Tag Archives: #light rail

Germany meets Charlotte

May 31st, 2014, I stood in the grass south of downtown Charlotte, North Carolina to photograph a German-dessigned Siemens Mobility-built model S70 tram working as the Lynx.

I like photographing modern lightrail systems in urban environments.

The sun was softened by a cloud moments before exposure. I rescued the image in post processing with some shadow-lightening and contrast adjustment, and by warming the color temperature.

Since my 2014 visit to Charlotte with photographer Pat Yough, the city has expanded its light rail system and purchased many more Siemens trams.

Lumix LX7 photo, exposed in RAW and adjusted with Adobe Lightroom to create an internet-sized JPG file.

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LUAS Focus

On the evening of August 12, 2015, I made this pair of images of Dublin’s LUAS light rail at the Museum stop on Benburb Street.

I was playing with very close focus for effect. By manually setting the focus in the second image, I selected a focus point on the stone wall, while allowing the tram to dissolve in a sea of blur.

In post processing I corrected the color balance to compensate for the intense yellow-orange tint of the street lights.

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Lynx and the Lumix

I experimented with compact mirrorless cameras on May 31, 2014, during a visit to Charlotte, North Carolina,

My trusty Lumix LX3 had failed a few weeks earlier, and I was seeking a suitable replacement.

On this trip photographer Pat Yough let me try out his FujiFilm XE-2. While my father had lent me his Lumix LX7, (a model that was an upgraded variation on the older LX3)

I made these images using the Lumix LX7 which photographing the Lynx light rail system south of downtown Charlotte.

Ultimately,not onlydid I buy a Lumix LX7, but after continued experimentation with the Fuji system, I also bought a Fuji XT1, which served me well for a number of years.

I’ve found that it really helps to experiement with different camera systems to put them through their paces BEFORE drawing firm conclusions or making a purchase.

Below are three variations of the same image. The first is a scaled version of the in-camera JPG (scaled for internet presention, not cropped); the other two are interpretations from the camera RAW using Adobe Lightroom.

Lumix LX7 in-camerea JPG scaled for internet.
JPG adapted from Camera RAW.
Alternative interpretation of the same Camera RAW file.

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San Diego Trolley

In June 2008, I traveled from Los Angeles to San Diego to research and photograph my book titled Railroads of California (Published by MBI-Voyageur Press in 2009).

I traveled over most of the San Diego Trolley system, during which time I made several dozen photos of the cars including this one near downtown San Diego.

I was working with a pair of Canon EOS 3s. This was was loaded with Fujichrome and fitted with a 200mm Canon lens.

Today, looking back on San Diego from frozen New Hampshire, it seems like a long way away and a long time ago.

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Yellow Cars-Gold Line

Using my FujiFilm XT1, I made this photo on First Street when visiting Los Angeles in August 2016.

I was pleased to catch then-new cars working the Metro Rail Gold Line light rail line.

Below are two variations. The top is the in-camera JPG, using the ‘Velvia’ color profile. The second view I converted from Fuji RAW to DNG format with Iridient X-Transformer (a specialized 3rd party software aimed at producing superior results with Fuji RAW files) before importing into Lightroom for final adjustment.

In-camera JPG using ‘Veliva’ color profile.
DNG file converted from Fuji RAW using Iridient X-Transformer.Notice the superior shadow detail.

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Toronto Transit Commission—Two Photos from Ten Years Ago.

In February 2010, I visited Toronto, Ontario with photographers Pat Yough and Chris Guss.

It was extra cold, but we made some stunning photos in the clear frosty light.

These view of TTC CLRVs (Canadian Light Rail Vehicles) were exposed using a Canon EOS-3 and Fujichrome slide film.

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Not In Service

On a June 2008 trip to San Diego, I made this photo of a Metropolitan Transit System car in fresh paint running on the Green Line without passengers.

The car’s destination boards boldly read ‘Not in Service.’

I exposed the photo on Fujichrome slide film using a Canon EOS3 with 24mm lens.

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