Car traffic to the port of Zeebrugge has been booming in recent months. Many car trains drive to and from the port 24 hours per day, operated by almost all freight operators present on Belgian rails. On one of the few dry days we’ve had in weeks, I ventured out into the fields to flash some trains. Besides a Railtraxx and a Crossrail train, I … Continue reading Empties under a starry sky
One quiet evening along the tracks, again typical for the current days: dark, dry, not too cold.Dry is relative though, as I got the car almost stuck in the mud getting here.I was treated with 5 trains in a row: 4 from Zeebrugge, 1 from Ghent. All towards Germany and beyond. Here we see Lineas hauling a train with destination Milan, Italy. It looks well … Continue reading Parade
Tonight was a cold, very cold, Sunday evening. But it was dry, not too windy, and there was still some snow left! Trains between Bruges and Ghent were taking the scenic route again, to my great pleasure. I found myself a spot between Aarsele and Tielt to set up the gear. I expected a few freight trains, and some work trains returning home after the … Continue reading Blue hour
A timely heads-up from a befriended train-driver was all the motivation required to prepare the night gear again and put into practice the lessons from previous times.The subject: an empty grain train from Antwerp to Tergnier, operated by Lineas.The train was running a bit earlier than expected and I had to hurry to set up the gear on time. For some reason one of the … Continue reading Grain in the night
After the previous attempt, I wanted to work on sharpness. The strong flash lasts for a time that is long enough to get motion unsharpness. Solution: less powerful flashing, ISO up. Sharpness is fine now. Next working points: get the ISO value down and light some more aspects of the train and its surroundings. Continue reading Optimizing the night shots
Night photography fascinates me. How to get good pictures in almost complete darkness?Previous attempts with flashes were frustrating. I didn’t like the whole setup with classic batteries: they are always empty when you need them, and flashes didn’t fire a bit too often. Also, separate battery powered remotes were needed.This year I tried a new system with rechargable high-capacity batteries and efficient flash units, with … Continue reading Into the night again
It was cold, freezing cold. But we really wanted to get this shot. We were two, and unfortunately we couldn’t find a way to trigger two a camera’s at the exact same moment, so we took turns taking photos. The one not taking the photo, could then also hold another flash in position. This is one of the shots that I got. A BR185 TRAXX … Continue reading A flash under ink-black sky
The journey to Dresden went flawlessly. After checking into my hotel I took a train to Dresden Hbf, where I expected a couple of EuroNight trains. These trains change locos in Dresden, so it was a good opportunity to check out the Czech Skoda electrics, that would soon be replaced by modern Siemens Vectron locomotives. Continue reading Dresden, EuroNight Hbf
Next train was following quickly after the previous one, so we decided to stay around. We positioned ourselves a bit higher to get a better view of the valley. Right on time, Regio Express 1125 from Chur to St. Moritz passes us. I was wondering what this spot would look like at night, and went to work. The result below – I find it a … Continue reading Day and night
For some reason, we always decide to go out for night shots during the cold months of the year. If we would start at 7 or 8pm that would make sense, but usually we start around 10 or 11pm. *Mental note to go out for night shots during the warm summer months. The night from january 22 to january 23 was a beautiful one. Light … Continue reading A cold and foggy winter night
Railscapes 