didn't make any arrangement with them.
It's odd standing with camera ready in the pitch dark - although I've
got a bit used to it. You will notice that on the first photograph the
camera has still managed to "miss" the display!
Now to get the time machine working - except the technique probably
still wouldn't work as street and bus lighting levels were lower then
and you still couldn't do it.
That shot of AJs last night was really good. I'd been out shopping
last night and it had got a bit misty and I was thinking that the
effect with the street lights was good - only AJ actually captured
it! I did have a little play with his photograph in Photoshop which I
suggest anybody else interested does (and this is not a criticism of
the photograph, by the way). If you go into hue/saturation and select
each of the six individual options to edit, Reds, Yellows, Greens,
Cyans, Blues and Magentas you will find you move the sliders over the
full range for the last four and it makes no difference at all to the
image, apart from a little bit inside the vehicle. That's because of
the very narrow spectrum from the sodium lighting on the outside,
whilst the interior is fluorescent-lit with a wider spectrum. This
isn't a camera thing - the task for the camera would be almost the
equivalent of turning a black and white image into a colour one and
there's a lot of us would like to be able to do that!
Night photography is a wide field with lots of different of different
approaches. Photofloods give you a bright and colourful image, but it
isn't natural - but does a photograph have to be natural? Similarly,
a natural photograph would have a lot of the image dark with no detail
- that's natural and what it was really like but if you just treat it
as a photograph of the bus it doesn't work well. Turning night shots
into black and white images often works surprisingly well and is worth
a try.
The good thing about photography (including night photography) is that
you can make up your own rules. In the digital age it's much easier
(and cheaper) to experiment - you get the result instantly and can
correct and have another go. More than anything though, when you're
experimenting the one that comes out is easily worth the ten that
didn't. (I haven't shown you those!)
Regards,
David Beilby
On 17 Nov 2012, at 08:07, MARTIN BRAY wrote:
David, These pictures are some of the most inspiring I've ever seen
at night. The only thing I can't get my head around is the shutter
speed of 1/160 and 1/50 which should have all the hallmarks of
softness which I don't see upon very close scrutiny of the pictures.
They're razor sharp. Dare I suggest that the driver stopped the
vehicle for you? The only other issue is, they weren't Stagecoach
vehicles.
I wonder if our Mr Perry can help me out?
Regards
Martin Bray, Swansea, UK
Stagecoach Cymru... http://www.stagecoach-cymru.co.uk/
Welcome to Margam Depot...http://www.margam-depot.co.uk
From: David Beilby <[email protected]>
To: [email protected]
Sent: Friday, 16 November 2012, 22:25
Subject: Re: After Dark
Thanks - you've conjured up a great image of Cwmbran and probably,
on a night like tonight, quite accurate!
However, the tripod is thing I like to manage without, it gives you
so much more flexibility. The link below, whilst OT for South
Wales, shows the sort of thing you can do. But cameras that do good
6400ASA don't come cheap - and neither do the lenses!:
http://davidbeilby.zenfolio.com/p817002398/e3e5669d5
Occasionally I try the ultimate challenge, which is of a bus on an
unlit road at night. This might sound impossible but there's a lot
of light comes from the bus itself. It's not something you'd do a
lot, but it's fun to experiment!:
http://davidbeilby.zenfolio.com/p817002398/e9c5ca18
I suppose I'd better get on topic somehow. How about Rhymney Valley
RE 59 (GTX 359N) in Nelson bus station at dusk on 1st August 1978?
This dates back to the time of that radical concept of one
operator's buses actually connecting with another's. It'll never
catch on!
Best Regards,
David Beilby
(Please note, I retain copyright in photographs I post on this
group, they are for personal use only and may not be reproduced in
any form without prior permission)
On 16 Nov 2012, at 21:25, Martin Bray wrote:
> David, your posting conjures up to me, of a tripod being pitched
up in
> darkness and torrential rain outside Frankie and Bennies, pointed
> across the road into Cwmbran bus station as a B10M is taking on
> passengers for an X24 working. Can you imagine the reflections off
the
> vehicle in the rain and darkness.
>
> 6400asa images are a little too grainy to print but have plenty of
> impact under variable lighting conditions within the image. Here's
one
> of mine without the rain...
>
> http://www.martinbray-ukloco.com/
>
> On 13 Nov, 22:07, David Beilby <[email protected]> wrote:
>> It's odd that you should post that photo just after I'd been out to
>> photograph a First Manchester bus myself in similar lighting
>> conditions. That I can push up to 6400ASA and get good results
is a
>> testimony to modern camera development and at that speed the bus
>> doesn't even have to be stationary!
>>
>> Your picture shows one of the issues that no camera technology can
>> deal with (at the moment at least), which is the narrow colour
>> spectrum from sodium lighting. Whilst high pressure sodium
lighting
>> isn't as bad as the older sodium lights, there's still a yellow
cast
>> which colour correction won't get rid of. Of course, it is
actually
>> an accurate record of the scene and thus perfectly correct. You
can
>> use a flash but apart from, at he very least, annoying the
driver, the
>> photograph wouldn't look natural and would be flat.
>>
>> Nonetheless I'm an enthusiastic exponent of night photography and
am
>> glad to find someone else trying - do try more! When it works well
>> the effect can be so dramatic. Heavy rain makes for great photos
but
>> a pretty miserable experience taking them. And don't forget those
>> Christmas lights!
>>
>> Regards,
>>
>> David Beilby
>>
>> On 13 Nov 2012, at 21:25, Barrie Gilbert wrote:
>>
>>
>>
>>> One of the few good things about the clocks going back an hour at
>>> this time of year is the potential to take photographs in
different
>>> light conditions, provided that you have a tripod or a steady
hand.
>>
>>> This teatime shot is of First Cymru Pointer-bodied Dart 42610,
which
>>> is one of a handful that have been repainted in the new corporate
>>> livery and refurbished with leather seat covers. It is also one
of
>>> the three that carry the new bilingual fleetnames and branding for
>>> Service 36.
>>
>>> The location is Clase Road, Morriston in November 2012.
>>
>>> © Barrie Gilbert
>>
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