Are you good at photographing subway trains?
Me? No, I’m not. As I’ve mentioned in several previous posts, subway trains can be a real challenge for railfans.
The biggest problem is the dark and narrow environment in which they run. So, many railfans look for opportunities to photograph subway trains in the following situations:
1. Surface sections during the daytime (e.g. near Ochanomizu Station): But such above-ground sections of subway lines are limited in Tokyo.
2. Surface sections of lines that connect with subway lines (e.g. the Tokyu Den-en-toshi Line, which connects with the Hanzomon Line): But again, such lines are limited in Tokyo.
3. Underground stations with separate platforms and no pillars between the two tracks (e.g. Shintomicho Station): But such stations are quite rare.
4. Yami-tetsu—photographing trains in the dark (e.g. the end of Daimon Station): But it’s technically difficult.
In conclusion, I still think there’s no easy solution.
Well, sorry for all the excuses. But I’ve started taking photos of subway trains again. Let me share a few of them with you today.
They are Tokyo Metro’s 2000 Series EMUs running on the Marunouchi Line. I’ve already posted several photos of the Marunouchi Line, but this time, I took them from different locations. They may look like ordinary photos, but each one required a little ingenuity.
First, the top photo was taken from a road bridge near Myogadani Station. At first glance, it seemed like an ideal photo spot, but there was a challenge—a fine-mesh safety fence. Using a large-aperture lens was virtually impossible. So I pulled out my smartphone and concentrated on getting the timing right. I just managed to get the shot—and I was delighted with the result.
Next, the bottom photo was taken at Korakuen Station. It also looked like a good spot for photographing trains, but the track curved away from me. So I couldn’t capture the whole train. Instead, I tried shooting from a little farther away. Although several trackside facilities were blocking my view, I managed to capture the front four cars. Not bad.
I’m running out of space here, so I’ll save the other subway train photos for a future post. Railfanning is a very particular hobby, isn’t it?
