Learning and Seeing

Tim Vermande with Jim Kobrinetz

If you go on a fan trip, or check out some other well-populated railfan activity, you'll notice it right away: the "photo line" of variously-arrayed mobile gadget stands posing as people, getting ready to take their photos as the train rolls by. If you should fail to notice it, and step out of the line, you may rest assured that someone will bring it to your attention, possibly even teaching you a few new words or phrases. On a fan trip, with lots of people around, it's often the only way to get a shot. But crowds and lines or not, that angle is the way many railfan photographers often go to when setting up.

The photographic result will be predictable: a wedge showing the locomotive pulling the train, some scenery, and the whole will taper off into the background. This is the classic "three-quarter view," named for the angle you're shooting from.

The three-quarter is nice, easy to compose, and infinitely repeatable. But it's also isolated. It shows little of the wider landscape, and less of how the railroad connects to it all. It rarely shows people. It says nothing about the setting other than "here is a locomotive," or perhaps, "here is a train." And thus, it gets boring after a while.

Yet it's an important angle, because it allows one to develop the skills of timing when photographing moving objects, to get used to the camera and its use, and to quickly be able to return with a good photograph — there's nothing more discouraging than having nothing good to show for your work.

But what's next? What distinguishes the really good photographers whose work you see in magazines or other places?

There is no simple formula, but there is a path to follow and practice. It requires two parts that are different, yet work together. The first is literal seeing — or really seeing what you're looking at. The second is creative seeing, learning to connect that image to something else.

We are so accustomed to the old adage that "cameras don't lie" that we forget that this only half of the story. Cameras do, indeed, record faithfully what they see. However, they only see what you aim them at. So you need to learn to pay attention to what's in the viewfinder. This means, first of all, ignoring the train (or whatever your main subject is) and looking at the rest of the photo. Start with obvious things — are there poles or trees at locations that will look odd? Are there power lines? What is the foreground like? To further sharpen this sense of literal seeing, look carefully at your finished photos for things that you now wish weren't in the way — and remember them the next time you head out.

In short--practice seeing through a viewfinder. As you do this, begin to think about creative seeing, about how to connect that image to something else. First, get a little background: pay attention to special effects and stunts on television and movies. What don't you see? What do you see that convinces you of what isn't shown? How does the photographer direct your attention?

Now think of those things when you're out photographing. What drama is there, and and how will it play out as the train passes by? Is there history here? Does it clash with the present? How did the track end up in this particular place? What sense do you have of the place?--in sum, why is the train here?

As you do this, you'll find other angles and find yourself looking at ways to compose the different elements. As long as you think safety first, there's nothing wrong with head-on shots, low-angle shots, and so forth. Even the dreaded photo line can be useful in adding drama, if one steps outside of it and incorporates the photo line within the frame. As one possibility, the contrast of a large vertically powerful locomotive facing down a basically horizontal photo line creates a sense of time and place, increases visual interest, and adds the drama of human versus machine — not to mention a certain amusement value. It tells a story with the picture. Great photographers tell stories with their images. The three-quarter shot, taken from a more distant location to incorporate some of the background and foreground, can change the story from "Here is a train" to "The train is here."

First posted 9 February 2004
Photos: Tim Vermande