3087 BW Weirs Station - Weirs Beach, NHThis dramatic early morning photo was shot in the rain and displays great detail and lines. The photo was taken at the Weirs Beach train depot.

Weirs Beach Station, NH

Here are some thoughts on how to shoot a moody, black and white photo. First, choose a location that might be interesting. This could be a train station like above, or a downtown city street, or perhaps a haunted house. Next, you may want to shoot in the rain, or on a foggy morning, which will create a unique impact. This photo of the Weirs Beach Station wouldn't have the same impact if it wasn't shot in the rain. I was wanting the boardwalk and tracks to glisten, which made for a more interesting photo. If you do shoot in the rain at night, bring your umbrella and a flashlight to view your camera settings. This image was a 30 second exposure shot at f22, which gives greater depth of field. In photoshop, I also reduced the highlights, as the streetlamps can overpower/overexpose the photo. If you choose to shoot at night, consider the best time to avoid any potential traffic (cars or people), which could interfere in the shot. For this location I chose to shoot around 4:30 AM, to avoid people and cars. As you probably know, when using long exposures at night, any vehicles entering or leaving the scene will leave a streak of light.

If you have any questions or comments, please contact me:  Ron Bowman at:  [email protected]

My website is: www.rbphotonh.com .   I have a gallery on my website dedicated to black and white images.