Category Archives: photography

photography

Railfan’s Bridge East Deerfield: Old Bridge/New Bridge and some Bad News.

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Construction crews are working on the approaches to the new McClelland Farm Road bridge over the tracks at the west end of Pan Am’s East Deerfield Yard.

This work has been on-going for about a year.As detailed in previous posts, the old bridge has been a popular place for photographers for many years and countless images have been exposed from this vantage point.

See: Railfan’s Bridge at East Deerfield—my First Farewell.

The new bridge is being built immediately to the west of the old bridge, and once it is complete and fully open to traffic, the old bridge will be removed.

The view west from the old McClelland Farm Road bridge.
Pan Am GE’s wearing tired CSX paint pass construction crews working on approaches for the new McClelland Farm Road bridge.
The old McClelland Farm Road Bridge at East Deerfield.

Now for some bad news: in conjunction with bridge construction, the above ground electrical line has been relocated and is now carried across the tracks on a new pole-line located to the east of the bridges.

The new pole line can be seen here on the right crossing over the tracks. To the uninitiated this may seem innocuous but in fact it poses an obstruction that may make views of the yard from the new bridge difficult to achieve without heavy cables running right through the middle of the image.

This obstruction poses a new challenge for photographers making photos of the yard and depending on the height of the new bridge mayruin the classic view.

I exposed these views of former CSX DASH8-40Cs leased to Pan Am that had just arrived on road freight POED from Portland, Maine.

Photos made with a FujiFilm X-T1 with 27mm pancake lens.

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photography

Vermont Rail System SD70M-2 on the Crossing.

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Vermont Rail System operates portions of the old Rutland network, including the Green Mountain Railroad from Rutland to Bellows Falls, Vermont.

Last Friday (May 11, 2018), I followed eastward freight 263 from Rutland toward Bellows Falls. This is section of railroad that I’ve been photographing for most of my life.

Freights move at a relaxed pace, and even with the roadworks on-going on Vermont highway 103, I had no difficulty making a variety of photographs.

This view is at a rural grade crossing compass north (and railroad timetable west) of Gassetts.

Exposed digitally using a FujiFilm X-T1 camera with 18-135mm zoom lens.

I like this angle because it features the distant mountain that mimics the Vermont Railway logo on the side of the SD70M-2 diesel-electric locomotive leading the train.

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photography

Irish Rail 211, I Never Went Out for it, but here it is! 4 Views.

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Ok, I’ll be honest. Irish Rail 211 seemed like part of the furniture. Just a common 201 class diesel. I didn’t make any special effort to put it on film.

Yet, whenever it passed, hauling freight or passenger, I made photos of it.

It’s hard to believe that its been nearly 10 years since I last saw 211 on the move. Yet, when I look at these photos, the scenes tell all.

So much has changed in the interval.

400mm Telephoto view from the top of Ballybrophy bank on 13 May 2000 with an up-road train from Cork to Dublin.
Kent Station Cork on 10 January 2005. Fujichrome Sensia 100 exposed with a Nikon F3 with 180mm lens.
A down road bubble cement train heading to Cork passes Ballybrophy on 25 March 2005. Exposed with a Nikon on Fujichrome Sensia 100.
Irish Rail 211 in the revised orange and yellow livery as photographed at Islandbridge Junction in Dublin on 10 December 2007. Canon EOS-3 with 50mm lens. Note the Bo-Bo towing a failed Enterprise 201.

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photography

When East is West: Two Trains at the Junction.

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I’ve been making photos at the Junction at East Northfield since the 1980s.

The other day, on the third visit in two weeks to this iconic New England location (where New England Central’s line connects with Pan Am Railway’s Conn River route), I had a reckoning.

It occurred to me that railroad timetable ‘East Northfield’ is actually north and west of the town of Northfield, Massachusetts.

How is this possible?

Some Highway maps show railroad ‘East Northfield’ in West Northfield.

This timetable location has been called ‘East Northfield’ since the steam era,  and the present NECR sign reflects this historic geographic incongruity.

New England Central’s northward 611 (running from Palmer to Brattleboro) holds south of the junction at East Northfield for Amtrak 56, the northward Vermonter, led by P42 number 59. (Don’t get me started on train numbers versus engine numbers!)
Amtrak 56 accelerates away from the junction at East Northfield, clearly identified by the New England Central sign at left. Back in the old days, there was a railroad station on the right side of the tracks, and that was the ‘East Northfield Station’.
After Amtrak 56 completed its station stop at Brattleboro and cleared railroad location at West River, NECR’s dispatcher gave northward freight 611 permission to proceed. Exposed using a FujiFilm X-T1 with 90mm lens.

No doubt at some point in the future, the geography will be retro-actively re-written to accommodate this oversight on the part of historic railroad timetable writers. What will they make of my captions!

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photography

Tonight—May 15, 2018 at 6pm Brian Solomon’s Slide Show at the Monson Free Library.

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Tonight—May 15, 2018 at 6pm: I’ll be giving a slide show (with real 35mm color SLIDES) and lecture in Monson, Massachusetts at the Monson Free Library.


This is in conjunction with the recent release of my Railway Guide to Europe published by Kalmbach Books.

This book is a culmination of more than 20 years of wandering around exploring Europe by rail while seeking places to make photographs.

And yes, copies of the book are available for purchase!

Monson Free Library.

 

photography

Tracking the Light reminder: 6pm May 15, 2018—Slide Show and Book Signing: Monson Free Library.

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On May 15, 2018 at 6pm: I’ll be giving a slide show (with real 35mm color SLIDES) and lecture in Monson, Massachusetts at the Monson Free Library (on High Street in town).

This is in conjunction with a book signing for my recently released Railway Guide to Europe, published by Kalmbach Books.

And yes, copies of the book are available for purchase!

I exposed the cover photo in Germany’s Rhein Valley using my FujiFilm XT1 with 18-135mm lens.

You may also order copies of the book directly from the Kalmbach Hobby Store.

 

https://kalmbachhobbystore.com/product/book/01304?utm_source=SilverpopMailing&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=SA000_HBS_180413_P32543_RailwayGuide_TRN-CTR-MRR-CTT-GRW-HBS_Final&utm_content=&spMailingID=33826038&spUserID=MTE2ODA0MTQ4MzIzS0&spJobID=1261196352&spReportId=MTI2MTE5NjM1MgS2

photography

Still at Work after all these Years: New England Central GP38s.

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New England Central began operations on the former Central Vermont Railway in Febraury 1995 using a dozen freshly painted secondhand GP38s.

More than 23 years later, and two changes of ownership, and New England Central still has a handful of these old GP38s working in the same paint scheme.

Last week, a matched pair of these engines was working the Willimantic-Palmer freight, job 608.

I made an effort to catch these venerable diesels on the roll.

New England Central 3857 leads the southward 608 at Stafford Spring, Connecticut. I was aiming to feature the blossoming tree at the right. Photo adjusted in post processing.
New England Central 608 approaches the Route 32 overbridge south of Stafford Springs, Connecticut in May 2018.

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photography, Tips and Technique

Pan Am’s ED-4 Rolls Ballast on the Connecticut River Main Line.

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For nearly 35 years, locomotives have worn Guilford gray and orange paint. The scheme is has been out of vogue since introduction of the new Pan Am liveries about ten years ago, yet a few of the locomotive are still working in the old paint.

I made these views of GP40 316 working local freight ED4 hauling state-owned ballast cars southward at Hillside Road in South Deerfield.

Is this tighter version a better photograph?

Exposed using a FujiFilm X-T1 with 90mm Fujinon telephoto lens. I opted for the ‘darkside’ angle in order to better feature the hills in the distance (that make this a distinctive location) as well as the tie-piles that indicate the improvement to the track is on-going.

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photography, Tips and Technique

Stand Process compared with Normal Process.

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This is a technical follow up on my post showing examples of stand processed film.

Several readers were interested in seeing comparisons between stand processed negatives versus normally processed negatives.

I made these photos in the back yard to demonstrate the differences between processed negatives. This is intended to show differences in the amount of information presented and changes in tonality.

Although there are slight differences in the composition of the scene, these variations are irrelevant for this presentation.

All exposures were made on 120-size Kodak Tri-X roll film using a Rolleiflex Model T with 75mm Zeiss Tessar lens, set at f22 1/60thof second.

Photos are grouped with both the positive scan of the original negative (to show how the black & white negatives appear without reversal) and the digitally reversed ‘positive’, that appears as would a print of the negative. Photos have NOT been altered except for scaling. There have been no adjustments to gamma, density, etc.

Details of the differences in processing are indicated in the captions.

This is a work in progress.

Normal process:

Kodak Tri-X processed in HC110 dilution B (1-32) at 68F for a total of 9 minutes in two baths. Agitation 3 inversions every 30 seconds. No post processing adjustment or manipulation.
Reversal of the above negative: Normal process.

 

Low Contrast Process, using normal dilution and agitation.

Low contrast process: Kodak Tri-X processed in HC110 dilution B (1-32) at 67F for a total of 8 minutes in one bath. Agitation 3 inversions every 30 seconds. No post processing adjustment or manipulation.
Reversal of the image above—Low contrast process: Kodak Tri-X processed in HC110 dilution B (1-32) at 67F for a total of 8 minutes in one bath. Agitation 3 inversions every 30 seconds. No post processing adjustment or manipulation.

 

Stand process without toning.

Stand process: HC110 mixed 4 ml to 500 ml of water plus special additives to minimize the cumulative effects of chemical fogging; 10 seconds agitation at beginning of process, stand for 1 hour at 72F, process as normal through wash cycle. No toning.
Several scan of the above negative> Stand process: HC110 mixed 4 ml to 500 ml of water plus special additives to minimize the cumulative effects of chemical fogging; 10 seconds agitation at beginning of process, stand for 1 hour at 72F, process as normal through wash cycle. No toning.

Stand Process with Selenium toning to boost highlight density.

Stand process: HC110 mixed 4 ml to 500 ml of water plus special additives to minimize the cumulative effects of chemical fogging; 1o seconds agitation at beginning of process, stand for 1 hour at 72F, process as normal through wash cycle. After wash, negative treated in selenium toner (1 to 9) for 9 minutes.
Several scan of the above negative> Stand process: HC110 mixed 4 ml to 500 ml of water plus special additives to minimize the cumulative effects of chemical fogging; 1o seconds agitation at beginning of process, stand for 1 hour at 72F, process as normal through wash cycle. After wash, negative treated in selenium toner (1 to 9) for 9 minutes.
Color scan of the above negative to show slight selenium tint. This image has by far the most amount of information contained.

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photography

Irish Rail 210—Three Scenes NEVER to be repeated.

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Brian’s 20 years in Ireland/class 201 numerical retrospective, part 10.

During the last 20 years an awful lot has changed at Irish Rail.

Here are three scenes never to be repeated and all featuring Irish Rail class 201 number 210—one of ten class 201 locomotives now stored at Irish Rail’s Inchicore works.

All were exposed on Fujichrome slide film using Nikon cameras. Details in the captions.

A view from 1998, not long after I made my first visit to Ireland, locomotive 210 with a set of Cravens under the train shed at Heuston Station in Dublin. Both locomotive and train shed are covered in grime. This was before the shed was renovated and the station brightened up. Notice the old-style lamps on the front of the loco. I was working with the glint effect, catching the light of the setting sun on the Cravens and interior surfaces of the station.
This was 11 May 2000. 18 Years ago. Locomotive 210 was working  an up-Ammonia at Limerick Junction. The Ammonia traffic ended in 2002.
On 13 May 2005, 210 works a down Dublin-Cork train at Rathpeacon. Stored fertilizer wagons occupy the sidings at the left. Since this photo was made the sidings at Rathpeacon have been removed and the old wagons scrapped.

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photography, Tips and Technique

Spring at Cushman: New England Central’s northward 611.

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During the last few days everything’s gone green in central Massachusetts.

I was driving north and overtook New England Central’s 611 on its run from Palmer back to Brattleboro.

At Cushman in Amherst, Massachusetts the spring greenery and flowers combined with soft early afternoon light made for a pleasant setting.

After a wait of just 20 minutes, the NECR freight hit the crossing and I exposed a sequence of digital images using my FujiFilm X-T1. From there the chase was on!

Exposed at ISO 250 f6.4 1/500 18-135mm lens set at 18mm.

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photography

Southern Pacific on Donner Pass.

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Today, May 10, 2018 represents the 149thanniversary of the completion of America’s first Transcontinental railroad.

To commemorate the day, I’m posting a Kodachrome view that I made of a Southern Pacific freight on Donner Pass in 1993.

SP’s former Central Pacific route over Donner was a key portion of the original Transcontinental Line.

In the 1990s, I made hundreds of Kodachrome views of the Donner Pass crossing.

An SP westward freight ascends the east slope of Donner Pass near Shed 47 above Donner Lake west of Truckee, California. Kodachrome 25 slide.

 

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photography, Tips and Technique

Acela Express Cross-Lit on the Draw.

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Yes, I’m trying to pick a title that will get you to read this post.

I could call it ‘Fast Train on the Bridge’ or ‘Amtrak on the New Haven’, or ‘What? NO! Not Westport, Again!’ Or perhaps the accurate, if opaque, ‘Trailing View over the Saugatuck.’

Exposed digitally using a FujiFilm X-T1 with 18-135mm lens. To make this photo work, I had to carefully mind the shadows from catenary poles so they didn’t appear to intersect the sloping face of the Acela Express train set.

In late April, I made this trailing view of a Boston-bound Acela Expresstilting train crossing the former New Haven Railroad draw bridge at Westport, Connecticut.

By working from the outbound Metro-North platform in the evening, I cross lit the train for dramatic effect and to better show the infrastructure.

Cross-lighting, is when the main light source (the sun in this case) primarily illuminates only the facing surface of the subject, while the  surfaces are bathed in shadow. This presents a more dramatic contrast than three-quarter lighting, which offered relative even illumination across the subject.

Cross-lighting is often most effective for railroad photography when the sun is relatively low in the sky. In this instance the compression effect that results from the long telephoto lens works well with the cross lit train.

Exposed digitally using a FujiFilm X-T1 with 18-135mm lens. To make this photo work, I had to carefully mind the shadows from catenary polls so they didn’t appear to interect the sloping face of the Acela Expresstrain set.

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photography

Slide Show and Book Signing Reminder: 6pm on May 15, 2018 at the Monson Free Library.

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On May 15, 2018 at 6pm: I’ll be giving a slide show (with real SLIDES) and lecture in Monson, Massachusetts at the Monson Free Library. This is in conjunction with a book signing for my recently released Railway Guide to Europe, published by Kalmbach Books.

I’ll have copies of the book available for purchase!

The Monson Free Library is located a 2 High Street in Monson, Massachusetts.

See: https://monsonlibrary.com

Click here to order Brian Solomon’s Railway Guide to Europe.

I exposed the cover photo in Germany’s Rhein Valley using my FujiFilm XT1 with 18-135mm lens.
photography, Tips and Technique

Dynamic Photo: German Electric on the Shore Line.

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Amtrak Siemens-built ACS-64 ‘Cities Sprinters’ are the standard electric locomotives for Regional and Long Distance services operating on the Northeast Corridor.

I made this view of Amtrak 160 blasting through the station at Old Saybrook, Connecticut.

For my raw and unmodified composition I gave the camera a slight tilt that makes for a more dynamic image of the fast electric in action.

My original composition features a slight angle intended to better convey speed and motion.

Purists might flinch at my altering of the level, so I’ve ‘corrected’ the photo in post processing and offer the more ‘normal’ view as well.

Here’s the revised image, ‘corrected’ in post processing.

Who said you can have your cake and eat too?

Which version do you prefer?

Don’t Miss Out!

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photography

Vestiges of the Central Vermont Railway.

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Last Sunday was dreary and damp. I inspected the old Central Vermont Railway Palmer Subdivision main track at the Massachusetts-Connecticut state line, where I was delighted to find these vestiges from the steam era.

The tie plate below the rail date from the 1940s and still bear evidence of the CV, a company gone since 1995, when New England Central assumed operation of the line.

Exposed digitally with a FujiFilm X-T1 with 27mm pancake lens.
Exposed digitally with a FujiFilm X-T1 with 27mm pancake lens. To make the raised lettering on the tie plate more visible in the photo, I needed to adjust my angle in regards to the reflection of the sky in the water on top of the plate. The water acted both to highlight and obscure the lettering  depending on how the it reflected the light.

I wonder how many times CV’s classic 2-8-0 steam locomotives pounded over these plates in years gone by? Not to mention carrying the passage of CV’s later era locomotives such as the GP9s and Alco RS-11s that I grew up around.

How much longer will these vestiges survive? A welded rail train arrived a couple of days later, so it’s anyone’s guess.

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photography, Tips and Technique

East Northfield, Massachusetts: a Junction; a Tunnel Motor; A Searchlight and Three Quarter Light.

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Years ago, the view from the road bridge at East Northfield, Massachusetts was more open than it is today.

The trees have grown up making it more challenging to expose photos of trains at the junction between former Boston & Maine and former Central Vermont lines here.

At one time, a century or more ago, B&M’s Conn River route crossed the CV here. B&M’s line continued across the Connecticut River and rejoined the CV at Brattleboro.

Later, the two routes were melded in a paired track arrangement. However, by the time I started photographing here in the 1980s, the B&M route north of East Northfield was no longer functioning as a through line.

On the morning of April 27, 2018, I made this view of New England Central freight 608 led by a former Southern Pacific SD40T-2 ‘tunnel motor’ diesel.

New England Central 611 approaches the junction at East Northfield, Massachusetts. The lead locomotives have just crossed the Vermont-Massachusetts state line. The old Boston & Maine line once continued to the right of the present NECR alignment (and to the left of the dirt road), running northward across the Connecticut River and beyond via Dole Junction, New Hampshire toward Brattleboro.

The light was spot on for a series of three quarter views featuring a vintage GRS searchlight signal that protects the junction.

Perfect morning light makes for a calendar view from the road bridge at the junction.
NECR 611 continues south toward Palmer, Massachusetts on the old Central Vermont Railway, the old Boston & Maine route diverges to the left toward Greenfield and Springfield, Massachusetts.

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photography

London St Pancras Station on 3 May 2016.

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On this day two years ago (3 May 2016), I spent the morning photographing London’s St. Pancras Station.

The old terminal of the Midland Railway is my favorite London Station, and among the most influential railway stations in Britain.

I’ve featured this station in a number of books, including Depots, Stations & Terminals published by Voyageur Press in 2015, and my new Railway Guide to Europe, now available from Kalmbach Publishing.

https://www.amazon.com/Railway-Depots-Stations-Terminals-Solomon/dp/0760348901

Click here to order Brian Solomon’s Railway Guide to Europe.

These photos were exposed digitally using my FujiFilm X-T1. Although I exposed the images in RAW and JPG, all of these images represent the colour and contrast of the in-camera JPG with Fujifilm colour profile.

London St Pancras on 3 May 2016. Exposed with a FujiFilm X-T1 fitted with 18-135mm Fujinon zoom lens.
London St. Pancras. Exposed digitally using a FujiFilm X-T1 with Zeiss 12mm Touit.
London St. Pancras. Exposed digitally using a FujiFilm X-T1 with Zeiss 12mm Touit.
London St. Pancras. Exposed digitally using a FujiFilm X-T1 with Zeiss 12mm Touit.
London St. Pancras. Exposed digitally using a FujiFilm X-T1 with Zeiss 12mm Touit.
London St. Pancras. Exposed digitally using a FujiFilm X-T1 with Zeiss 12mm Touit.

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photography, Tips and Technique

Glistening Water—New England Central on the move at Brattleboro, Vermont.

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At 8:08 AM on April 27, 2018, New England Central 611 was on the move south from Brattleboro, Vermont.

Bright hazy sunshine made for excellent conditions for photography.

Working with my FujiFilm XT1 with 90mm telephoto, I exposed this view looking across the Connecticut River backwater south of Brattleboro yard.

By cropping the sky, featuring the locomotives in the top third of the frame, and allowing the natural patterns of glistening water to occupy most of the image, I create visual tension that keeps your eye scanning the photo. I chose a broadside view to feature the locomotives, each of which is of a different length; SD40T-2, SD40, and SD45 (three of my personal favorites).

To make the most of this contrasty scene, I imported the Fuji RAW file into Lightroom and made minor adjustments to highlight and shadows to improve the appearance of the image, then slightly boosted saturation to make for a more pleasing photograph.

NECR freight  611 was on the move toward Palmer, Massachusetts and a bright morning on hand, so the chase was on!

More photos to follow!

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photography

Brian Solomon’s Talk at Monson Free Library: Tuesday May 15, 2018, 6pm.

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Brian Solomon’s Railway Guide to Europe

On May 15, 2018 at 6pm: I’ll be giving a slide show and lecture in conjunction with a book signing for my recently released Railway Guide to Europe, published by Kalmbach Books.

I’ll have copies of the book available for purchase; signatures provided FREE!

I’ve also donated a copy of the book to the library.

The Monson Free Library is located a 2 High Street in Monson, Massachusetts.

See: https://monsonlibrary.com

Click here to order Brian Solomon’s Railway Guide to Europe.

My new guide book on European Railway Travel on the plane. With a cup of Barry’s Tea.
I exposed this photo of the Monson Free Library in April 2018 using a Leica IIIA with 35mm Nikkor lens on Kodak Tri-X.
I exposed this photo of the Monson Free Library in April 2018 using a Leica IIIA with 35mm Nikkor lens on Kodak Tri-X.
I exposed this photo of the Monson Free Library in April 2018 using a Leica IIIA with 35mm Nikkor lens on Kodak Tri-X.
photography

London— May First 2016.

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On this day two years ago, I was photographing in London.

My father and I had arrived via the Channel Tunnel on the Eurostar on the previous day.

It was a bright morning and I made good use of my Lumix LX7, photographing London stations and trains as I explored the Overground network that follows an orbital route around the city.

 

London Victoria on 1 May 2016. Lumix LX7 photo.

 

West Brompton.
West Brompton.
Clapham Junction.
Clapham Junction.

London is a great place to explore by rail and among the featured cities in my new Railway Guide to Europe published by Kalmbach Publishing.

Click here to order Brian Solomon’s Railway Guide to Europe.

I exposed the cover photo in Germany’s Rhein Valley using my FujiFilm XT1 with 18-135mm lens.

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Class 201 Retrospective: Northern Irish Railways 8208 Everywhere but the Enterprise.

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Next up for my 20 years in Ireland/class 201 numerical retrospective is old 208/8208: to be different, I’m posting views of 8208 (one of two Class 201s owned by NIR for Enterprise service) working a variety of trains but not the Enterprise!

Originally, the locomotive was number 208, and it had been painted in an attractive NIR blue livery, similar to the 111-class diesels.

I never saw it in blue.

208 as I first saw it; a thumbnail scan from a slide I made in 1998.
Working a Dublin-Waterford train at Athy in July 2003, shortly after it was renumbered 8208.
For few years 8208 worked in a unusual variation of the Enterprise livery, as pictured here on an RPSI excursion near Clonsilla on the Sligo line in 2009.
NIR 8208 in the latest Enterprise livery working Irish Rail’s IWT liner from Ballina at Memorial Road in Dublin.

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photography, Tips and Technique

Rolling Along with 22K—Lesson in making Pacing Shots.

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We were in hot pursuit of Pan Am Southern intermodal freight 22K with three BNSF Railway GE diesels in the lead.

The sun was out.

Rich Reed was driving.

I rolled down the back window, set my Lumix to the smallest aperture (f8) and set the shutter speed dial to ‘A’ mode, which automatically picks the corresponding shutter speed based on the aperture setting.

Since f8 lets the less light to the sensor, the camera program compensated by selecting a slow shutter speed.

I exposed a burst of images as we drove along side the locomotives.

Does it matter that we were in Shirley, Massachusetts?

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photography, Tips and Technique

BNSF C4s Where?!

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This is about location and something unusual.

A week ago, Rich Reed, Paul Goewey and I were making a survey of Pan Am/MBTA operations around Fitchburg, Massachusetts, when we came across intermodal freight 22K stopped east of Fitchburg yard.

Driving up to the head-end, we were surprise to find that the train was led by three BNSF Railway GE diesels, with one of the ‘C4’ (model ES44C4; a six-axle/four-motor riding on a variation of the A1A truck) in the lead.

The train was stopped just west of MBTA’s North Leominster platforms to allow the morning commuter rush to pass unimpeded. This gave us ample opportunity to make photographs.

I was keen to show these BNSF locomotives (nearly 1,000 miles from home rails) operating in Boston suburban territory.

Simply photographing the train/engines really wasn’t good enough, since without some geographically identifying feature, these images could be anywhere.

While I made some close photos of the engines for the record, but I also made a point of exposing images that included station signs and other features to positively identify where we were.

Morning sun on Pan Am Southern intermodal freight 22K at North Leominster on April 20, 2018.
The big GE diesels weren’t the only thing displaying the BNSF logo in North Leominster!
Not the most graceful composition, but it shows where we are.
MBTA 406 heading to Boston’s North Station overtakes 22K at North Leominster.
As MBTA 406 accelerated away from the station, I made a photo of the trailing locomotive with the BNSF GEs beyond. MBTA operates its trains in push-pull mode (locomotive only at one end, cab control car at the other).

One the commuter rush cleared, 22K got permission to proceed and continued east toward its terminus at Ayer, Massachusetts, leading to more photographic opportunities. Stay tuned!

Admittedly not the most scenic location, but this view from the North Leominster parking garage identifies where we are.

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photography, Tips and Technique

When a Rainy Day allows for a Better Photograph.

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Here’s an example of when a rainy day allows for a better photograph.

Dublin’s recently extended LUAS Green Line passes the famous Fusilier’s Arch entrance to St. Stephen’s Green.

Two problems with a bright sunny day:

  1. the arch and foliage/trees in the park cast shadows that often make for a less simplified composition
  2. While the popularity of the park on nice days results in a continuous procession of people in and out of the park, making it difficult to frame up a tram beneath the arch. Simply getting an unobstructed view can be problematic.
Exposed on Kodak Tri-X with a Nikon F3 with 50mm lens.

Certainly you can make some kind of photo here on a bright day, but it will look pretty different than this classical view.

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photography

Two Years Ago I Traveled by TGV from Brussels to Bordeaux.

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SNCF’s magnificently engineered high-speed railways lines (known as the LGV) permit its TGV high-speed trains to reach speeds of approximately 200 mph on select portions of the network.

On 26 April 2016, I traveled from Brussels to Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport where I met my father who was arriving from Iceland, and we continued by train to Bordeaux. This was part of a three-week railway adventure across central Europe.

I made these views with my Lumix LX7.

SNCF’s Charles de Gaulle Airport Station offers excellent airline-train connections.
A Switzerland-bound TGV Lyria at Charles de Gaulle Airport Station.
Lounge/bar on the TGV where you can enjoy a beer or glass of wine at nearly 200 mph.

SNCF’s TGVs are among the high speed trains featured in my new Railway Guide to Europe published by Kalmbach Publishing.

Click here to order Brian Solomon’s Railway Guide to Europe.

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My new guide book on European Railway Travel is out now. Get yours today.

 

photography

I Visited SNCB’s Antwerp Central Station on this day in 2016.

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It was on this day, 25 April 2016, almost, 20 years after my first visit to Antwerp Central, I made the opportunity to revisit this amazing European railway palace.

SNCB’s (Belgian National Railway) Antwerp Central had been completely transformed since my 1996 visit (while traveling from Brussels to Amsterdam with my dad).

It now features tracks on three levels, including a through line at the lowest level.

Steel and glass train shed at Antwerp Central Station on 25 April 2016. Lumix LX7 photo.

 

Lowest level of Antwerp Central.

 

A through Amsterdam to Brussels train arrives on the lowest of three levels. Photo adjusted in Lightroom to compensate for contrast and colour saturation.

In my railway travels across Belgium, I’ve photographed at Antwerp Central on a half dozen occasions over the years, and the station remains one of my favorite.

These photographs were exposed digitally with my Lumix LX7, which is an ideal tool for making urban images.

Antwerp is among the cities featured in my new Railway Guide to Europe published by Kalmbach Publishing.

Click here to order Brian Solomon’s Railway Guide to Europe.

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I exposed the cover photo in Germany’s Rhein Valley using my FujiFilm XT1 with 18-135mm lens.

 

 

 

photography, Tips and Technique

Pan Am EDPO out of the sun—Lessons in Lightening Shadows.

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There used to be a philosophy discouraging photographers from shooting into the sun.

Some types of older equipment (without decent flare control systems) tended not to produce appealing photos when looking toward the sun, while many films didn’t have adequate dynamic range for capturing the contrast range from direct sun to inky shadows.

I’ve found that by using a very wide lens, with a tiny aperture setting, I can get some interesting and satisfactory results by looking directly into midday sun.

Years ago, I’d accomplished this with my Leica and a 21mm Super Angulon on black & white negative film (Kodak Panatomic-X ISO 32 was a good choice).

In more recent times, I use my FujiFilm X-T1 digital camera fitted with a Zeiss 12mm Tuoit, set at its smallest aperture (f22), which leads to the starburst effect as result of diffraction from the very small polygon opening.

I work in RAW, and then digitally manipulate the files in post processing using Lightroom. Specifically, I uniformly lighten the shadow areas to partially compensate for the extremely contrasty setting.

It helps to partially block the sun, as in this image near Forge Village in Westford, Massachusetts.

Pan Am Railways EDPO (East Deerfield to Portland) works the old Stonybrook Line at Forge Village. Exposed with a my FujiFilm X-T1 digital camera fitted with a Zeiss 12mm Tuoit; 1/30thof a second at f22, ISO 200.

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MBTA Gritty in Ayer.

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One of MBTA’s HSP-46 diesels leads a mid-morning westward commuter train approaching its station stop in Ayer.

Making effective Midday backlit shots requires challenging photographic techniques.

In this instance, I took an elevated view, slightly over exposed Kodak Tri-X to allow for greater shadow detail while completely cropping the sky to avoid the visual distraction from excessive highlight brightness.

Image exposed on Kodak Tri-X black & white film using a Nikon F3 with f1.4 50mm lens and custom processed to allow for maximum tonality.

Processing the film was my key for achieving better balance and rich tonality.

Working with Ilford ID-11, I used a  1 to 1 mix with water and lowered the recommended process time for Tri-X  from 11 minutes to 7 minutes 45 seconds (at 68.5 degrees F). This lowered the contrast and prevented excessive processing in the highlight areas.

After processing, I toned the negatives with a selenium solution, which give the highlights a slight silvery snap, just enough to make for richer tonality without blowing out all the detail.

My goal was to make the most of the reflections off the rails and the top of the train.

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In the Shadow of the Jungfrau—One Year Ago Today!

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On this day (23 April) 2017, I was photographing at Grindelwald, Switzerland while researching my Railway Guide to Europe. (Just published by Kalmbach Books).

See: https://kalmbachhobbystore.com/product/book/01304?

I made these views from the station platform at Grindelwald, where the Bernese Oberland Bahn (BOB) meets the Wengernalpbahn. The Wengernalpbahn drops into the valley toward Grindelwald Grund, where the line reverses for the steep rack-aided ascent toward Kleine Scheidegg.

Exposed using a FujiFilm X-T1 with 18-135mm zoom lens. Bright morning sun made for perfect lighting on this dramatic mountain scene.
Exposed using a FujiFilm X-T1 with 18-135mm zoom lens. A Wengernalpbahn train descends toward Grund.

This was among the many lines Denis McCabe and I photographed in Switzerland that week.

In my book, I offer a variety of useful and practical advice for traveling European railways, while highlighting scenic journeys, interesting routes, and some of Europe’s most interesting cities and towns. The book compiles more than 20 years of European travel in to just over 400 pages.

Click here to order Brian Solomon’s Railway Guide to Europe.

I exposed the cover photo in Germany’s Rhein Valley using my FujiFilm XT1 with 18-135mm lens.

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Modern Alstom Trams in an Old French City; Valenciennes—22 April 2016 Part 2.

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As a follow up to this morning’s post on SNCF at Valenciennes, I thought I’d post a few Lumix LX7 photos I made of the city’s modern tram system.

This is a show-case system of Alstom’s tram technology and features street running, trackage in grass-covered central medians, and tram lines on old SNCF railway lines.

The Citadis trams are very similar to those employed on Dublin’s LUAS network, albeit with different styling.

The day started out with pale thin sunlight, which was gradually replaced by a even dull overcast.

Valenciennes on 22 April 2016; Lumix LX7 photo, unaltered JPG image (except for scaling).
Valenciennes tram on 22 April 2016; Lumix LX7 photo, unaltered JPG image (except for scaling).
Valenciennes tram on 22 April 2016; Lumix LX7 photo, unaltered JPG image (except for scaling).
Valenciennes on 22 April 2016; Lumix LX7 photo, adjusted RAW file, with contrast, exposure and saturation altered to improve balance and interest. LX7 photo.
Espace Villars terminus on the Valenciennes tram system.

Click here to order Brian Solomon’s Railway Guide to Europe.

I exposed the cover photo in Germany’s Rhein Valley using my FujiFilm XT1 with 18-135mm lens.

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See my earlier post:

On this Day in 2016; Valenciennes, France.

On this Day in 2016, I visited Valenciennes, France.

photography, Tips and Technique

One Year Ago: SBB on a Clear April Morning Along Lake Geneva.

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I made these photos on 21 April 2017 along the shore of Switzerland’s Lake Geneva near St. Saphorin.

SBB’s busy double track electrified line and stunning Swiss scenery with bright sun was a winning combination for great photographs.

This was one stop on a week-long exploration of Swiss railways with Denis McCabe while I was preparing my Railway Guide to Europe.

Exposed using a FujiFilm XT1 digital camera on 21 April 2018.
Exposed using a FujiFilm XT1 digital camera on 21 April 2018.

 

SBB freight. Exposed using a FujiFilm XT1 digital camera on 21 April 2018.
Exposed using a FujiFilm XT1 digital camera on 21 April 2018.

Exposed using a FujiFilm XT1 digital camera on 21 April 2018.

Switzerland’s Lake Geneva region is one of  many scenic areas profiled in my new book on European railways published by Kalmbach Publishing this Spring.

Click here to order Brian Solomon’s Railway Guide to Europe.

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Sun and Cloud, The RPSI Cravens at Claude Road: A Lesson In Patience.

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On Satuday 24 March 2018, I shared Dublin’s Claude Road foot-bridge with Paul Maguire and Ciarán Cooney, as we waited for the RPSI Cravens to run from Inchicore to Connolly for a scheduled inspection of the equipment.

It had been completely sunny, but as the time for the train approached, clouds began to dapple the morning sky.

I exposed this view using a Nikon N90S with 180mm Nikkor telephoto lens on Fujichrome Provia100F slide film.

The light was in flux when I released the shutter. Was the train in sun?

I had to wait more than three weeks to find out, since I’ve just received my slides back from the lab.

Irish Rail 084 leads the RPSI  Cravens eastward at Claude Road. File adjusted with Lightroom.

I made some nominal adjustments to contrast and colour balance after scanning.

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I feature Irish Rail and the Railway Preservation Society of Ireland in my new Railway Guide to Europe, which is now available from Kalmbach Books.

Click here to order Brian Solomon’s Railway Guide to Europe.

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Maine Central’s Rockland, Maine Roundhouse—August 1980.

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I was just a kid with a camera. Luckily, the camera was a Leica 3A.

I’d loaded it with Tri-X and exposed a few views around the Rockland, Maine roundhouse during a visit there with my family in August 1980.

Months later I processed the film in Microdol-X (not the best choice of developers, but it’s what I used at the time) and made a few tiny prints. Then I put the negatives in a paper envelope and mostly forgot about them.

Rockland, Maine in August 1980.

Two years ago, when looking for some other photos, I re-discovered the negatives in a big batch of missing photos, and scanned them at high-resolution with an Epson flatbed scanner.

This photo required a little post processing adjustment to improve tonality and even out contrast, while removing a few dust specs.

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Click here to order Brian Solomon’s Railway Guide to Europe.

photography, Tips and Technique

Lisburn Station on a Sunny Morning.

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It was nearly two weeks ago that I exposed these views on a clear cold morning at NI Railway’s Lisburn Station.

There’s nothing like a polarized sky and low sun. The photos almost make themselves.

These were exposed using my Lumix LX7.

Soon afterward I was rolling along toward Portadown.

A clear blue dome; great conditions for photograph.
Lisburn Station is among the best preserved former Great Northern Railway stations.
GNR’s heralds are still in place on the canopy supports.

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Belfast-Dublin Enterprise at City Hospital—4 Views.

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On two occasions on 27 March 2018, I made sequences of the Belfast-Dublin Enterprisepassing NI Railway’s City Hospital station.

The Enterpriseservice typically consists of a push-pull De Dietrich sets with a General Motors built 201-class diesel at the Belfast end.

These views were exposed using my FujiFilm XT1 with 18-135mm lens.

A southward Enterprise passes an NI Railways CAF set at City Hospital station.
A cab control car normally works the Dublin-end of the Enterprise, as pictured here.
Trailing view looking through the arches under Belfast’s Donegall Road toward the north junction connecting Great Victoria Street Station. (at right). That’s Irish Rail class-201 number 207 shoving at the back of the train. Hmm 207, so this is a continuation of yesterday’s post is it?
Horizontal version at the same location.

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