Just one more week until my 7pm illustrated program featuring more than 6 decades of photography of Philadelphia’s Trains and Trolleys.
This will held by the Philadelphia Chapter NRHS at the Elkins Park SEPTA station on June 19th.
I will include a variety of photographs. Many of them are from mine and my father’s archives, including this December 31, 2016 view looking west on Girard Avenue.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
Last Sunday former Chesapeake & Ohio 4-8-4 was towed to Strasburg, Pa., to begin an operational restoration.
Monday, Kris and I swung by Strasburg to catch a glimpse of the great machine.
Back in 1997, I caught C&O 614 when it was working excursions between Hoboken, New Jersey and Port Jervis via the former Erie Railroad.
Below is an action photo of the engine at Port Jervis under bright June 1997 sun and a photo of it last Monday evening at Strasburg.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
We paid a visit to Amos Herr Park in Landisville, Pa., which provides trails near Amtrak’s Harrisburg Line.
I made a few telephoto photographs on a sunny afternoon of Amtrak Keystone 665 as it rolled west under wire.
My favorite is the trailing view of ACS64 638 framed by trees (third photo).
The arrangement of catenary masts with single supports on the north side of the line aids photography by minimizing the number of vertical distractions.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
In the summer of 1983, my family traveled to Vermont to photograph Steamtown operations on the Green Mountain Railroad.
I made this view on Kodachrome 64 of former Canadian Pacific Railway 4-6-2 1246 on its return run from Chester to Bellows Falls.
It was one of several Kodachrome slides that I made that day. In addition, I also exposed some black & white film.
I was soon to begin my Senior Year at Monson Jr. Sr. High School, in Monson, Massachusetts. In October 1983, I traveled with my friend Bob Buck on Steamtown’s final run over Green Mountain’s former Rutland Railroad line. In the years after that trip, Steamtown was gradually relocated to Scranton, Pennsylvania.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
The speed restriction for the curves at Gap offers an opportunity to work with two cameras in tandem.
For this sequence, I made a few telephoto views using my Nikon Z6 with 70-200mm lens, followed by a near normal view with my Z7-II with 24-70mm lens set at 53mm.
The beauty of modern autofocus, auto-exposure digital cameras is the ability to switch rapidly between cameras for maximum versatility.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
This is a follow-up to yesterday’s post https://briansolomon.com/trackingthelight/dusk-at-greenfield-road/
Kris had suggested seeking out Norfolk Southern’s night local, which we found working at Greenfield Road in Lancaster, Pa.
After exposing a few photos using my FujiFilm XT1 (as presented yesterday), I made this series of images with a Lumix LX7.
The first image is of the train at Greenfield Road, where it was working High Steel Structures. The others were along Amtrak’s Harrisburg Line along Jefferson Drive.
All the images were converted in DNG format from RAW files using DxO PureRaw.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
At times of stress and when sadness threatens to obscure my focus, I’ve often turned to railroad photography as welcome distraction.
The other night on our way back from Fox Meadows Creamery in Leola, Kris suggested we detour via Greenfield Road: “Maybe we’ll see the local freight.”
On our way, we spotted the headlights of a GP38-2 illuminating the catenary masts of the former Pennsylvania Railroad, and sure enough, Norfolk Southern’s night local was making its drop to High Steel Structures.
Burning fusees warned motorists that the train was blocking the road. This job often has locomotives a both ends.
While some of the highway traffic was less than impressed by seeing the freight at work, we were delighted. I made a selection of photos using my FujiFilm XT1 with 12mm Touit. Although I had my tripod, I opted to make these photos handheld using high ISO. I converted the Fuji RAW RAW files in to DNG format using DxO PureRaw, then cropped and adjusted contrast, color and exposure in Adobe Lightroom.
Later, I exposed a few photos with my Lumix LX7, but I’ll save those for a later post.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
In the long days, early morning illumination at Norfolk Southern’s Lewis (Dillerville) Yard in Lancaster, Pa., made some opportunities for classic sunlit photos of antique EMD diesels.
Back in April, I posted a few photos here on a dull day. I knew I could improve upon them, so last Sunday I paid another visit, and this time I bought out the heavy equipment.
Images were exposed digitally using Nikon Z6 and Z7-II cameras.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
Although, I’ve made countless photos at Esbenshade Road, on this occasion I was interigued by the crop patterns in the field on the northside of the Strasburg Rail Road tracks.
The combination of a richly textured sky and these foreground patterns made for an interesting setting.
I made a sequence of images using my Nikon Z7-II mirrorless. In post-processing I created two variations from the same cropped NEF RAW file.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
Eleven years ago, I attended the Streamliners at Spencer event in North Carolina with fellow photographer Pat Yough.
Over the course of three days I exposed hundreds of photos of the myriad preserved locomotives and roling stock on display.
While the various EMD diesels were the stars of the show, one of the curiosities was this former Santa Fe Railway Alco PA dressed as Nickel Plate Road 190.
Working with a Lumix LX7, I made this image at dusk on the evening of 31 May 2014.
Below are three versions (all scaled for internet presentation as Jpg images);
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
I like the curving track in the shadow of the hillside at Tamaqua, Pa. This has that classic look of old time mountain railroading.
Below are two versions of the same digital file. I exposed this view of Reading & Northern’s vintage EMD diesels in early evening light using my Nikon Z7-II.
The top photo is an in-camera JPG that was enhanced at the time of exposure using Nikon’s Active D-Lighting setting.
The bottom photo is the camera’s NEF RAW file with adjustments in post processing using Adobe Lightroom. These refined the contrast and controlled highlight and shadow setting.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
Last night Kris and I paused at Leaman in Paradise, Pa., to roll by Amtrak’s Keystone enroute to Harrisburg.
It had been raining heavily all day, and just as I stepped out of the car the sky opened up.
I’d set my Lumix LX7 to ISO 400, which is about the functional limit of its sensitivity. While it is possible to set the ISO setting higher, the results are not usually worth it.
I set the zoom to its maximum (17.7 mm), which about the equivalent to a 70mm lens on 35mm film camera. As the train drew close, I panned the leading ACS-64 locomotive with the shutter a 1/100 of second in effort to keep the locomotive and train as sharp as possible despite comparatively high speed.
The pantograph of the locomotive was dispersing water from the overhead catenary as it sped westward.
Below are two versions of the same file.
The first is the in-camera RAW without adjustment or cropping, but scaled in Lightroom for internet presentation.
The second is an interpreted file. First, I converted the RAW to DNG using DxO PureRaw, which corrected for lens defects and reduced the effects of pixelization from high-ISO, while effectively sharpening the image. I then imported this file into Lightroom to make cosmetic adjustments to contrast and exposure, lightening shadows and reigning in the highlights.
PureRaw’s re-interpretation of the pixels in the RAW file combined with water on the lens, pouring rain and panning motion resulted in some visual artifacts that are something other than was perceived with the naked eye. However for presentation here, the interpreted PureRaw version (complete with post-processing cropping) appears as a more dramatic image.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
I’m seriously hoping that my overly aliterative title represents a unique combination of words never previously considered in the history of language!
And, that it caught your attention.
Amtrak Keystone 661 was close by and I wanted to try a different angle at the old Irishtown Road crossing.
When the grade crossing was closed and the road relocated, a raised earthen berm was constructed south of the former Pennsylvania Railroad Main Line. This berm offered me a slightly elevated view with some purple flowers in the foreground.
Post processing editing in Adobe Lightroom provides easy access to the camera’s metadata files, which among other things reveal the f-stop, shutter speed, ISO and other camera details. This saves me from the need to make detailed notes on my digital files, except for things like train ID, engine number and location.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
One of the great things about modern digital photography is tha ability to make satisfying photographs on dull days.
Mass Coastal’s vintage EMD GPs layover at the Hyannis, Massachusetts on a cloudy day.
Exposed using my Nikon Z7-II with 24-70mm lens.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
On Sunday, Keystone Train 661 was running five minutes behind the advertised.
Kris and I were waiting patiently at Gap. I stood the shade of a tree.
Although this may sound vaguely poetic, in fact standing in the shade is key to this image: avoiding the direct rays of the morning sun eliminates the effects of harsh lens flare.
I exposed a sequence of images as the westward train glided through the curve at Gap. This view was made with my Nikon Z6 with 70-200mm lens set for 190mm at f3.5. The relatively wide aperture allowed for shallow depth of field. My camera’s autofocus was set to the center lower left and the result is that the front of ACS-64 626 is razor sharp. Gap’s famous clock tower in the distance is slight out of focus, and yet a prominent part of the composition.
The classic catenary supports date from Pennsylvania Railroad’s electrification and continue to hold the wires in place for Amtrak’s trains.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
Yesterday’s post featured the Middletown & Hummelstown, a classic shortline that connects its namesake Pennsylvania towns.
Over the last 18 years, I’ve paid more than a dozen visits to Middletown. However until last Sunday I hadn’t visited Hummelstown.
[That’s not precisely accurate. Back in 1992, I traveled through Hummelstown by rail on the way to Pittsburgh. I recall passing the nearby Hershey plant.]
Kris had suggested that we take a drive to see if we could find a train on the move.
As we drove into Hummelstown for our first visit, we heard a distant horn sounding for a crossing. We made our way to the tracks, arriving in time to spot the headlights of an eastward Norfolk Southern double-stack container freight. Evening sun made for a nicely glinting silhoette. Talk about lucky!
I reached for my Nikon Z6 with 70-200mm zoom and exposed a series of photos.
In post-processing, I cropped the distant image. Below are three versions of the distant view plus a closer image.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
The Alco S-6 switcher was an uncommon model. Just over 125 were built, and only a few survive in 2025.
Kris, Seamus-the-dog and I were driving around on summer evening. Clouds were starting to give way when we approached Middletown, Pennsylvania.
The old Middletown & Hummelstown was quiet, but Alco S-6 number 151 (dressed for the late Western Maryland) was parked near the railroad’s Middletown station.
I made a few photos using my Nikon Z7-II, looking for various ways to compose the same essential elements.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
In 2007, I was researching a book at the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania. The museum’s Kurt Bell suggested that I make some photos at Irishtown Road in nearby Bird-in-Hand, which was one of the few remaining grade crossings on Amtrak’s Harrisburg Line, the former Pennsylvania Main Line via Lancaster.
Working with a Canon EOS-3 and 24mm lens, I made several Fujichrome color slides on a warm evening.
Since moving to Lancaster County, I’ve revisited Irishtown Road on several occasions. The public crossing was closed a number of years ago and the road redirected.
Below are three comparision photos. While these are all exposed from the same approximate vantage point, in my recent images I’ve not tried to exactly replicate the light and angle of my 2007 photo.
In 1963, my father also made photos near this crossing. In those days, Pennsylvania Railroad GG1 and E44 electrics were the rule of the day. Working with scans from his old slides, I may try to replicate his images at a later date.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
I mentioned that during last week’s Railroad Photography 101 class (held at the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania), I was working with two cameras. Previously, I displayed the images I made with a FujiFilm XT1 with 12mm Zeiss Tuoit.
The photos in this post were made with my Nikon Z7-II with 24-70mm lens.
I’ve often said that when it comes to photography ‘there is no “right” answer’. Which is why I often try to learn from other photographers, and why I’m always experimenting with equipment and technique.
For these photos, I set up the museum’s portable LED lights to provide better lighting a on select locomotives. The intention was to direct diffused light into shadow areas and allow for more uniform exposure.
My next class at the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania is scheduled for Tuesday June 10th. See: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/railroad-photography-101-session-three-tickets-1318803158749?aff=oddtdtcreator.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
We though we’d heard a whistle for a crossing on Norfolk Southern’s Lititz Secondary. The timing was about right for the local to pass, so I drove us over to Manheim, Pa., by the preserved former Reading & Columbia station where we waited for a little while.
Although the local failed to materialize, I used the opportunity to document the scene and some of the preserved railroad equipment at this location. A trolley is preserved here, and it resides in a small trolley barn near the station. One of these sundays, perhaps we’ll come by for a visit when the trolley is on display.
Photos exposed using my Lumix LX7.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
We arrived at Cherry Hill Road shortly before Strasburg Rail Road’s evening train was due.
This presented a comparison opportunity.
Working with my Nikon Z7-II, I simultaneously exposed in RAW and JPG (with Active D-Lighting feature ).
The purpose of this comparison was to see how close Active D-Lighting would match my post-processing corrections in a ‘perfect’ evening sunlit situation.
Below are three versions. The first is the un-modified camera-RAW (scaled and converted to JPG for presentation in Word Press); the second is the same RAW file adjusted in Lightroom to my desired appearance in terms of exposure, contrast, color and saturation. The last is the scaled in-camera JPG with Active D-Lighting feature.
Tracking the Light examines railroad photography every day!
I just experienced an ‘oh wow, you must be kidding’ moment.
For more than 15 years I’ve been making photos with Lumix LX-series cameras. One of the principle advantages of these cameras is their ability to capture images using both RAW and JPG.
Recently, I’ve been reexamining my Lumix RAW files using DxO PureRaw software, which corrects for lens aberrations and converts the files to DNG format.
For this TTL post, I thought it would be neat to compare the camera-RAW file, the un-adjusted PureRaw file, and my cropped but otherwise unadjusted RAW file.
I didn’t expect to learn that all of my Lumix RAW files exposed since 2009 have had MORE image area (albeit distorted) than I was aware of!
In other words, I’d never seen the full picture before.
Below are the three variations of a single Lumix RAW image that I exposed at New York’s Grand Central Terminal in July 2018.
Each is described in the captions.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
Tuesday at 10am, my second class in the Railroad Photography 101 series convened at the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania.
I delivered my 30 minute slide show, then brought participants into the main hall, where I used portable LED lights to provide illumination of locomotives that normallyl languish in shadow.
Afterwards, I answered questions, offered suggestions, discussed the value of post processing and discussed photography.
During the session, I worked with two cameras. These views were made using my FujiFilm XT1 fitted with a Carl Zeiss 12mm Touit. This allowed me to make photos of equipment in comparatively tight places, All these images were exposed with camera firmly mounted on a 3Pod tripod.
Except for the image of the PRR B1 electric, the photos benefit from fill light from the portable LED lights. My next class is scheduled for Tuesday June 10. See: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/railroad-photography-101-session-three-tickets-1318803158749?aff=oddtdtcreator
Tracking the Light is Brian Solomon’s Daily Photo Blog
The Norfolk Southern signals at Cola in Columbia, Pa., displayed a stop indication for movements in the westward direction.
The moon was a fine crescent and I aimed to juxtapose the lunar aspect with the railroad signals against the backdrop of the old Pennsylvania Railroad catenary masts.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
Evening light at Tamaqua, Pa., allowed for another comparison between my Nikon Z’s in-camera Active D-Lighting JPG contrast reduction setting and my own interpretation of the NEF Raw file.
In this situation, my feeling is that ADL interpretation missed the mark. While it may have softened the contrast, the color and overall interpretation did not accurately render the scene.
Below are the two interpretations. This feature will need further study. On the plus side of this exercise is that I always exposed using NEF and JPG simultaneously.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
It was a clear morning last Saturday and I was aiming to try something a little different. Over the last couple of years, I’ve made countless photos of Strasburg Rail Road number 89 (a former Canadian National 2-6-0 Mogul type) crossing the pastoral fields in Pennsylvania Dutch country.
Working with the contrast of mid-morning, I exposed this view of 89 on its return run from Leaman Place. By including a small tree, I’ve provided a visual balance to the locomotive.
The result is a scene that could have been a century ago.
Tracking the Light Posts Everyday!
We were on our evening drive after work.
I was watching the ASM.Transitdocs.com app to monitor the progress of east and westward Amtrak Keystone trains.
My aim was to catch both 656 eastbound and 651 westbound within a few minutes of each other.
As we drove east on Highway 30 passing Bird-in-Hand and Paradise, I noticed that both trains had fallen behind their advertised schedules, so I kept pushing east.
Initially, I was aiming for Gap, Pa., but at the last minute continued to Christiana.
I arrived in time to set up at the old PRR freight house that the Lancaster Chapter NRHS has set up as a viewing platform.
Moments after I arrived, train 656 came into view. Westward 651 was delayed about about ten minutes, but with a total elapsed time of only 12 minutes, I’d caught both trains.
Train 651 had a bonus; this was led by Amtrak ACS-64 670, the highest in the series. This engine has been a bit elusive for me. Although I photographed it on film a couple of days earlier, this sequence at Christiana represents my first satisfying digital photos of the locomotive. A small victory in the bigger picture, but these days I’ll take it.
These photos were exposed using my FujiFilm XT1 with 16-55mm lens.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
I’ve continued to experiment with my Nikon Z’s ‘Active D-Lighting’ contrast reduction feature.
In this example, I photographed an Indiana & Ohio C40-8CW in the New England Central yard at Palmer, Mass.
This was a perfect opportunity to see how the Active D-Lighting feature would accommodate high-contrast midday sun.
Since the ADL feature only affects the in-camera JPG, I opted to craft a comparison image working from a PureRaw converted RAW file that I manually adjusted using Adobe Lightroom.
The Jpg is right out of the camera and scaled for internet; the converted RAW file required a host of manually implemented color, contrast, and exposure corrections to make the most of the image.
Any thoughts?
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
Kris asked, ‘Is there some train that you’d like check out tonight?’
Yes, yes there is. I’ve been hoping to catch another move on Norfolk Southern’s Port Road Branch near Columbia, Pa. This line is the former Columbia & Port Deposit line, which in its heyday was a key route for Pennsylvania Railroad and an electrified line.
Conrail discontinued electric operations in the early 1980s, but the catenary supports largely remain in place. Owing to a curfew on the Northeast Corridor, Norfolk Southern’s operations are largely nocturnal. However, since we are moving into the longer days there are opportunities to catch trains at dawn and dusk.
We tried to find a train on the move few weeks ago without results. So we repeated the exercise by driving to Washingtonboro along the Susquehanna River. First, I checked the intermediate signals for a westward move (toward Harrisburg) and concluded that nothing was lined in that direction. However, when I observed the signals for an eastward train, I was delighted to see that the No. 1 track had been cleared for a movement; the signal was displaying ‘yellow over green’, which indicates Approach Medium. This was the clue I’d been seeking.
I said, ‘We are in luck!’
And we were.
Working with my Nikon Z7-II, I made these photos of an eastward carload freight, probably symbol freight 36A that runs from Conway Yard to Edgemoor, Delaware. Kris filmed the train with her phone.
Our patience on the old Port Road paid off.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
The Boston & Maine wasn’t famous for its Budd domes.
Yet, it was sure cool to see this classic car on the Pan Am Office Car train passing the west end of East Deerfield Yard.
Exposed in May 2017 with a FujiFilm XT1.
Soft afternoon light accentuated the lines of this stainless steel car.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
Next Tuesday, May 13, 2025, I’m giving the second class of my Railroad Photography 101. This will largely emulate the program of my first class. I hope to impart skills, perspectives, techniques to participants, while offering a better understanding of railroad photography.
This will be held on Tuesday, May 13 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., and will emphasize technique and the approach to indoor light.
If you are interested in attending, see: RRMuseumPA.org .
I hope to see you there!
Brian Solomon’s Tracking the Light posts daily!
Working with my old Canon 7D DSLR, I made this view from the window of a Bluebell Railway excursion train departing the station at Kingcote on April 20, 2013.
I made minor adjustments to the original Canon CR2 RAW file file using Adobe Lightroom.
I’d made good use of my Canon from June 2010 through early 2015. Since that time I’ve only picked up the camera intermittently, although it still works and produces very good images
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
In April 2017, I exposed this view of a Swiss narrow gauge local train ascending from Aigle toward Leysin. This colorful little train was operated by Transports Publics du Chablais, an operator known by its initials TPC.
Recently, I converted the original FujiFilm RAF raw file to a DNG file using DxO PureRaw, then made some minor adjustments using Lightroom. These changes minimized lens defects, produced a sharper image, and made for a better photograph.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
Eight years ago. New England Central 608 northbound passes Stafford Springs. Photo was made with a FujiFilm XT1 and 18-135mm lens. Raw file was converted to DNG using DxO PureRaw and adjusted with Lightroom.
Tracking the Light Posts Daily!
On this day nine years ago, I photographed London’s Kings Cross station using my Panasonic Lumix LX7. Recently, I converted the RAW file using DxO PureRaw to improve the photograph and correct for lens defects.
Tracking the Light aims to post Everyday.
