On this day six years ago, I attended two-foot gauge Wiscasset, Waterville & Farmington’s Grand Reunion event with photographer Wayne Duffett.
It was extremely cold that day, which resulted in stunning displays of effluence from the three narrow gauge locomotives at work.
Wokring with my FujiFilm XT-1 I made this back-lit photograph at the Top of Mountain siding near the north-end of the line.
Recently, I revisited the original FujiFilm RAF raw file and processed this using PureRaw4. Among other things, processing improved the image clarity. I adjusted the PureRaw DNG file using Adobe Lightroom in order to make the most of the data captured by the camera.
Below is both the processed file, and the Lightroom work window showing some of the file’s vital information.
Tracking the Light explores photography every day!
On January 16, 2010, I paid a visit to the Mid-Hants Railway in the UK.
I was relatively new to digital photography, having only acquired my first digital camera a few months earlier. This was a compact Lumix LX3. Originally, I anticipate using my first ‘Wee Lumix’ primarily for social photographs; snap shots of friends and family, and architectural studies of buildings in my travels.
However, not long after buying it, I experimented with the camera for railroad photos and found that I had a range of capabilities.
On this misty day visit to the Mid-Hants, I exposed dozens of images with my LX3. Although I simultaneously exposed in both RAW and JPG formats, in my early days I didn’t have advance image processing software, and so tended to primarily work with the in-camera JPGs.
Last night I decided to revisit my photos from January 16, 2010, and retrieve this selection from an old hard drive and processed the RAW files using DxO’s PureRaw4. This allows me to see the full image as captured by the camera, while correcting for a variety of lens defects. In situations where the camera’s zoom was at its wider setting this interpretation results in non-parallel edges to overcome barrel distortion and other defects.
Rather than crop the RAW images to rectangular format to match the JPGs, I’ve opted to show the full file which displays camera’s RAW capture that shows the whole field of view. This reveals detail at the edges of the image that has been hidden away all these years
The LX3 allows the photographer to set the aspect ratio at the time of exposure. This 5.1mm view was made using the 1:1 ratio.LX3 photo; 5.1mm focal length using the 1:1 aspect ratio.12.8 mm view made using the 4:3 aspect ratio.5.1 mm view made using the 4:3 aspect ratio.11.1 mm view made using the 4:3 aspect ratio.
Strasburg Rail Road’s Night Before Christmas excursion was working upgrade from the East Strasburg, Pa., station with engine 90 leading tender first.
This offered another great opportunity to test the limits of Nikon’s Z6-III with the ‘fast fifty’ (f1.4 50mm).
This sequence was exposed hand held, which allowed me to pan the train as it passed. I had the ISO set to 64000 and this enabled a shutter speed of 1/100th of second at f1.4.
Not bad for hand held at night! A nearly full moon augmented street lights and Christmas lighting near the tracks.
My next Railroad Photography 101 Class will be held on Saturday Dec 13, 2025 from 9 to 11am at the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania. The theme to this class will be working with holiday settings, including techniques on how to make better night train photographs.
Last summer, Kris, Seamus-the-dog and I caught Strasburg Rail Road’s evening train returning from Leaman Place from a vantage point along Esbenshade Road.
I exposed this photograph on Kodak Ektachrome 100 color slide film using a Nikon F3 with f2.0 35mm lens. To make the most of the foreground crops, I made an off-center composition with engine 89 at the center left of the image.
Ektachrome allows for traditional color rendition and contrast that I find distinctive from modern digital images.
This film was processed by AgX Imaging of Sault Saint Marie, Michigan (https://www.agximaging.com) and returned to me last week. I scanned the original photograph using my Nikon LS-5000 slide scanner driven by VueScan 9.8.49 software.
Approaching Blackhorse Road, Strasburg Rail Road routinely pauses outbound excursions for a ‘ghost whistling’ routine whereby the echo of the locomotive whistle on the distant hills is made to sound like the whistle from another line (now long gone).
This presents an opportunrity to make photos.
The other day was bright, clear, and unseasonably warm, so I decided to feature the brilliant red tree in the nearby school yard with Strasburg’s excursion. I was working with both my Fuji XT-1 and Nikon Z6. These cameras have different sensors and handle color differently.
While-in both situations-I exposed in RAW and made nominal cosmetic adjustment to the files using Lightroom, this is not intended as a strict comparison between cameras, just an exercise in composition. Below are four similar images from a sequence of more than a dozen images exposed with the two cameras. I’m not sure if I have a favorite. Yet.
FujiFilm XT-1 digital camera with 16-55mm lens.Nikon Z6 with 24-70mm lens.FujiFilm XT-1 digital camera with 16-55mm lens.Nikon Z6 with 24-70mm lens.
Upon on our arrival a wisp of smoke lingered; we’d just missed Strasburg’s evening train departing Leaman Place.
I drove to Cherry Hill Road. The angle of the setting sun perfectly illuminated the track between rows of corn.
Number 90 began to accelerate as it approached the grade crossing, and the train passed me as if it were moving in slow motion. I aimed to catch the power of the engine.
I exposed this series of photos using my Nikon Z7-II.
Friday evening, Seamus-the-Dog, Kris, and I scoped out a view looking across fields of soy plants off of Esbenshade Road to catch Strasburg Rail Road’s returning 6pm excursion.
I made these views using my 70-200mm Nikon Z-Series telephoto zoom fitted to my Z6 mirrorless camera.
The light was perfect and the angle just to my liking.
While not a bad sequence of images, it’s only 95 percent in my book.
What’s wrong? In the process of framing the image to get the foreground and background just right, I wasn’t able to pose the locomotive ‘rods down’. I guest that’s just a ‘fail.’ We’ll have to try again sometime.
Not every situation is made to order for photography.
I was on my way to the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania to conduct research for my next book. Since I was just a little early, I opted to divert via Esbenshade Road and roll by Strasburg Rail Road’s returning 1pm train.
I heard the engine working the grade. On most recent visits, former Canadian National 2-6-0 No. 89 has been assigned to the run. Since this is a relative small locomotive the crews have to work it reasonably hard ascending the grade from Cherry Hill.
However, on this afternoon I listened carefully; the softer bark of the stack told me that the engine wasn’t working especially hard. This couldn’t be 89, so it must be No. 90—the former Great Western 2-10-0 (a relatively big Baldwin).
Inded it was!
Canadian wildfires made for the air thick with particulates, and the sunlight was tinged with brown. Not pretty light at all.
Photos exposed using my Nikon Z7-II with 24-70mm lens.
NEF RAW files were adjusted using Lightroom to maximize detail.
One of the great things about Steamtown in Scranton, Pa., is that admission is free.
Last week, Kris and I arrived shortly after the park opened and spent several hours wandering around. There’s a lot to see and I hadn’t visited inside the museum in a number of years.
I made these images using my Nikon Z7-II and performed post processing using Adobe Lightroom. I’ve lightened shadows, reduced contrast and warmed the images as required for improved presentation.
We paused at Blackhorse Road to roll by Strasburg Rail Road’s evening train. I’ve made countless photos from Blackhorse and the adjacent Carpenters Cemetery, so I thought I’d try something a little different.
As engine 89 approached the crossing, I took a position in the graveyard. To make my photo, I adjusted the flexible rear display on my Nikon Z7-II, and held the camera at arm’s length over my head to gain some needed elevation.
Although, I was able to frame up my composition, I found it difficult to keep the camera level. Ultimately, I straightened the image in post processing, which also included adjustments to contrast, exposure and saturation.
I can’t complain about the car in the photo; it’s ours!
Tracking the Light is on autopilot while Brian & Kris are on holidays.
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.
Near Bartonsville, Vermont, July 1983. Exposed with a Leica 3A with 50mm Summitar.
Yesterday, following a trip to the Down at the Farm Creamery, Kris and I returned to the Strasburg Rail Road.
The only camera I had with me was my trusty FujiFilm XT1 and 12mm Zeiss Touit wideangle lens.
I might tell you that I only use my FujiFilm XT1 occasionally, instead preferring my Nikon Z cameras and Lumix LX7. However, since I December, I’ve exposed more than 800 images with the XT1. (So I guess I make pretty good use of this camera after all!).
Among these were the few photos that I made of Strasburg Rail Road’s 2-6-0 No. 89 working toward Cherry Hill Road. I wanted to make the most of the scene, and the Zeiss 12mm Touit was a pretty good option.
I converted the camera’s RAF RAW file to a DNG file using DxO PureRaw, and then created two versions by making adjustments to color, contrast and exposure using Adobe LightRoom.
I’ve included each my three files below.
This is the RAF RAW file following conversion to a DNG file but without correction, cropping, adjustment or changes, except for scaling for internet presentation with final output as a Jpg.This is the same DNG file but following cropping and adjustments using multiple masks to improve contrast and exposure.I was dissatisfied with the first round of changes, so reset the previous round of corrections and began again. In this view, I masked the sky and made changes to exposure and contrast, then made a variety of subtle changes to contrast, color and exposure. Admittedly, the two interpretations are very similar, but I feel that this one has a bit more ‘snap’ to it, and just looks better.
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.
Nikon Z7-II with 24-70mm Nikkor Z-series zoom lens. NEF RAW file adjusted using Lightroom.
Last weekend, Conway Scenic Railroad Trainmaster Mike Lacey and his wife Betty visited Kris and me in Pennsylvania. Although I work remotely, I speak with Mike daily in my work for Conway Scenic.
After a barbecue at our house, Kris and I brought Mike for a trip on the Strasburg Rail Road. We bought our tickets on the platform and traveled on the 4 pm train to Paradise.
Mike enjoyed his busman’s holiday taking in the sights and sounds of old 89 at work as we rolled across the fields in Amish country. I can never get enough of the Strasburg Rail Road, and this was a great joy for me as well.
I made these photos using my FujiFilm XT1. Mike snapped some photos with his Canon R mirrorless.
The sun clung to the western horizon as Strasburg Rail Road 475 worked the short grade at Carpenters.
Rich red-orange light glinted off the passing train as skeletal trees stood by as stark reminders of summer seasons past.
Today, it’s hard to go wrong when making photographs at sunset, a task made is easier with digital cameras that allow you to adjust sensor sensitivity with the spin of a dial.
Low light photography posed greater challenges in my Kodachrome days.
Autumn leaves cover the tracks, reminding me of the season past. Before me rests a mass of steel supported by two dozen wheels where is placed to greet visitors to Scranton’s Steamtown.
This machine is an example of the famous Big Boy; an enormous locomotive built by Alco for Union Pacific to singly ascend Utah’s Wasatch range with a solid train of perishable traffic in tow.
Between 2013 and 2019, sister locomotive 4014 was famously restored to service by Union Pacific. Meanwhile, old 4012’s boiler has sat silent for more than 65 years.
How can I capture the majesty of this silent giant without feeling pang of sadness; nostalgia for a time I never knew?
In October we paid a brief visit to the Everett Railroad at Hollidaysburg, Pa. Here we found the railroad’s 2-6-0 No. 11, under steam having recently returned with an excursion.
It was the first time I’d ever seen this Alco gem in person, let alone under steam. According to Everett’s website, No. 11 served Rhode Island’s Narragansett Pier Railroad for many years before being sold to New York’s Bath & Hammondsport. It is a handsome machine that had drawn a small crowd of admirers.
We were running short on time, so I made a few quick photos, before we headed off to our next destination.
Someday, we will need to give the Everett a more extensive study.
With the sun over our left shoulder, we set up in Nequehoning near the new Reading & Northern station to roll by class T-1 4-8-4 2102 on its run to Jim Thorpe.
This is an amazing machine. Seeing it on the move never gets old.
I made this sequence of photos using my Nikon Z-series cameras.
Sunday evening, we waited out the sunset at Esbenshade Road in Strasburg, Pennsylvania.
Strasburg Rail Road had scheduled a seasonally themed late-departure. I figured this would be an ideal opportunity to make some sunset views of the train.
The orange globe of the sun was nearly at the horizon by the time old 89 worked up the grade toward Paradise Lane.
To make the most of the sky, I exposed this sequence manually rather than relying on the in-camera meter to intrepret what I was tying to preserve digitally. Key to my exposure was the desire to capture the defining shape of the sun and not merely as a fuzzy blob.
I needed to make a variety of changes to the RAW files in post processing, and I think the final results speak of success.
Saturday was a beautiful clear October morning. I walked up to the station at Port Clinton, Pennsylvania to photograph the arrival of locomotive 2102 from North Reading on its journey to Jim Thorpe.
I felt like a wee plastic man on a really big HO-scale railroad.
Back lit lighting made for dramatic images, but then required a bit of contrast control and selective lightening for final presentation.
I made these photos using my Nikon Z6 with 24-70mm zoom lens.
After the train arrived to pick up passengers, I walked back to the grade crossing near the village of Port Clinton to photograph the thundering departure of this magnificent machine. Stay tuned!
Yesterday, I met up with Tracking the Light reader and photographer Andrew Ludasi at Strasburg. We drove to Carpenters to catch the 3pm returning with engine 89.
It was dull afternoon, but the sound of the locomotive in the pastoral setting was rewarding. After the train passed, we discussed cameras, film and photographic technique.
I mentioned that I always liked black & white, and in years past often used black & white film even when I’d had the opportunity to expose color. I suggested that occasionally, I’d convert digital color photos to black & white, and this might be a good idea for today’s photos.
Last night during the processing of my images, I desaturated one of the photos and cropped it to make for a more dramatic composition.
In this image, I didn’t make for a full black & white conversion as I left a hint of color and gave the image a sepia-tint for effect.
Is this better than the full color versions? Today, I can have the best of color and black & white. Take your pick as to which versions you prefer.
Full frame color version; Nikon Z6 with 24-70mm Z-series zoom.
On Friday evening, Strasburg Rail Road 4-8-0 475 made a stunning display of steam and smoke as it climbed the short grade at Carpenters on its return run from Leaman Place to Strasburg, Pa.
Filtered low sun made for romantic light as the engine emerged from a copse of trees near the Carpenters Cemetery off Blackhorse Road. I made this sequence of photos using my Nikon Z6 with 70-200mm lens.
Working with the NEF RAW files in Adobe Lightroom, I made a series of adjustments to improve the apparent dynamic range and color saturation of the photos.
One my tricks for making more effective digital photos with the Nikon Z cameras is to pay careful attention to the in-camera histogram to make sure I have captured sufficient hightlight and shadow detail. This often results in a slightly dark in-camera JPG, but by working with the NEF file, I have ample data to make for a much better full-range final image.
The best part of being there on Friday evening was listening to the locomotive exhaust as it slowly ascended the grade. This was the sound of a century-old technology rippling across a pastoral landscape. Something that was once common and unremarkable, and now only exists for our pleasure.
Friday evening, Kris and I went for our first proper drive in it with Seamus in the back: just a few miles over to Esbenshade Road in Strasburg, Pa., to roll by the 6pm train.
There were layers of dust and smoke in the western sky that made the sun appear fuzzy and reddish orange with sky a tangerine—mauve-like gray.
I made these photos as the train passed us with 4-8-0 475 working tender-first. I’ve included a few views of our midnight blue Honda CR-V Hybrid. In these photos it had less than 80 miles on it!
Photos exposed using my Nikon Z-series mirrorless cameras. NEF RAW files adjusted in Lightroom.
Layers of haze, a bit of agricultural pollution, probably some high level smoke from distant fires plus some cotton candy clouds made for a colorful textured summer evening sky.
Kris and I drove to Esbenshade Road to roll by the Strasburg Rail Road’s Saturday evening late departure. For me the sky offered something different at a setting where I’ve made countless photos over the last couple of years.
Photos exposed using my Nikon Z6 and Z7-II mirrorless digital cameras. Files were processed using Adobe Lightroom to make the most of the highlights in the sky while retaining shadow detail.
I framed the on coming train in a way to make the most of the clouds, while trying to capture the reflection of the sky as the tail car passed by.
Late autumn and winter are my two favorite seasons to photograph steam locomotives. Cool air facilitates impressive displays of steam, smoke and condensation.
But I photograph in all seasons. Thirty years ago, I may have sniffed at making steam locomotive photos in summer ‘high light’ (Midday summer sun), when high contrast, high humidity, and high temperatures made for an unappealing environment to photograph.
Today, these conditions offer a challenge. What can I do with a steam locomotive hauled train on very hot day?
Yesterday, while on errands, I timed my crossing of the Strasburg Rail Road at Esbenshade Road to allow for a few photos of the 12 noon return run from Leaman Place led by former Norfolk & Western 4-8-0 475.
I made these photos using a Nikon Z6 with 70-200mm Z-series zoom.
Files adjusted for color temperature, contrast, and exposure using Lightroom.
Shallow depth-of-field allowed for more environmental drama.
Over the last few weeks, I’ve made a great many photos of steam locomotives at work in Strasburg, Pennsylvania. This selection hints at what lies beyond. Subtle rather than obvious.
It was a fine evening at Carpenters (the little cemetery situated near the Strasburg Rail Road crossing of Blackhorse Road).
Kris and our puppy Seamus waited in the car as I set up for Strasburg’s return run from Leaman Place.
Cows populated the fields on both sides of the line. My challenge was that as the laboring locomotive approached, the cows in the field to the left of the line became wary of the noise and began to migrate away from the tracks.
Working with my Nikon Z7-II with 70-200mm zoom, I composed this series of images as engine 475 worked its way west. Leading is engine 475, a former Norfolk & Western 4-8-0—a type sometimes described as a ‘Mastodon.’ It is among the locomotives featured in my new book ‘Steam by the Numbers’.
Our friend Hassard Stacpoole met us in London and escorted Kris and I for the day on a tour of the Spa Valley Railway.
This charming preserved railway operates a short branch on the old Southern Railway network that connects Tunbridge Wells West with Eridge.
We took a Southeastern Trains electric multiple unit from Charing Cross to the Network Rail station at Tunbridge Wells, then walked for about 15 minutes to Tunbridge Wells West, where the Spa Valley has a small station, gift shop and locomotive shed (shop). Several fine looking locomotives were being maintained at the shed.
Although it was overcast, the cool weather made for some effluent displays of steam locomotive exhaust. The operational steam locomotive du jour was a handsome BR standard 2 type 2-6-0.
I made this selection of photo at Tunbridge Wells West using my Nikon Z7-II (with 70-200mm lens). I was just getting warmed up! We bought day passes and went for a spin to Eridge.
During the Christmas peak, Strasburg Rail Road operates half-hourly departures on its very popular run to Leaman Place.
This schedule results in steam-hauled trains meeting every half hour on the siding at Groffs near Cherry Hill Road in Strasburg, PA.
Soft winter sun on Saturday and pleasantly warm temperatures made for an ideal time to photograph the Groffs meet, so Kris and I set up just before lunchtime in anticipation of the show.
I made this photographic sequence using my Nikon Z7-II with 24-70mm lens.
I found that the colorful autumn leaf season lasted weeks longer in Pennsylvania Dutch Country than it does in New Hampshire’s White Mountains and other areas of New England.
On November 11, 2023, I made these photos at Black Horse Road of Strasburg Rail Road’s 2-10-0 number 90 working midday excursions. Several beautiful trees were displaying their late season colors.
Clear autumn air and bright sun made it possible to get some more distant views of the train.
I’ve always preferred the late season foliage, when the green leaves have largely changed, some trees are bare, but a few radiant trees of red and yellow remain and the sun is low and bright.
October 21st, Kris and I paid another visit to the Reading & Northern to photograph 4-8-4 No. 2102 in action.
This is such an awesome locomotive in every regard.
We arrived trackside at Hamburg, Pennsylvania just after 9am. This is on the old Philadelphia & Reading’s original mainline.
After less than half an hour we heard the whistle and anticipated the passage of the great machine leading an Iron Horse Ramble on its march toward Jim Thorpe.
What is really cool is that 60 years ago, my father was doing the same thing! I grew up looking at Pop’s Reading Company slides. There’s a lot of history around locomotive 2102 and that’s part of the draw of the engine for me and a lot of other people.
By design, this day last week I caught up with Dan Cupper and railroad artist Craig Thorpe at Black Horse Road in Strasburg. We planned our meeting to coincide with the passing of the hourly excursion.
I made photos of the train and my friends.
Craig had brought with him a print of painting that he made of Reading & Northern 4-8-4 2102 at Nesquehoning that he created from still photographs that Dan had made.
After Strasburg 89 passed, we walked up the hill to Carpenters Cemetery and photographed the return run. In the meantime some Amish farmers were working a nearby field with an impressive team of draft (draught) horses.
These views were products of my Nikon Z-series mirror-less digital cameras.
