FIELD NOTE // FN-019 | LOCATION: RAINY LAFAYETTE, CA | DATE: 2026-01-05
The "Correct" way to take this photo does not exist.
If you ask a textbook how to photograph a moving train in the rain, they will give you a recipe for sterility: fast shutter, high ISO, and clinically perfect glass.
If I followed that recipe today (the literal date of this post), I would have captured a train. Just a metal tube on a track. A document. A receipt.
The image initiating the 2026 Archive, SFO Signal, is a testament to trust. I stood on the Lafayette platform in the pouring rain. The light was dying. Instead of bumping the ISO to play it safe, I dropped the shutter speed to 1/4 of a second.
Handheld. 200mm equivalent. Faith ✞
At that speed, the world dissolves. The rain becomes a misting force field. The train is a stream of energy. The only thing anchoring reality is the red LED text of the destination sign, burning through the downpour.
This shot was taken with my daily driver, a lens that has been with me for over a decade. It bears scars of the street: dents on the barrel from drops on concrete and the optical "character" that only comes with age. Some might call these imperfections. I think of them like a signature.
Because I know this gear inside and out, I know exactly how it behaves. I know that despite the battle scars, the motors still fire true. I know that the slight softness from the glass doesn't ruin the image; it softens the digital edge, rendering the scene with a cinematic bloom that modern, clinical lenses can't replicate.
This isn't about making do with less. It's about the connection with the tool. It's about knowing your camera so well that it becomes an extension of your eye, dents and all.
I am starting this year with SFO Signal because it represents the Oaklens ethos: Atmosphere over Perfection. We observe. We do not consume. We do not freeze time; we let it flow through the glass. -Nick
