"Manpower"
Apr, 2016Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
The photo was taken at the railway station in Tampere, Finland in March. On the background there is one of the three steam locomotives, with a fuming chimney, restored by the Haapanmäe Museum in Tampere and it’s name is Little Jumbo - cute name, but I actualIy entitled this photo “Manpower”. For me photography is all about storytelling and there I saw a perfect combination of light, steam and quite by chance, also a model.Time
After having a fun small ride with this historic locomotive, the train made a short stop so people could also look at the machine from the outside. Midday sun was shining bright in the sky and the rays of light coming through the steam created a perfect and mysterious background. So I spontaneously asked my husband, who is a huge fun of locomotives, to climb up to the chimney and pointed my camera directly at the sun.Lighting
I know there are all these recommendations about not shooting in direct sunlight and a number of tricks what to use, but at this particular moment I had neither the time nor the tools (except the internal flash that I decided not to use)! So I shot in manual mode and focused on my subject’s face. I knew that it would leave the background overexposed but honestly - at that moment, I only cared about the foggy smoke and emotions, and I think it worked!Equipment
This was shot with Canon 7d mark II, with a Sigma 17-50 mm f/2.8 wide angle lens, ISO 100, focal lens 50mm and shutter speed 1/2500. No other equipment was involved.Inspiration
I was inspired by the beautiful light shining through the steam and by my husband’s fascination with locomotives. I believe that his proud attitude creates the mood in this picture, despite the fact that there isn’t a locomotive visible in the photo.Editing
As a self-learning beginner in the field of photography I was quite surprised at all the possibilities of editing when shooting in raw, but I decided to stay mostly with the original picture. I turned the photo to black and white, added some vignetting to hide the lens flare but still left it a little translucent to create a foggy effect also in the foreground, and I finished it off with some antique effect.In my camera bag
I love this quote by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry: "The perfection of something seems to be attained, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there's nothing left to take out.” This of course does not mean that I don't dream about some new lenses and other equipment, but I realised that more important than some gadget in my camera bag is to keep my creative mind open, learn from the best, share my work to hopefully receive some constructive criticism and evolve in my own style.Feedback
Live in the moment, notice the light and the shadows, seek emotion, ignore the rules if necessary and keep the camera nearby!
