landscapes Posted January 22, 2022 Author Share Posted January 22, 2022 6 hours ago, auxie22 said: Hi Dave, It's been quite some time since I have checked out the forums, as life has gotten a little hectic. I have had to put the modelling on hold (due to moving into a new house soon) but every time I come back it just gets better and better. The atmosphere is amazing and the locos look gorgeous. Thank you. Its. Been similar for me and railway modelling has had to take a bit of a back seat mainly due to family commitments. Wish you all the best with your house move. Regards David 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
landscapes Posted January 23, 2022 Author Share Posted January 23, 2022 Hi Two view today of locomotives arriving on Haymarket MPD, the building in the background just behind the locomotives in both photo is the Offices/Stores. This is where the lamps and headboards would be removed before the locos are turned then make their way to the Ash Pits if required then water and coaling. Regards David 15 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
landscapes Posted January 25, 2022 Author Share Posted January 25, 2022 Hi A couple of photos this evening showing a more close up view of the main shed entrance. Close ups of this magnification can sometime be a little cruel on the eye. And thank god they do not show up so much on the layout itself Regards David 18 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
landscapes Posted January 27, 2022 Author Share Posted January 27, 2022 Hi Away from the main shed A3 60043 Brown Jack is now on the turntable awaiting its next duty. The turntable is a converted Peco PL-55 fitted with replacement brass handrails Vacuum housing and other detailing items. Regards David 10 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
robmcg Posted January 27, 2022 Share Posted January 27, 2022 (edited) Hi David, I particularly like the perspective in your photo above of the A3 with A4 in the background. I may have asked before, but may I ask what camera and lens and settings you use? I am in the middle of changing my camera and am always interested in the methods used by those who achieve such good results. Of course it's a subject in itself, but I doubt you'll find much agreement about how best to photograph models! A young camera-shop guy I spoke to yesterday was keen to help and advise me but when it came to perspective and close-up stuff he seriously did not 'get it'. FWIW I have mostly used Canon medium format cameras until now and am today buying my first full frame digital (35mm sensor)... and a couple of lenses. And people think model trains are expensive? Try camera lenses! Cheers, Robbie Edited January 27, 2022 by robmcg correction Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
landscapes Posted January 27, 2022 Author Share Posted January 27, 2022 3 minutes ago, robmcg said: Hi David, I particularly like the perspective in your photo above of the A3 with A4 in the background. I may have asked before, but may I ask what camera and lens and settings you use? I am in the middle of changing my camera and am always interested in the methods used by those who achieve such good results. Of course it's a subject in itself, but I doubt you'll find much agreement about how best tp photograph models! A young camera-shop guy I spoke to yesterday was keen to help and advise me but when it came to perspective and close-up stuff he resioiusly did not 'get it'. FWIW I have mostly used Canon medium format cameras until now and am today buying my first full frame digital (35mm sensor)... and a couple of lenses. And people think model trains are expensive? Try camera lenses! Cheers, Robbie Hi Robbie Thank you for you kind comment. I use a Canon G12 it has a built in lens but you can focus down to a few inches. Andy York and other RMWeb members always had positive comments about the model. I purchased mine second hand on EBay as Canon no longer make this model. I set the camera to the manual setting and fit it to a sturdy tripod or set the camera directly onto the baseboard which was the case in the last photo. I always use a shutter release cable as well. I take about 10 photos in the exact same position with the camera set on the maximum aperture setting increasing the focal length after each photo. As I use an Apple Mac I don’t use a photo stacking programme as I have not been able to find one suitable for an Apple product. I load all the photos onto my computer and use Photoshop Element's 12 for editing. Using layers in Photoshop Element’s I over lay each photo in turn and just brush in each layer so the photo is generally in focus from front to the very back. I do hope that’s explains my method and is of help to you. I do also gave a Canon G1X which is more expensive than the G12 and I believe is full frame as well but the focusing depth of field is nowhere near as good as the G12. I would thoroughly recommend the G12 to anyone it’s superb for model railway photography. Regards David 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
robmcg Posted January 29, 2022 Share Posted January 29, 2022 (edited) Thanks David, It is always interesting to see how other people find their way to good photos, and I appreciate your full answer. I do very similar things but with different Canon Cameras, and I use Windows-based programs and Paintshop Pro 6 (really old program) to acheive the kinds of depth of field you have from your G12. I started with an SX120 from memory about 2004 anf then SX130 or 150 I forget which all these were excellent in their day, then around 2012 I bought a half-frame EOS-M which unsurprisingly had less depth of field but more detail and general image quailty. I experimented wih an adaptor and good-quality EF and EF-S lenses, but couldn't find a good combination, and learned by myself to do focus stacking by copy-pasre rather than layering ... my stacking is done tking several shots with different focus points and simply selecting the sharp parts of one to copy and past onto the less-sharp bits of another, using slight re-sizing of donor or recipient if necessary. So I stayed with the EOS-M 'kit' lens an 18-55mm zoom, which is about 24-85mm in 35mm equivalence I think. Odd how we all find different ways to achieve the same end.. Last week I decided to research full frame cameras like Tony Wight's Nikon Df , but Canon versions, and on Friday bought an EOS RP with a 24-105mm zoom and also a straight 50mm. All good so far. The advertising for the 24-105mm said it will focus down to 5" but that is disingenuous, it will do that manually at 24mm wih lots of manually-set parmeters but only in the middle of the frame, ... the rest of the picture is fuzzy, no good at all for railway scenes. Both lenses will only focus down to 11" too far away to get that 'real engine' perspective, so I am looking at a macro lens. but not before trying a lot of angles and methods with these current 'cheap' normal lenses (about UKP250-400 each). The 'good' lenses for full frame mirrorless cameras are up to UKP2,600... not a very wise purchase when you are like me just experimenting! Full frame does give incredible sharpness as Tony's pictures show, and in his case he has found that elusive depth of field with very small aperures on top micro lenses. Nikon call these lenses 'micro' everyone else calls them 'macro', don't ask me why. Standard lenses on full frame 35mm format require very small apertures like F36 which in turn requires good light and long shutter-open times, to get anything like acceptable deoth of field, so image stabilisation is a good thing, I lost two photos a fortnight ago to blurring from what turned out to be the Tongan volcano about a thousand likometres away, I thought it was faulty sensor. But I am rambling. Here is one of my first photos with the EOS RP and 24-105mm set to 55mm and F29, 30 secs. It is becoming a standing joke for me to have a pair of tender wheels askew! I have cararacts, pretty bad in one eye, so often don't see detail until after taking photos. Quite a long way to go yet to get the kind of atmosphere I can sometimes get as in ths below. Canon EOS-M... and Hornby's underrated 'Duke'. Neither are quite Haymarket, please forgive me. I think 72000 could be Camden at a stretch. Thanks again for your reply. Robbie. Edited February 1, 2022 by robmcg typo 6 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
landscapes Posted January 30, 2022 Author Share Posted January 30, 2022 11 hours ago, robmcg said: Thanks David, It is always interesting to see how other people find their way to good photos, and I appreciate your full answer. I do very similar things but with different Canon Cameras, and I use Windows-based programs and Paintshop Pro 6 (really old program) to acheive the kinds of depth of field you have from your G12. I started with an SX120 from memory about 2004 anf then SX130 or 150 I forget which all these were excellent in their day, then around 2012 I bought a half-frame EOS-M which unsurprisingly had less depth of field but more detail and general image quailty. I experimented wih an adaptor and good-quality EF and EF-S lenses, but couldn't find a good combination, and learned by myself to do focus stacking by copy-pasre rather than layering ... my stacking is done tking several shots with different focus points and simply selecting the sharp parts of one to copy and past onto the less-sharp bits of another, using slight re-sizing of donor or recipient if necessary. So I stayed with the EOS-M 'kit' lens an 18-55mm zoom, which is about 24-85mm in 35mm equivalence I think. Odd how we all find different ways to achieve the same end.. Last week I decided to research full frame cameras like Tony Wight's Nikon Df , but Canon versions, and on Friday bought an EOS RP with a 24-105mm zoom and also a straight 50mm. All good so far. The advertising for the 24-105mm said it will focus down to 5" but that is disingenuous, it will do that manually at 24mm wih lots of manually-set parmeters but only in the middle of the frame, ... the rest of the picture is fuzzy, no good at all for railway scenes. Both lenses will only focus down to 11" too far away to get that 'real engine' perspective, so I am looking at a macro lens. but not before trying a lot of angles and methods with these current 'cheap' normal lenses (about UKP250-400 each). The 'good' lenses for full frame mirrorless cameras are up to UKP2,600... not a very wise purchase when you are like me just experimenting! Full frame does give incredible sharpness as Tony's pictures show, and in his case he has found that elusive depth of field with very small aperures on top micro lenses. Nikon call these lenses 'micro' everyone else calls them 'macro', don't ask me why. Standard lenses on full frame 35mm format require very small apertures like F36 which in turn requires good light and long shutter-open times, to get anything like acceptable deoth of field, so image stabilisation is a good thing, I lost two photos a fortnight ago to blurring from what turned out to be the Tongan volcano about a thousand likometres away, I thought it was faulty sensor. But I am rambling. Here is one of my first photos with the EOS RP and 24-105mm set to 55mm and F29, 30 secs. It is becoming a standing joke for me to have a paif tender wheels askew! I have cararacts, pretty bad in one eye, so often don't see detail until after taking photos. Quite a long way to go yet to get the kind of atmosphere I can sometimes get as in ths below. Canon EOS-M... and Hornby's underrated 'Duke'. Neither are quite Haymarket, please forgive me. I think 72000 could be Camden at a stretch. Thanks again for your reply. Robbie. Hi Robbie Two very nice photos, and yes you are correct reading how you achieve your photos it is very similar to my methods but using different camera’s and photo editing software. Tony’s photos are superb and I must be honest it was visiting him at his home to see Little Bytham is where I learnt so much about model railway photography seeing how he set up a photo opportunity. Tony uses a Nikon SLR, I did initially try using my Canon5D Mk11 SLR but found it just to big to place it on my Haymarket Baseboards. As I no longer did any full size steam locomotive photography on both heritage and main lines I traded it in for a smaller more compact Canon G1X which was much easier to use on the model layout than the SLR. Then on RMWeb I started reading comments from both Andy York and Gilbert of Peterborough North fame on how good and effective the Canon G12 was so I purchased a second hand one on EBay and this model as I have ready stated can focus down to but 50mm of 2 inches which is ideal for my purposes and photos. The only issue with it is, it’s maximum aperture setting is only f8 but I overcome the lack of depth of field by photo stacking. If you are going to mount the camera on a tripod and photograph models on a plinth or photo plank then an SLR will probably be ideal with its very high maximum aperture setting and full frame. Good luck with what ever camera you choose to buy and use. Regards David 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
landscapes Posted February 1, 2022 Author Share Posted February 1, 2022 (edited) Hi We have had a light snow fall over Haymarket MPD. The snow is not photoshopped in any way. Regards David Edited February 1, 2022 by landscapes Additional information 16 1 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dylan Sanderson Posted February 2, 2022 Share Posted February 2, 2022 14 hours ago, landscapes said: Hi We have had a light snow fall over Haymarket MPD. The snow is not photoshopped in any way. Regards David Wow, that's absolutely stunning! 3 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharky Posted February 3, 2022 Share Posted February 3, 2022 Looks fantastic! I've always wanted model a snow themed layout. But would also mean weathering the rolling with snow as well and they'll look quite odd if they run on any other layout... 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post landscapes Posted February 3, 2022 Author Popular Post Share Posted February 3, 2022 Hi A few more snow scene photos before it all melts away. Regards David 18 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
landscapes Posted February 3, 2022 Author Share Posted February 3, 2022 (edited) 9 hours ago, Sharky said: Looks fantastic! I've always wanted model a snow themed layout. But would also mean weathering the rolling with snow as well and they'll look quite odd if they run on any other layout... Hi Thank you, If you look at the five photos I have just put on the thread there is no snow on any of the model locomotives. In real time if the locomotives had been in the shed building with an overnight snow fall then brought out there would be no snow on them. And to be honest I would not have wanted to dust the locomotives in the material I used. Like you I always wanted to photograph the models in a snow scene, it was very easy to apply and pretty easy to remove as well. For what it’s worth my advice is have a go, I only applied the snow material to a small part of the layout for photographing purposes only, running models in that environment could possible cause problems with the motors or other moving parts gumming up. For the snow material I used Cream of Tartar a baking product, it was a method used by and recommended by Chris Nevard. It works very well and is a fraction of the cost of model snow materials you can buy from retailers. You just dust it on using a small fine wired tea strainer and hoover it off the layout when you have finished with it. Good luck if you do it. Regards David Edited February 3, 2022 by landscapes Spelling 4 1 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
landscapes Posted February 4, 2022 Author Share Posted February 4, 2022 Good morning I would be very interested in seeing any other members photos in a snow scene on their layout. If anyone has done this please feel free to post any photos they have taken here. Regards David 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
landscapes Posted February 7, 2022 Author Share Posted February 7, 2022 Hi The snow has cleared and the MPD is back to normal operations again. Gresley A3 Pacific No 60100 Spearmint has arrived at the MPD and is about to be turned on the turntable. Regards David 11 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
landscapes Posted February 21, 2022 Author Share Posted February 21, 2022 Hi A busier Scene in the East Yard showing a collection of mainly home based locomotives. We also follow Haymarket A4 60027 and as she is fitted with lamps and the Queen of Scots Headboard my only excuse for this is she was ready to leave for Waverley and went back down to the coaling stage to top up. Regards David 13 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium 30368 Posted February 21, 2022 RMweb Premium Share Posted February 21, 2022 6 hours ago, landscapes said: A busier Scene in the East Yard showing a collection of mainly home based locomotives. Hi David, Please just remind me which A2/1's do you have as part of your fleet? Kind regards, Richard B Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
landscapes Posted February 21, 2022 Author Share Posted February 21, 2022 1 hour ago, 30368 said: Hi David, Please just remind me which A2/1's do you have as part of your fleet? Kind regards, Richard B Hi Richard I have a PDK A2/1 which they built for me. it arrived as 60509 Waverley but I changed its identity a few years ago to 60510 Robert the Bruce, it was the only option I had as the third member of the class based at Haymarket was 60507 Highland Chieftain which had a non riveted tender it acquired from an A4 destroyed in a WW2 bombing raid at York Station. Regards David 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium 30368 Posted February 21, 2022 RMweb Premium Share Posted February 21, 2022 Many thanks David. Kind regards, Richard B 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
landscapes Posted February 21, 2022 Author Share Posted February 21, 2022 11 minutes ago, 30368 said: Many thanks David. Kind regards, Richard B Hi Richard Your welcome, I enclose a photo of 60510 which I posted a few pages back. I don’t think I have any photos of the model as 60509 as I renamed it some time before the layout got to where it is now. Regards David 3 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
landscapes Posted February 21, 2022 Author Share Posted February 21, 2022 39 minutes ago, 30368 said: Many thanks David. Kind regards, Richard B Hi Richard I do not have any photos of my A2/1 as 60509 Waverley on the Haymarket layout but I do have a photo of it on a photo plank I built some years ago with a photoshopped background added. Regards David 8 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium 30368 Posted February 22, 2022 RMweb Premium Share Posted February 22, 2022 10 hours ago, landscapes said: I do not have any photos of my A2/1 as 60509 Waverley on the Haymarket layout but I do have a photo of it on a photo plank I built some years ago with a photoshopped background added. What a brilliant image David. 60509 and train looks so prototypical, in particular the light on the side of the loco. It's one of the best "realistic" images that I have seen on this site. Bravo! Kind regards, Richard B 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
landscapes Posted February 22, 2022 Author Share Posted February 22, 2022 1 minute ago, 30368 said: What a brilliant image David. 60509 and train looks so prototypical, in particular the light on the side of the loco. It's one of the best "realistic" images that I have seen on this site. Bravo! Kind regards, Richard B Thanks Richard The advantage of using a photo plank for model railway photography is you can take it outside in nice sunny weather, which was the case with this photo. Regards David 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium TrevorP1 Posted February 22, 2022 RMweb Premium Share Posted February 22, 2022 13 hours ago, landscapes said: Hi Richard I do not have any photos of my A2/1 as 60509 Waverley on the Haymarket layout but I do have a photo of it on a photo plank I built some years ago with a photoshopped background added. Regards David I genuinely thought this was real until I read the post, even then I misread it because I thought it was a 'real' image! Very impressive. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
landscapes Posted February 22, 2022 Author Share Posted February 22, 2022 2 hours ago, TrevorP1 said: I genuinely thought this was real until I read the post, even then I misread it because I thought it was a 'real' image! Very impressive. Hi TrevorP1 Thank you for your kind comments. I am sure it’s being able to photograph in natural sunlight is the main reason it gives the photo an element of realism. Regards David 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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