Andres Valdespino
May 2025 - Intersecting Tracks
Original
About the Image(s)
I was in Grinnell, Iowa recently and had lunch in a restaurant in a converted train depot. The tracks around the restaurant are still active, but the station is not. I noticed that behind the restaurant the tracks intersected in a way that created a perfect square in the middle. I had not brought my camera on the trip so I took the photo with my Pixel phone.
As I took it on my phone I really didn't have any control of the settings, but my camera tells me I took it at f/1.8, 1/5882 shutter speed, 4.44mm and ISO 63. I used Photoshop generative fill to add on the left hand side and center the square a bit, used a blur at the top, converted to monochrome, and brightened the rails to look a bit shinier.
4 comments posted
Hi Andres. I appreciate the explanation and I really like how you handled this! Great leading lines, geometry and perspective. Brightening the rails and foreground with a fade to a somewhat darker background enhances the composition. One observation: the blur in the background starts rather abruptly and doesn't look natural to me. Curious what method you used to achieve it? Posted: 05/05/2025 16:48:11
Andres, I'm so gad you not ed the tracks and tge interesting squares design in then.Nothing wrong with using the iPhone as long as the photo works out well. The Bly thing I see that you might consider correcting is the blur at the top of the frame. It is consistent throughout and then suddenly stops. You might consider applying the blur to the entire image, then. use the gradient tool on a different layer to rgraduate the blurring so that it was highest at the top and maybe get rid of it altogether by above the mid point. You could apply the blurring only to the top half of the image and play with the gradient tool until it looked realistic. Otherwise, great capture and seeing. Posted: 05/05/2025 20:44:07
Andres, I think the conversion to b&w helps emphasize the strong geometric design in your photo. Brightening the rails strengthens the bold lines of the track. Your phone worked well to capture the detail in the bolts and wood. I agree with Michael and Joan that your blurring is rather abrupt, but I think some blurring of the distant background helps my eyes focus on the tracks. Posted: 05/07/2025 17:03:01
Hi Andres,
The intersecting tracks are interesting! In this image, the conversion to B&W works well.
I'd prefer to keep the end of the rails sharp as in the original image since it leads the viewer's eyes to the turn at the corner and adds more excitement. Posted: 05/07/2025 19:36:38
The intersecting tracks are interesting! In this image, the conversion to B&W works well.
I'd prefer to keep the end of the rails sharp as in the original image since it leads the viewer's eyes to the turn at the corner and adds more excitement. Posted: 05/07/2025 19:36:38