Camera settings for layout photography

[hoover50008]

Hi

 

Having read and watched the interesting article by Andy Y on  What's involved with 'processing' an image for the magazine? I wondered what was the best way to approach taking the pictures in the first place.

 

I realize you will need certain camera equipment such as a tripod to get best the results  and imaging software but what about things like aperture settings, focusing on different points and how many images give the best depth of field when stacked etc.

 

I realize this is a very broad subject but any tips to get started would be appreciated.

 

E

[Jeff Smith]

Regarding depth of field the smallest aperture will give the best - this is the pin-hole camera principle when no focussing is needed as everything is basically in focus from a couple of feet to infinity.  I don't normally further process my pictures as they are generally for illustration or record purposes but have recently been using my Nokia 925 Windows phone. Avoid direct flash as it is too harsh.  Here is a recent picture which evidently focussed on the end of the brake van.  I have now purchased a Canon Powershot SX60 but have yet to experiment on models - it does however have a lot of functions that I am gradually acquainting myself with including of course aperture priority.

 

The second picture was taken years ago with a fairly simple compact camera and my Son added the clouds....it still looks like a model though!

 

 

[ParkeNd]

If you use any camera without focus stacking then go as Jeff Smith has said above. Tripod - Aperture Priority + very small f/ number like f16 + focus about 1/3 of the way into the scene. A wide angle setting on a zoom lens also helps get a big depth of field.

 

But you mention focus stacking - this is a bit of a game changer.

 

The picture below is my N gauge layout and I have just built anew the Railway Cottages in the picture. I just wanted those to be in focus - but all of the cottage in focus. The camera used is a full frame digital SLR and the 24-70 zoom lens is set at 70mm and f/16 so my bounced flash illuminates the entire scene, ISO set at 100 (which the camera balances by setting a slow shutter speed like 6 seconds) - and if I focused just on the nearest level crossing gate post the cottage would be out of focus at that focal range setting. So this is 5 shots focused first on the gate post, then three more working into the depth of the cottage, and the last one on the back corner of the furthest point of the cottage. Zerene Stacker produced this image.

 

[coachmann]

Personally I use just one camera setting....TV = shutter-priority.  I know what it will do in almost any light and occasion. Shooting on the layout : ensure the camera is on a firm base; resting on baseboard, track or a bock of wood, then it doesn't matter how slow the shutter speed is. The smallest aperture or highest f-number will give the longest depth-of-field/apparent sharpness. If you own a multi-megapizel camera and are working in poor light (as I am in a shed), set the ASA to 3200ASA, select the highest aperture and let the shutter speed take care of itself. Also set the +/- exposure compensation to over-expose by 2/3rds of a stop. Focussing : Do not focus on the nearest subject as you will be 'wasting' depth of field. I generally focus somewhere down the side of a loco if it is a ¾-view. The focal length of the lens has a bearing on overall sharpness. I use the equivalent of a 35mm lens. It gives a sluightly wide-angle affect. 

 

When shooting models out side on a diorama, I tend to use the equivalent of a 50mm lens (on 35mm) and because of brighter outdoor conditions reduce the ASA to 800. But I still over-expose slighty by a 1/3rd of a stop. There are plenty of images on my layout and carriage threads as examples.

[Lady_Ava_Hay]

In this age of digital photographs and powerful editing, you can very often completely change the exposure and colour balance afterwards. Concentrate on those things you cannot change such as focus, depth of field.

 

One thing that has NOT changed with digital is that all photography requires good lighting and good composition. It is rare that model railway lighting is sufficient but there are vast variations in lighting from one venue to another and one layout to another. You need to be able to cope with that. For most that means using flash. A flash diffuser is a must as photos taken up close using the camera's flash without a diffuser will be a tricky subject. Be prepared to take several shots and be aware that even a sophisticated snap camera will give results that lack texture.

 

Remember also that your camera compresses pictures and that the end result can be a bit muddy. I photograph in RAW format and use Photoshop to convert to JPG as the computer does a much better job of it than the camera.

 

My flash has just been changed for a Yongnuo 580 and I have a Gary Fong diffuser so I can control the amount of light that my camera sees to a very fine degree. Flash is a very white light and is much better than the normal fluorescent lights that most venues have.

 

You may also find that photographing a grey card and adjusting all the pics to that grey balance will result in enhanced results. Do not be afraid to crop the image and do not be afraid to edit the image to take out extraneous details such as layout furniture.

 

It is a huge amount of work but well worthwhile. Later one can start mastering the insertion of sky and other backgrounds but then we venture into territory that many will consider slightly unethical outside of commercial photography.

[hoover50008]

Thanks for all your tips folks, it's a great help.

 

E

[Neils WRX]

Would also suggest shooting in RAW if you can.

Also use a tripod, iso100 F16 or F22 and bounced flash.

[Dunsignalling]

A number of people have mentioned using wide (or wide-ish) lenses to obtain good depth of field.

 

Tip 1: If you have the room to do so, using a longer lens from a greater distance will also achieve this. Adding a good old-fashioned close-up filter will bring the minimum focus distance down if required. Longer lenses (in general) tend to be less prone to distortion. 

 

Tip 2: The centre of the frame will be most in focus and this is also the area where most lenses perform at their best. If you have plenty of megapixels to play with, make the most of this by concentrating your target within it. The waste you crop later will be the out-of focus areas and those most likely to be of lesser quality.

 

Tip 3: Turn off the autofocus. Unless you have a pretty high-end DSLR, there will not be enough autofocussing points to give you sufficient control with it switched on.

 

Tip 4: When choosing a tripod, there is no substitute for mass when it comes to real stability and a good one will last forever. I use a forty-year-old Manfrotto that weighs a ton and is possibly stronger than most of the buildings I use it in! Always use a remote shutter release or the delayed release on the camera.  

 

Tip 5: Not so much a tip but more a personal preference. If the layout has its own lighting rig, taking pictures under it (with any room lighting off) will usually give shots that look more like what an observer will see than belting it with flash. I prefer to use it, along with hand held constant lighting, whenever possible. Even a decent quality multi-LED torch can provide surprisingly good "fill-in". 

 

John

[NCB]

Remember that small-sensor compacts give you a better depth of field than say a full-frame or APS-C DSLR. If you can find a small-sensor compact which has enough control, eg over aperture and has decent image quality then it's worth giving it a try. I choose the smallest aperture (using aperture priority mode) and lowest ISO, change the white balance to suit the lighting, stick the camera on some sort of tripod (I have a typical lightweight tripod for off-layout mounting, and a very small one with adjustable flexible legs for on-layout positions), underexpose by 1/3 of a stop (rectified in post-processing) and use a timer to avoid camera shake when actually taking the pic. The camera I use has a hinged rear screen which allows you to position the screen so that you can easily see it; this is enormously useful.

[The Great Bear]

If one can stretch to it, a m4/3 camera, like the Olympus OM-D E-M10 works well, well does for me anyway, especially with the kit "pancake" 14-42mm lens. Small enough to place on the layout, excellent image quality and can be controlled remotely via wi-fi and smartphone/tablet. I'd imagine there are other wi-fi enabled cameras that can do the same.

 

 

Focus point, exposure and, with the kit lens that has a motorised zoom, zoom too. With ability to change focus point without touching the camera this makes focus stacking (taking mutliple pictures 3 say) to get increased depth of field a boon.

 

As per the advice above, if focus stacking is too complicated, plant the camera firmly somewhere, aperture priority set to F22, focus a third of the depth into the picture and use self timer or remote release to avoid camera shake when pressing the shutter.

 

If you can't use a tripod, increase the sensitivity (ISO) until you can get a decent shutter speed for a mid-range aperture (F8 or F11) that'll give reasonable depth of field. My Olympus has image stabilisation so one can go down to around 1/15 of a second shutter speed if one holds it well. Whilst low ISOs are best for absolute image quality the low light performance of digital cameras has come on leaps and bounds in the last 10 years so for normal image sizes this should not impact image quality noticeably.

 

For everyday layout shots I use my Windows phone. Windows phones may lack apps, but one mine does have is something called Lumina Refocus which does a multiple image, focus-stacking thing, on its own, the results are pretty good.

 

Good luck with it

 

Jon

[rogerzilla]

Get the camera to scale eye level, or as near as you can.  With an SLR the centre of the lens mount is going to be about an inch and a half off the baseboard, which is too high for OO gauge - it's a scale 9.5 feet off the ground and will look wrong, but some pocket digicams will look about right if just placed on the scenery.  On film or full-frame DSLR, you're going to need the smallest aperture you can get (and even that won't be enough).  A cameraphone might give better results most of the time because it has huge depth of field.  Lighting needs to be very flat - flash bounced off the ceiling is fine - although a small amount of direct fill-in, contributing no more than 1/4 of total illumination, will brighten colours,

 

Regarding lens focal length, wide angles only look right if the photo is going to be viewed quite close up, and telephoto lenses will exacerbate the depth-of-field problem.  Ideally you want a macro lens of around 50mm.

 

The craze a few years ago for "tilt-shift" photiography of real subjects was actually inspired by typically bad photos of models, taken from a relatively high viewpoint and with insufficient depth-of-field.  If you do this to a real railway scene it ends up looking like N gauge!

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/tommy_toast/1401774291/

[siltec]

I use one of those mini studios for photographing individual models. I try to have a plain background just like those old factory photographs of locos. The unit i bought came with a couple of lights using those mains halogen reflector bulbs. OK but they did tend to get hot. Now with LED equivalents heat is no longer an issue.

 

i have a Sony bridge camera and an old Canon digital compact. Both have a close up setting. Using this means one can get really close up.

 

The Sony has more settings and using aperture priority for the best depth of field is repeated advice. Use a tripod so shutter speeds can be longer than hand holding permits. Also this is when the remote control is handy, for focusing and firing.

 

Table top tripods from Poundland work fine. Also their Selfie sticks, well the early ones I bought, have a threaded base so the camera clamp can be removed and fitted to a tripod. Handy for phone camera users.

[Silver Sidelines]

Buy a decent camera.  You don't need a tripod.  Avoid flash.  Use the camera in manual mode, as other's have already said, use the highest 'f' number possible. Put the camera on a solid foundation and use the 10 sec timer to avoid camera shake.  I use blocks of wood and stiff cardboard boxes to get close up to parts of my layout.

 

I have a three year old Sony bridge camera with a Zeiss lens.  Sony make the same camera with their own lens which sells for c£100 less - there has to be a reason.

 

I get a steady stream of positive comments about the quality of pictures on my Blog.

 

Just some personal thoughts.

 

Regards

 

Ray

[bertiedog]

Without repeating others advice, there are a couple of points to know..........

 

Not all digital cameras have "genuine" small apertures, This does not apply to more expensive reflexes and mirrorless like the Olympus m4/3 pen.

 

Simpler camera types may well show an aperture in the viewfinder, but the mechanisms that choose the aperture stop at about F5.6, and the smaller apertures are digitally set.

 

The reason is that the shortest focal lengths have minute aperture diameters, difficult to set.This means even a quality "bridge" camera type may not increase the depth of field to what you expect.

So use a reflex or a type you are 100% certain stops down.

 

Also as long ago as the 1950's a regular contributor to the Model Railroader, who's name escapes me, demonstrated that the best focal lengths for 35mm full frame where 100mm for H0/00 and 200mm for O gauge. This was worked out on test shots to produce natural perspective. In practical terms he suggested 50mm min for H0/00 and 135mm for 0 scale as minimums.

The proof were his amazing life like models, difficult to tell from the real thing.

 

A tip to get down close to the track and take shots even inclined upwards from the track, is to simply use a mirror, if possible a front silvered one, and take the shot with the camera facing down into the mirror.

 

Photo stacking works well, but at the expense of a lot of planning, and a full understanding of both the stacking software, and Photoshop. the Software is also quite expensive, there are free versions, but they are not as good or user friendly.

 

My own set up is a Olympus Pen mirrorless, used with the standard zoom at longer settings, or a selection of manual lenses on adaptors, mainly 50mm which equates to 100m on 35mm full frame for 00 scale. Most older lenses stop down to F22 or f16, giving great depth of focus. For stacking I use 105mm and four levels minimum.