Rust Photography Tips

Updated May 2012.

Words and images by John Gravett of Lakeland Photographic Holidays.

Landscape photography's all well and good, but what do you photograph when the skies are leaden and the rain's really set in for the day. That's when I pick up a tripod and head off to Threlkeld quarry and mining museum, 4 miles East of Keswick, for a 'rust fix'. Now although Threlkeld is my favourite haunt, there are plenty of museums and collections around the country that are just as perfect for this type of day.

Gear Suggestions:

• Camera
• Lens capable of fairly close focus - Macro ideal
• 70 – 300mm with macro facility equally useful and can give greater working distances
• Tripod - Find the tripod to suit your needs at www.manfrotto.co.uk
• Reflector

Technique

The secret when visiting collections of rusty vehicles is to try to forget what it is you are photographing, by that I mean not to look at them as a lathe, excavator, or drill; but to view everything as simply shape, pattern and texture. In addition to outside collections of earth moving plant, Threlkeld museum has a wonderful old engine shed, and a large workshop which at first sight appears a total clutter of junk. (It doesn't look much different at second glance either) BUT if you look around carefully there is a wealth of goodies to point your camera at.


Because the 'under cover' work (and if it's pouring with rain, that's probably the best place to be) is in shed's with small windows, a tripod is an essential piece of kit. Lighting levels are low, and shutter speeds can be quite long; but I'm not a huge fan of flash in these places – firstly, it tends to kill the natural lighting, second, if there other people looking round, a continual flashing can be annoying for them. I keep my ISO fairly low for this work, as non-moving subjects taken using a tripod are no problem up to 30 second exposures – or beyond if you have a remote release with a timer.


Be careful of lighting – often there is a mixture of diffused daylight coming through the windows, and fluorescent lighting in the ceiling. The ideal solution is to turn off the lights, but this wouldn't go down too well with those who work there, so I make full use of my cameras custom white balance settings. Auto is OK, but with an Expodisc or Whi-bal, much more accurate colour reproduction can be achieved on each 'change of lighting' location.


When you walk into a place like this, often the overwhelming collection of 'stuff' can stop you from seeing good photographs. I tend to lay the camera down in a corner, and walk round for 15 minutes, just LOOKING to see what might work photographically – pick out maybe a pile of spanners sitting on a workbench, or if I'm outside, select one vehicle and look over it carefully, choosing details that will make strong, abstract, colourful and interesting pictures. Raindrops on the surface add another texture, and wet paint and rust enrich the colours. If you are working inside using light coming through a window behind the items you are photographing, a reflector can be invaluable to bounce light from the window back into the shadows. Be careful not to rush around trying to photograph everything – you will more than likely be disappointed with the results, spend time working round each subject, trying various angles and looking close to create strong, abstract, colourful and interesting pictures.


Words and images by John Gravett of Lakeland Photographic Holidays.

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