Warren, Massachusetts is a favorite place to photograph, but also a tricky one.
I used Warren as an example for a similar compositional conversation in Trains Magazine, published about two years ago and featured photo of Amtrak’s westward Lake Shore Limited.
Yesterday (December 29, 2017), I arrived in Warren just in time to set up and catch CSX’s late-running Q264 (loaded autoracks for East Brookfield) race up the grade and pass the recently restored former Boston & Albany station.
Using my FujiFilm X-T1 with 18-135mm lens, I exposed a burst of images.
I’ve selected three of these, and then annotated versions of the image that I like the best so that you may benefit from my compositional considerations.
I prefer this view over the two closer images. I think the composition works better (as illustrated in the annotated versions) and it emphasizes the station, which personally I find more interesting than the train.This view was made seconds after the one above. Although the train is closer, most of the interesting elements of the old station have been obscured.This is a nice photo of CSX’s Q264, but it could be anywhere on the Boston & Albany line. Why bother going to Warren if the station and town are cropped?
There’s no correct answer to composition; in this instance I prefer the more distant view of the train because it better features the old passenger station and the town of Warren; here’s why I feel the composition works:
Important, yet subtle compositional elements at work. Look at the position of the locomotive cab where it visually intersects the station building. It does this as cleanly as possible, without obscuring the dormer window or resulting in visual confusion. The similar color of the locomotive cab and clock tower make for interesting counterpoint. What if the tower was red brick and the locomotive cab was blue?Here I’ve highlighted several areas of interest. These are points that naturally attract the eye and are focal points to the composition, providing both interest and balance.Here’s is general outline of the composition. The trees provide visual support and context, but are not central subjects. Would this image work as well without them?
I think your favorite would look even better cropped so that the leading locomotives, the station, and the town/tower are brought closer to the viewer, while excluding an unnecessary amount of trees, though they would still support the composition appearing in the upper left and right side corners.
Michael Walsh on said:
Very instructive, and also a useful insight why some of one’s own pictures worked better than others.
I think your favorite would look even better cropped so that the leading locomotives, the station, and the town/tower are brought closer to the viewer, while excluding an unnecessary amount of trees, though they would still support the composition appearing in the upper left and right side corners.
Very instructive, and also a useful insight why some of one’s own pictures worked better than others.