Crystal on the tracks
- Thread starter STM
- Start date
BackdoorArts
Senior Member
(Do not say, "I'd ride that train", this is a family forum!!)
BackdoorArts
Senior Member
Sorry. Something about the Castro cap on a pretty girl that makes me overtly social. 
Thanks! I love photography on RR tracks but from my experience, very shallow depth of field is best. If the tracks are too sharp, especially in the background, it becomes distracting. I always use a long lens, at least 180mm, but often 300mm, both f/2.8 and close down 1 stop to f/4. The depth of field of the 300mm at f/4 is very narrow, so critical focusing is a must. All of my lenses are AIS so I focus manually. I have swapped out the focusing screens on both my F4S and D700 to microprism/split image ones. From my experience, focusing screens designed for use with autofocus cameras are generally unsuitable for critical manual focusing. Here is another image on the tracks showing how shallow the depth of field can be (just a couple of feet) but also how well it separates the model from the background without losing a sense of place:
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BackdoorArts
Senior Member
I'm reminded of a page that hosts "Bad Band Photos" where the large majority of them are taken against brick walls or along train tracks. It may not work for bands, but it certainly works for models. Depth of field is key, as you said. Alas, like Rick, I never seem to find anything like this when I get there.
Nice images! I like the shallow depth of field on shots like this, too. Have you ever tried using the Brenizer method?
And to all the rest of you - that young lady is going to be somebody's grandmother some day to be careful what you think...
Lol, I'll be dead by then, but I ain't now!
For the most part I use a tripod, or at least a monopod, and shoot around eye level. The fact that I crop to place the model on a third and don't use a lot of foreground can look that way.
Nice images! I like the shallow depth of field on shots like this, too. Have you ever tried using the Brenizer method?
And to all the rest of you - that young lady is going to be somebody's grandmother some day to be careful what you think...
Yeah, what he said! She is 30 now (was 27 at the time of the shoot) and has two very cute boys. Here is another shot from the same day. This was shot with the 180mm f/2.8 at f/4. I think this is my favorite portrait image of all time:
Ok, enough technical stuff, back to drooling
Yeah, shooting beautiful young women. It's tough work but someone has to do it!
I once came upon a railroad track shoot with a pretty model and snagged a slide on the sly. It's labeled "Nobody I Ever Knew", lest my child be confused someday.
Sorry. Something about the Castro cap on a pretty girl that makes me overtly social.
Castro Cap??? I didn't see that.
Good shots STM I like all three.
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I didn't see any cap either!