Tuesday night a line of intense electrical storms passed to the south of us.
Kris and I drove over to Strasburg as lightning flashed across the sky. It was 15 to 20 miles to the south, and far enough away that we couldn’t hear the thunder. To the north the sky had cleared and in the west was a colorful sunset.
We parked at Blackhorse Road by the Strasburg Rail Road to watch the light show.
Working with my Nikon Z7-II set at 4000 ISO, I made this sequence of photos hand held.
When I very young, I learned to photograph lightning working with my dad’s 120-size roll film Rollei Model T. My choice of equipment has changed, but the basic technique is still very effective.
I mounted my Nikon Z7-II firmly on my old Bogen tripod to allow for slow ISO and long exposures to make these night photos of the holiday lights at the Strasburg Rail Road.
I played with the color temperature presets to find the best combination for capturing the hues of the colored lights. The setting shown in each caption is that calculated by Adobe Lightroom using the Kelvin scale.
Nikon Z7-II with 24-70mm set to 41mm, color temperature setting = 3,450 degrees Kelvin; exposure f4, 10 seconds, ISO 200.Nikon Z7-II with 24-70mm set to 41mm, color temperature setting = 5,300 degrees Kelvin; exposure f4, 8 seconds, ISO 200.Nikon Z7-II with 24-70mm set to 41mm, color temperature setting = 6,000 degrees Kelvin; exposure f4, 10 seconds, ISO 200.
It was a bright day in mid-October. Not wanting to squander the sunshine, I set out toward New Holland, PA hoping to catch the daily Norfolk Southern local freight that works the branch.
I set up at the New Holland, Post Office at Diller Avenue, and after a short wait the local ambled along on its westward run toward Lancaster.
To make the most of the passing train, I made my initial images from a low angle for dramatic effect.
Exposed using a Z7-II with 24-70mm zoom lens.Exposed using a Z7-II with 24-70mm zoom lens.Exposed using a Z7-II with 24-70mm zoom lens.
On our way home, we paused along Jefferson Drive in Greenfield, Lancaster, PA, to roll by Amtrak Keystone 620 on its run from Harrisburg to Philadelphia.
The sun had dropped under a textured evening sky, making for a stunning display of natural color.
Nikon Z7-II with 24-70mm zoom set to 50mm; f4.5 at 1/800th of second at ISO 2000.Nikon Z7-II with 24-70mm zoom set to 50mm; f4.5 at 1/250th of a second at ISO 2000.Nikon Z7-II with 24-70mm zoom set to 50mm; f4.5 at 1/160th ofa second at ISO 2000.
It was a beautiful morning in North Conway the other day. I arrived just as a switch crew was working the yard. They were moving equipment to suit the needs of the roundhouse crew.
I spent a few minutes with my Nikon Z7-II and 24-70 zoom to make the best use of the rich morning sun.
I found that it helps to chat with the crew, so I could anticipate each move and be in position to make the most of the situation.
Yesterday morning, I walked from my office up to the trestle over River Road in North Conway, NH in order to photograph the Snow Train returning from Attitash.
The polarized blue dome and crusty snow made for very contrasty light. I compensated for high contrast in post processing by lightening the shadow areas and controling highlight detail. This made for a more pleasing image while make better use of the data captured by the camera.
Nikon Z7-II with 24-70mm Nikkor Z-series lens.Trailing view of the Snow Train.
Yesterday, I brought my new Z7-II to work and made a few photos around the Conway Scenic Railroad and on my way home in the evening.
These images are all adjusted and scaled from the Camera NEF (RAW) files.
Now to set the date on the camera to 2023!
NX Studio work window of the above image.Conway Scenic Railroad former Maine Central GP38 255.NX Studio work window of the above image.NX Studio work window of the above image.NEF file adjusted for high impact with altered contrast and inceased saturation.NX Studio work window of the above image.
