We are approaching CT Rail’s first anniversary of service in June 2019.
So this has been is the first full Spring to ride and photograph the new Connecticut sponsored passenger service on the ‘Hartford Line.’
Last Thursday, photographer Mike Gardner and I headed to Warehouse Point, across the Connecticut River from Windsor Locks to make a few photos.
It was dull in the morning, but by midday the sun beamed through the cloud cover and made for some nice light with fresh Spring greenery along the riverbanks.
We caught CT Rail 4406 on its northward run to Springfield, Massachusetts on the old New Haven Railroad bridge.
Exposed using my FujiFilm XT1 with 27mm pancake lens.
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While the New CT Rail trains tend to capture most of attention on the Springfield-New Haven route (now branded as the ‘Hartford Line’), Amtrak continues to run its shuttles and through trains on the same route.
I made this view last week of Amtrak 490 working northward to Springfield, Massachusetts as it crossed the Connecticut River between Windsor Locks and Warehouse Point.
I like the distant vantage point, using a telephoto lens to feature the small train on the big bridge.
Last week, Paul Goewey and I revisited Thompsonville, Connecticut, an old mill village along the former New Haven Railroad, just south of Springfield, Massachusetts.
I made photos here in the mid-1980s and late 1990s, but hadn’t scoped the location since the start up of CT Rail passenger services last year.
I’d been inspired to go back when I traveled on CT Rail a few days earlier.
These views were exposed using my FujiFilm XT1 of southward CT Rail train 4405 on its way to Hartford and New Haven. I worked from the road, making images from the ‘dark side’ of the train by using my telephoto to feature the train rolling though the curve.
On Monday February 4, 2019, I took a spin on CT Rail from Windsor Locks, Connecticut to Springfield, Massachusetts and back. The fare was a reasonable $4.00 in each direction and I bought my tickets from the fare machines at the stations.
Traveling by train presented an opportunity to visit with my old friend Jack May, who had traveled up from the New York metro area.
XT1 photo.CT Rail train interior. Lumix LX7 photo.Connecticut Southern freight seen from the cab-car of the Northward CT Rail train. I was riding in the coach and photographed through the windows. The freight is shoving back from West Springfield Yard in preparation for its southward journey toward Hartford.
Restored Springfield Union Station. Lumix LX7 Photo.
Restored Springfield Union Station. Lumix LX7 Photo.
I made a few photos using my Lumix LX7 and FujiFilm XT1 digital cameras. It was a nice bright day! I scoped additional line-side locations from the train.
Many years ago, my old pal T.S. Hoover and I would make a project of photographing the old New Haven Railroad during the holiday season.
This past New Years Eve (December 31 2018), I maintained this tradition, although that wasn’t my intent!
I was transferring from Amtrak 405 from Springfield to Amtrak 195 from Boston. Let’s just say the Boston train wasn’t holding to the advertised and I had ample time to wander around and make photographs of the passing action.
New Haven isn’t pretty, high level platforms combined with a plethora of poles, catenary masts, catenary, signs, garbage, stray wires and other visual clutter hasn’t improved this classic setting, but there’s a great variety of equipment on the move.
Shoreline East lurking on left, CT Rail Hartford Line on right; FujiFilm XT1 with 90mm lens.CT Rail Hartford Line train. Lumix LX7 photo.Shoreline East train with a former Amtrak P40 at the back departs eastward for Old Saybrook. FujiFilm XT1 with 90mm lens.Metro North M8s on left, old M2s on the right. FujiFilm XT1 with 90mm lens..
No GG1s, RDCs, FL9s, E8s or other relics that made this a fascinating place when I was a teenager. For that matter there weren’t any E60s, AEM-7s, F40s or SPV-2000s either.
Boston-bound Acela Express. Lumix LX7 photo.
Boston-bound Acela Express. FujiFilm XT1 with 90mm lens.FujiFilm XT1 with 90mm lens.
It was a bright morning. I had a comparatively late start.
Since the new CT Rail suburban service began operations on the ‘Hartford Line’ (New Haven-Hartford-Springfield former New Haven Railroad line), I’d been meaning to photograph one of the trains on the big bridge over the Connecticut River at Warehouse Point/East Windsor-Windsor Locks.
Last summer the sun angles didn’t suit the timetable, but now with a revised schedule and low winter sun, there are a variety of angles to be had.
Working with my FujiFilm XT1 and 18-135mm zoom, I made these views of CT Rail 4405 just before 11am on December 12, 2018.
It helps to have a nice clear morning!
CT Rail 4405 runs weekdays from Springfield, Massachusetts to New Haven. Connecticut. Seen cross the Connecticut River near East Windsor/Warehouse Point, Connecticut.
Trailing view of the same train. By working with a zoom lens (variable focal length) I was able to rapidly adjust my perspective and expose several distinctive views of the same train as it crossed the bridge
The train is now approaching its station stop at Meriden, Connecticut.
It was announced that from Hartford the train was completely sold out. Thus demonstrating that old adage no one rides trains anymore because they’re too crowded!
I exposed these photos with my FujFilm XT1 fitted with a Zeiss 12mm Touit lens.
As we roll along, the files were downloaded to my MacBook using Image Capture software, scaled for internet using Lightroom, and uploaded via Amtrak’s WiFi to WordPress for presentation on Tracking the Light.
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On the evening of December 4, 2018, I panned CTrail train 4461 led by engine 6695 at the new Berlin, Connecticut station.
Berlin is brightly lit and makes for a good vantage point to watch and photograph passenger trains on the Hartford Line.
To make this pan photo, I set the shutter speed at 1/30thof second, fixed a point in my view finder and moved my camera and body in parallel with the train in a smooth unbroken motion as it arrived at the station.
New Haven bound Trail 4461 arrives at Berlin, Connecticut on December 4, 2018.
Panning is a great means to show a train in motion.
These photos were exposed using my resuscitated Lumix LX7. I worked in RAW and adjusted the files in post processing to optimize highlight and shadow placement, present more pleasing contrast, and improve color saturation.
