Tips for taking photos through a train window at night

[Ramsden]

Hi folks 

Continuing the planning for my autumn trip from London to Aberdeen at the end of October. Thanks to everyone for their great advice on camera settings and ideas for innovative shots.

Just one last thing (for now) I realised that the last hour of the journey will be at sunset. I aim to book a seat looking East, so out across the North Sea and hopefully a moon rise. It will darkish outside and the carriage lights will be on.

So, I did a quick internet search for advice, and while there is a slightly consistent line, I have to turn to my friends across the pond for not only settings, but how and what shoot as it gets dark.

I've bought some rubber lens caps so I can hold my camera upto the train window.

Here is what I have so far:

Low f numbers 1.4 1.8

Highish ISO, 3200 - 6400

M mode

A blackout hood for me and camera (is this needed with rubber lens caps)?

EOS90D and thinking I should test these  lenses before the big trip: EFS 18-135, EF 50mm and EF100mm Primes and EF-S 10-22mm wide angle.

As ever your help and advice gratefully received 

Ramsden 

[SignifDigits]

What is your thinking on considering the 50mm and 100mm lenses?  I can understand the wide angle and long zoom, but not sure what your thinking is for those.   I am guessing because of their lower f numbers? 

The 50mm would be effectively 80mm with your sensor and the 100mm effectively 160mm.   These are pretty narrow.   Of course the 50mm at 80mm would be a cheap, bright lens in what many consider a good portraiture field of view.

Often after our trips afterwards we gravitate to pics with a narrower field of view.  I'm personally bad about wanting to catch the wide angle too often and failing to use the principles simplicity and exclusion.

The EF 100mm macro is an excellent macro lens, though I prefer the 180mm.  The 180mm would be nearly a 300mm lens on your camera, so it could serve as both a macro and long lens.  Again, not sure what you were thinking of in considering the 100mm and you might not have been considering the 100mm macro at all, but the non-macro version.

If you get a good copy a Rokinon/Samyang 24mm f1.4 might be another lens to consider if you're looking for low f stops.  It is pretty popular for astrophotography, but quality tends to vary a lot.  Essentially a 35mm (more precisely 38mm) lens on your camera.

[Ramsden]

Hi

Thanks for your detailed reply. 

Start with the positive: I have an EFS 24MM, so that's encouraging. I thought that it would be too small for distance photos out of a window. I really like it and have it on my camera quite frequently on my daily walks, so will test it out on local trains shortly.

I bought the 50mm quite soon after getting my EOS90D, and just found it very versatile. I like the clarity you get with Prime lenses, and soon bought the 100mm. And yes, the low f no's are a bonus. I thought that they would be good capturing the seascape and scenery en route, with clarity at speed. But that was an intuitive assumption!

My knowledge of camera technology is quite limited hence my post. I know some people don't like the Prime lenses, but they work for me.

But, as I've often said in previous posts,  I need to do more reading and research and basically learn what my equipment is designed to do.

Finally, I've also got a 70-300mm zoom but thought that would be too big.

Regards 

Ramsden 

[ebiggs1]

This is impossible to tell you anything exact without being there. And you can't go in knowing what will work. You just have to try and experiment. I would scrap the 50mil and certainly the 100mil right off. My guess is a WA lens will be best. But shooting through a train window has got to be way down on, "I want great shots from doing it thought." It's not likely photographic quality glass and it is probably not spotlessly clean. Plus you added it's dark outside and you are moving.  Beyond talking a few curiosity shots I wouldn't do it. But it is whatever you are good with.

The settings will be based on what you are shooting and not from where you are shooting from. So whatever settings you would use if you were standing right there is the same ones you will use from the train window. Example new photography folks that try to shoot the Moon often think it is dark outside so I need long exposure but in reality it is daylight on the Moon so daylight is the exposure you need. But bracketing is your friend. Go both ways more open, less open, slower SS and faster SS. I am also guessing ISO on the higher side 1600-3200 but there again it depends on the lighting of the subject. 

It may be difficult to enjoy your holiday if you worry too much about your camera. Unless of course it is the camera that the trip is for.

[Ramsden]

Thanks EB

I always appreciate your honesty.

I don't suppose I ever intended it to be an exercise in photographic excellence.

Like taking my dog out most days (with camera), going on long cross country train journeys is something we enjoy (my son and I). I nearly always have my camera with me. So recording the journey is part of the enjoyment.

But everything is in flux on the day.

We'll have a pleasant 3 or 4 days away, on a great train journey,  and a night in Aberdeen! What's not to like?

Regards 

Ramsden 

[Waddizzle]

How to shoot through the window of a moving train will depend heavily upon the speed of the train and the condition of the tracks,  

My advice is to go into prepared for the worst case. The train car is rocking and swaying too much to get off a steady shot.  You keep banging your lens against the glass. Hood or no hood, that’s not good.

Be prepared to use your smart phone for most of the journey when the train is in motion. I took a much longer journey recently.  Unlike the plastic lens hood on my lens, my smart phone has a rubber cover. Do, it didn’t slip and slide on the glass.

And then there’s going to be the issue with ambient light within the car.  I was in a sleeper car, so I was able to turn off the lights.  The ambient light will create reflections off the glass and into the lens barrel. My smart phone cover could lay flat on the glass, which sealed out all ambient light.

I could capture great photos during the brief train stops with my camera.  Just be prepared for the worst case.  Be ready to use the phone. 

[Ramsden]

Hi Waddizzle

I guess my phone will get used along the way. And, as my son keeps reminding me, the lens in his phone is better than the one in the canon that I bought him!

I do use my phone camera, but using my Canon on the journey is part of the challenge and enjoyment.

So using my camera will be my priority. However, I'm now preparing myself for numerous contingencies, and I don’t want to damage my camera.

However the rubber lens hoods are quite impressive. I paid around £9 and the package had a cloth, a pen shaped brush and lens cap. Though as yet, untested.

On a positive note, I'm now trying to work out what stage the moon will be in and hoping to get a magnificent moon rise over the North Sea as we approach Aberdeen (in my dreams)!

Kind regards 

Ramsden 

[JeffXB]

“On a positive note, I'm now trying to work out what stage the moon will be in and hoping to get a magnificent moon rise over the North Sea as we approach Aberdeen (in my dreams)”

Below is a screenshot from the Photo Pills app  planner. The thick light blue line indicates the position of the moon when it rises, thin blue line the position at 5:30pm and the dark line when it sets. I randomly picked October 26th as it’s a full moon. I can change the date if you care to share it (either here or via PM). I also randomly picked a spot along the rail line a little south of Aberdeen.