Steam Train 80072

[glenng]

Not to shore about this photo I took the other week of steam train 800072 at the Epping Onger railway you comments please?

[James G]

Hi Glen, this is quite a nice capture, but I would handle it a bit differently. I think you should remove some of the distractions which take the eye away from the engine. I'd suggest reframe the focus to the loco by removing most of the level crossing and the very distracting white barrier. I would also crop away the gentleman and possibly the lamp post to the left of the image.
I'd also crop on the right, close up to the red crossing light, and then check to see if the impact of the gantry/bridge needs to be reduced by some further cropping. (I would not remove the bridge entirely)

Though a pretty extreme crop the locomotive should then be the centre of attention.

It's a pity there was no live steam... it would have added some drama to the capture, but I know it's not always possible.

Hope this helps

[Dave Humphries]

I can see your dilemma Glenn,

Ideally I would say ...

a) the loco should be a bit closer to the camera - but I suspect it was standing there and you didn't (or couldn't) wait for it to approach closer (that said; it allows us to see the platform sign giving the location)
b) the lamp on the level crossing gate is large and red and distracts the viewer from the intended subject
c) I like the white top edge of the crossing gate leading the eye in to the composition
d) the brightness of the people and building visible through the steps of the footbridge is another distraction
e) the red and blue things on the far platform are another distraction

You could, to the detriment of reality, tone down the lamp b), and clone out e) - or convert to monochrome.
You could also crop some off the lower and right hand edges which would improve a) and d) - whether you go mono or not.

HTH Dave

[John 2]

I can only agree with the comment already made by James and Dave and so I will only add that from experience, it is nearly always better to photograph these engines from the side opposite to that that they are running on. It gives you more choice in terms of shooting angle and allows you to avoid including the intrusions like the level crossing bar and the red lamp if that's what you need to do.

[IzzieK]

Although I would agree to everything that had already been said, moving the image on the lytebox screen would leave nothing more than the just the train and a very small acreage of the image. I'd clone out the guy on the left to keep the size as is, selectively select the train, reverse, then use the gaussian blur to slightly blur the background. Play with it some more...

[Kaye Leggett]

Agree with the others - try some cropping..... I'd take a chunk off the right and the top which moves the loco to the upper right third of the image, giving it space to run down those tracks. That takes away (for me) the distraction of the man on the opposite platform and so could be left if your cloning skills aren't up to removing him (mine wouldn't be !)

[MrB]

I don't mind any of the features of the image mentioned above - they are things that would be expected in the scene. They are insignificant for me compared with the distraction of the brilliant white sky, which is actually almost concealing a jet of steam from the valve near the engine's cab. An exposure more suitable for the sky would have helped this image.

Cheers.
Philip

[Wavelength]

I like the image;yet i think the white half wall is strongly distracting and generates some leading lines that do not end in the main subject; is this train archive piece or a functional one?