There is a less-expensive way to light up night scenes with flash -- use black & white film. No need for warmth, color balance, or a high-powered (high priced) flash unit.
I have had great results using Tri-X or XP-2. Flash unit is a Vivitar 285. Exposure is f5.6 at about 25 feet. It illuminates the scene without overpowering the subject. Developing and printing my own photos allows me to correct the exposure, but even prints I get from a 1-hour lab (using XP2) come out fine. I shoot a Polaroid test first if it's an important shot. Still have my Polaroid 180 (which only you old timers will remember.) Scenes have been very tough to light since railroads have applied the reflective tape to units! You have to be very careful with your flash angles. The key to using a flash is rapid recycle time at full power. A Vivitar 285 operating on AA batteries recycles very slowly. Your photo would be affected by ambient light, even at night. I use a "gel cell" 6-volt battery manufactured by a local photo dealer. I get full power within three seconds. Vivitar 285 costs about $75, the gel cell with charger is about $90. Bernie Ente New York City --> SPORRS: Serious Photographers of Railroad Related Subjects X-Mozilla-Status: 0001 Content-Length: 2063
