Still available through the
Erie Lackawanna Historical Society
The Merchant’s Engines by Jerry Segrue
The history of the Lackawanna Railroad’s Pacific Steam engines with a concentration on the famous “Streamstyled Pacifics”. This 60 page softbound book includes over 50 photographs and separate scale drawings of each of the four streamstyled engines. Also covered is the construction of the DL&W’s several classes of 4-6-2s and their unorthodox numbering. Member price
$2100 plus $8.95 s&h
Non-member price $2495
Erie USRA Heavy Pacifics
by D.G. Biernaki
This 80 page book provides comprehensive coverage of these fascinating locomotives
Member price Non-member price
$1500 plus $8.95 s&h $1800 2014 ELHS Calendar
The Denver & Rio Grande Western’s westbound Rio Grande Zephyr curves up toward the Continental Divide and the Moffat T
unnel west of Denver , Colo., on a bright January 1981
morning. Even though the train was traveling slowly at about 25 m.p.h., being relatively close to the train moving broadside past the lens required a shutter speed of ¹⁄₅₀₀of a second to render a sharp image. Previous tries at ¹⁄₁₂₅and ¹⁄₂₅₀both showed some blur in the end of dome/observation Silver Sky.
setting of ƒ/8 and ¹⁄₅₀₀ second for proper expo- sure. Then a cloud floats in front of the sun dropping the light intensity, and the meter is now showing we need one stop more of the available light to meet the ISO’s light re- quirement for correct exposure (remember, this requirement remains the same regard- less of the intensity of the available light). In this case we can get one stop more light in three ways. Changing the shutter speed from ¹⁄₅₀₀ second to ¹⁄₂₅₀ while maintaining the ƒ/8 aperture is a one stop change that doubles the time the lower available light is on the sensor or film. But to maintain the ¹⁄₅₀₀ shutter speed needed for action train photography, we should instead open the aperture one stop from ƒ/8 to ƒ/5.6, which will allow in twice as much of the available light. Or third, we can keep the exposure set at ƒ/8 and ¹⁄₅₀₀ by doubling the ISO to 200. If on the other hand the full sunlight was
Member price $795
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ELHS membership at $35 per membership cycle. Cycle includes four issues of our magazine “The Diamond” and four newsletters with modeling
information. Separate check please. Send to: ELHS c/o Randy Dettmer, 290 W. Prospect St., Hudson, OH 44236
14 FEBRUARY 2014 •
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reduced by darker clouds, we might need (according to the meter) to make a two stop change in exposure. In this case we could both open the aperture one stop to ƒ/5.6 and lower the shutter speed one stop to ¹⁄₂₅₀. Or, we could leave the shutter speed at ¹⁄₅₀₀ and open the aperture two stops to ƒ/4. Or in- crease the ISO two stops to ISO 400 to stay at ƒ/8 and ¹⁄₅₀₀.
Rule of thumb 1: Always use a shutter speed of at least ¹⁄₅₀₀ or faster, and then use whatever aperture your meter indicates for proper exposure. Rule of Thumb 2: The position of the train relative to the camera also affects how movement is captured. For trains moving very slowly, such as about five to 15 m.p.h., a shutter speed as long as ¹⁄₁₂₅ will freeze the train’s motion with a ¾ wedge view. But with a full broadside composition and a fast train, ¹⁄₁₀₀₀ of a second or faster is better. For
very high speed trains (such as the Acelas and others on the Northeast Corridor) you might try ¹⁄₂₀₀₀ or faster.
Near head-on compositions can often be captured sharply with a shutter speed of ¹⁄₆₀ or slower, as seen in the accompanying near head-on photo. Just be aware that a high speed train shot near head-on with a slow shutter speed may show some softness due to the front of the train’s moving forward through the point of focus while the shutter is open.
Rule of Thumb 3: The closer you are to the train in a ¾ or full broadside composi- tion, the faster the shutter speed needed as a larger section of the film or sensor is be- ing exposed to movement. While you may need ¹⁄₅₀₀ up close, a more distant, scenic view of the same train will look sharp at ¹⁄₂₅₀ as the smaller image of the train is crossing less of the film plane during the time the shutter is open.
Note the accompanying photo of the Rio Grande Zephyr. I first tried photographing this scene with my Pentax 6×7 and 75mm lens using ISO 32 Panatomic-X film. Using a red filter (which cuts about three stops of ex- posure) to create a dramatic sky, my shutter speed was down to ¹⁄₁₂₅ with the lens wide open. There was definite blur at the end of the last car, dome observation Silver Sky, as it crossed parallel and close to my field of view, although the rest of the train curving away in a ¾ aspect was sharp. The next week I was back using ISO 125 Plus-X to bump the shutter speed up to ¹⁄₂₅₀. Again, blur (although less) was recorded at the end of Silver Sky. It took a third trip using Tri-X ISO 400 and a shutter speed of ¹⁄₅₀₀ to achieve this sharp image shooting through the red filter. Rule of Thumb 4: Because shutter speed
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