Taking Pictures from a Tour Bus Window: I'm traveling to Ireland soon and will be taking pics from the tour bus window while traveling. What's the best way to take these kinds of pics...

jwayne

I'm traveling to Ireland soon and will be taking pics from the tour bus window while traveling. What's the best way to take these kinds of pics (I usually just leave the camera in auto). The fast moving bus can of course cause blur at times so I assume I should be on a faster shutter speed while taking out a bus window, correct?

northshore Loc: St. Paul, MN

You might do better setting the shutter speed to 250-500 if it's reasonably bright, and let the camera set the aperture. Then look at the first few pictures you take, and see whether you're getting good shots. The farther away your subject is, the better it will turn out, because the movement will be relatively slower. Things close to the bus may be going by too fast to get a clear photo, but sometimes a good blur can be fun.

Check to see if the windows are tinted-- that can affect the color you end up with. And if they are tinted, see if they can be opened.

Of course you won't be on the bus all the time, so be prepared to make adjustments to your settings if you are in a darker place. And have a great time!

derek dirty knees

your main problem when taking photos through a window will be the reflections on the glass. To minimise these, use a soft rubber lens hood and hold the hood close to the glass. The only photo I ever saw that benefited from the reflections showed the reflection of a lot of tourists superimposed on a rugged country scene. To totally eliminate reflections have something black immediately behind the camera and have the camera close to the glass.

Mac Loc: Pittsburgh, Philadelphia now Hernando Co. Fl.

Don't use the flash.

Bobber Loc: Fredericksburg, Texas

I had to deal with that problem last summer. It was not easy to get what I wanted; and, I saw the reflection problem and the motion blurr problem turn up. Fortunantly there were times when the bus was going slowly and the stops were helpful too. I have had some success with Photoshopping reflections, but not always. It takes some doing. Yeah, no flash. I have also seen one or both problems show up shooting from planes, autos, and trains and boats.

leroynunn Loc: Queen Creek, Arizona

What camera do you have?

Photoboy Loc: Maryland Eastern Shore

The more you are able to point your camera toward the front of the bus (direction of movement) the better off you will be.

apitic Loc: Down Under

If you can get hold of the rear seats in the bus and if you are lucky enough to have the rear window clean, that is the best place to take photos from. You will have a good view of both sides of the road and little chance to get the unwanted window reflections.

lhdiver Loc: Midwest

Sit as close to the front as possible - front seat is best. Shooting through the front window cuts motion blur a lot & you have a much better view. Get on a quickly as you can & claim that seat!
Higher ISO allows greater shutter speeds which is what you need. If you shoot in RAW you will be able to correct the white balance if the window tint affects it too much.
Have fun & remember to capture all aspects of the trip, not just the scenery, you will want to tell the whole story when you get home!

ecobin Loc: Paoli, PA

In addition to the advice given so far you should use manual focus. The camera autofocus will often be confused by trying to focus on the window, close branches, etc. You'll hear the focuc motor going in & out. I suggest that for close to the road subjects that you set the manual focus to 30-50 ft depending on the road and at infinity for distance focusing. You'll also need to pan as the bus moves otherwise it will be blurred. I got some good shot when traveling on a bus through Costa Rica last year using these suggestions. Have a great trip.

Photoboy Loc: Maryland Eastern Shore

Good luck sorting through the conflicting advice!! Funny.

ahanonymous Loc: Queens, NY

Sit in the rear. Put the lens as close to the glass as you can. Shoot at as high a shutter speed as your exposure allows.
Since most bus windows are tinted, be prepared to fix the color in Photoshop when working on the images.

shirl2sg Loc: Northern Minnesota

Practice in a car, in a bus you will be up higher and always look ahead of the bus. If you see something that is interesting, get ready to shoot. When traveling, my husband is a driver, not a stopper, I've gotten so I tell him let me know if whatever is coming up to look for an opening in the trees and tell me. Have your partner do they same in the bus for you. In a bus, I sit near the front, hopefully the person in front of you doesn't wear a white shirt and doesn't lean forward by the window. Speaking of windows, sit where you have plenty of window space, (back of the window) newer buses work quite well that way. Good Luck!!

CAM1017 Loc: Chiloquin, Oregon

jwayne wrote:

I'm traveling to Ireland soon and will be taking pics from the tour bus window while traveling. What's the best way to take these kinds of pics (I usually just leave the camera in auto). The fast moving bus can of course cause blur at times so I assume I should be on a faster shutter speed while taking out a bus window, correct?

My experience has been that you can actually take fairly good photo's thru tour bus windows if they are clean. Most drivers clean the windows at the start of the day. Sometimes you may see reflections ahead of time and just avoid them. The faster the shutter speed the better if you are moving. If stopped, auto works fine. Have fun.

Phreedom Loc: Kitchener, Ontario, Canada

derek dirty knees wrote:

your main problem when taking photos through a window will be the reflections on the glass. To minimise these, use a soft rubber lens hood and hold the hood close to the glass. The only photo I ever saw that benefited from the reflections showed the reflection of a lot of tourists superimposed on a rugged country scene. To totally eliminate reflections have something black immediately behind the camera and have the camera close to the glass.

I did the rubber folding-hood thing on a tour bus. Assuming you have a window seat, hold the lense with thumb and forefinger and rest pinky against glass as a brace to prevent banging lense into window. Pressed lightly against the window, the hood blocks all those reflections, smudges, dirt, etc. on the window are less noticable due to DOF. And manual focusing may be necessary.