Tag Archives: Night Freight

photography

Night Freight on Stateline Hill; an exercise in existing-light night photography.

2 Comments

I made these photos the other evening at Bridge Street in Monson, Massachusetts.

New England Central 608 from Willimantic, Connecticut was paused waiting for traffic ahead to clear up.

Despite the cold, I took the opportunity to make a few time exposures with my Lumix LX-7. My exposures were aided by a blanket of crusty snow that reflected some of the ambient light.

NECR 608 at Bridge Street in Monson, Massachusetts.
NECR 608 at Bridge Street in Monson, Massachusetts.

To keep the camera from shaking, I rested it on the handrails of the bridge and used the self timer to actuate the shutter. I exposed in ‘M’ mode (manual) using the camera’s histogram to gauge the length of my shutter opening.

Owing to the dimly lit scene, I still needed to boost the shadows in post processing to allow for a more visually appealing image. Opportunities such as this make for good exercises in existing-light night photography.

This is a slightly telephoto view of the same scene. The tricky part was keeping the camera steady for 25-30 seconds without the use of a tripod. Why not set up a tripod? Time. I had only a few moments to compose and expose this view. Fumbling with a tripod in the cold and dark would have delayed my efforts.
This is a slightly telephoto view of the same scene. The tricky part was keeping the camera steady for 25-30 seconds without the use of a tripod. Why not set up a tripod? Time. I had only a few moments to compose and expose this view. Fumbling with a tripod in the cold and dark would have delayed my efforts.

Tracking the Light is Daily!