1. First shot, direct from the camera in RAW (.CR2) format. Canon 5DmkII, 24-105mm f/4L lens at 24mm, ISO 100, manual mode. This was the "normal" metered exposure, 3.2 sec. at f/14 for depth of field even with the short lens.

Even before looking at the histogram, it was obvious that the highlights would be blown out and the shadows blocked. Most lighting was from the skylights above; the shed door in front of this engine was closed and the only other sources were an open door to my back left and the reflected light from the Santa Fe diesel. So keeping the aperture constant, I took four more shots at +1, +2, -1, and -2 stops of exposure time (obviously with a tripod).

Visually, this is...well, a museum, and a working museum at that. My lifelong fascination with trains has always been pretty visceral, and although there's good raw material here (pun intended), this "tourist" image just doesn't convey what I feel about the subject.

2. Four of the original files have now been processed in Photomatix; this is the resulting .tif file with default settings. Good detail everywhere now; tamed highlights and open shadows are encouraging, and the slight HDR "glow" would be fine with most other subjects. The sliver of SantaFe diesel is cropped out, but I'm not happy with the artificial-looking colors in the metal. This thing should be black. Worse, there are still some really ugly elements that distract from the engine itself.

3. After many iterations in Photoshop (.psd format), the oil-soaked rug is gone, as is the work cabinet in the right background. An added black-and-white layer solves the false-color problem. Progress.

Visually, though...blah. Doesn't draw the viewer in; doesn't give any life to what should be a dynamic scene.

4. Massive. Powerful. Alive. A triumph of early 20th-century engineering, ready to roll. The visual image now matches my mental image, which I hope will be shared by other viewers. (In fact, this engine is maintained in operational condition.)

More Photoshop work: first a mask in the black-and-white layer to let a few significant spots of color come through and pull your eye into the picture. Then more correction layers to punch-up the color spots, selectively bring back contrast in the most important parts of the image, and apply creative sharpening. The final print is made on Canson Baryta Photographique (luster surface) with photo black ink for deepest blacks and brightest whites. Bigger is better; 21"x27" looked good for the show, but I could envision more, maybe even on aluminum!