Blog & guides

Class 218 and Ludmilla: Identifying and Finding Classic Diesel Locomotives

Four axles or six, box-body or TRAXX: here's how to tell the last classic diesel locomotives apart and find out where they're still running.

Missed Your Connection: What to Do Right Away and What You're Entitled To

Your connecting train is gone. What matters in the first five minutes, what matters in the first half hour, and which passenger rights kick in after that – as a minute-by-minute plan.

Data and Battery Usage in Live Tracking: What Apps Really Use

Map tiles, GPS and background requests cost battery and data. Here's where each share comes from and which settings cut your usage in half.

Autofocus for Train Photos: Setting AF-C, Focus Area and Tracking Correctly

The most common reason for blurry train photos isn't shutter speed – it's autofocus. Here's how to set up tracking, focus area and sensitivity correctly.

Railway Books for Spotters: Vehicle Guides, Photo Books, Reference Works

A curated reading list instead of a bestseller list: which type of book delivers which knowledge, what level it suits, and what it offers that isn't freely available online.

Using Open Railway Data: Data Sources for Your Own Projects

GTFS, GTFS-Realtime, NeTEx and infrastructure data: which open railway data exists, how current it is, and how to build your own departure board from it.

Reading a Railway Line Map: Kursbuchstrecke, KBS and Operating Points

Kursbuchstrecke, VzG number, Abzw and Üst: if you understand the language of line maps, you'll find photo locations that appear on no spotter list.

Train Photo Platforms Compared: Where Is It Worth Uploading?

Five ways to publish railway photos – and how they really differ in review process, reach, rights and long-term archiving.

Editing Train Photos: The Five Sliders That Make the Difference

You don't need 40 sliders to make a train photo better. Five are enough – if you know the order they come in and where the line to overprocessing lies.

Becoming a Railway Photographer: From Hobby to Paid Assignment

From spotter to paid railway photographer: who buys photos, how fees come about, and the steps from your first photo to your first assignment.

Selling Railway Photos: The Rights You Actually Need

From hobby shot to licensed photo: which rights come together when you sell railway photos, where brand logos and people become a problem, and how to word a licence properly.

Planning a Spotting Tour: One Day, Several Stations, Maximum Haul

How many stations can you really manage in a day? The maths behind spot time, travel time and buffer – plus a fully planned example day in the Ruhr region.