Trackside with Trains.com, Vol. 96

[surfbeachjohn]

All I can say about Kathi's sunset shot at Surf is BRAVO!!!

John Roskoski

[espeefoamer]

Photographically,Kathi took the better picture,even though there was no train in the shot.I guess this shows that steam is not invincible.Congratulations.Kathi!

P.S.I detest electronic bells.

[Sagelake]

Sorry Jim,

I'm a sucker for anything steam, but my  better half gives her vote to Kathi...says its neat and unusual...so, next time my vote is for steam. Eight at once must have been great!

 Chuck

[jeaton]

WOW!  Some race.  Even though it is all over except the shouting, I wanted to comment on the results.  I like both kinds of railroad photographs, an excellent picture of a rare train and the railroad themed more "artful" shot.  (I have yet to capture anything close to good in the latter category).

If I were a betting man, I would have put money on Jim's shot and given a big point spread  not on the basis of quality, but kind of photo.  Clearly my anecdotal view of the opinions on the the issue is way off the mark.  Nice to see that there is a large crowd out there that can appreciate both kinds of photography.

Congrats to both Kathi and Jim for providing an exciting contest.

[Kathi Kube]

You're "personal E.T.T.S. file?" Um, a big "Roger!" on feeling like you're turning into a grumpy old man.

And you're not even that old! Come on, man, get over it. Oy!!

Kat

[Bergie]

Those electronic bells fall into my personal E.T.T.S. file, which, in turn, makes me feel like I'm turning into a grumpy old man for having any such "file."

Bergie

[Flashwave]

Bergie, you're breakin' my heart!

Let's see if I tell you next time I bring bagels in... ;-P

Seriously, though, any idea what Kent has up his sleeve? I'm guessing he'll pull out some Canadian Pacific. Could be problematic. But I've got some cool BNSF and DM&E to play with. I'm just tickled I used my tripod last week!

You really hate the bells that much, huh? Hmm. I'll have to remember that for next time.

Kat

gee, as much bvalue as Bergie's vote carries, I would highly suggest not doing anything about those bells. Something about destruction of property?

(teasing ya)

[Kathi Kube]

Bergie, you're breakin' my heart!

Let's see if I tell you next time I bring bagels in... ;-P

Seriously, though, any idea what Kent has up his sleeve? I'm guessing he'll pull out some Canadian Pacific. Could be problematic. But I've got some cool BNSF and DM&E to play with. I'm just tickled I used my tripod last week!

You really hate the bells that much, huh? Hmm. I'll have to remember that for next time.

Kat

[Bergie]

Kathi, I loved your photo. However, I absolutely, positively, hate electronic "bells" atop crossbucks. Thus, I had to go with Jim's photo.

Leave them bells alone!

Bergie 

[gannbb1]

Kathi, your shot is outstanding by any measure of photographic excellence BUT to this railfan steam will win every time. Shame your competition was not something else.

 

Gary

[Partsman_ba]

The esthetic value of Kathi's photos is outstanding! But where is the Train, unguarded crossing crossbucks do not count!

Oh, iron horse puckey! Does it only count if you can see the motive power as well? Should the engineer be waving? Railroad photography includes shots of anything railroad related! Crossbucks at sunset over the Pacific evokes an emotional response about railroading, does it not? Much more so for me than a restored tourist train over an over-emphasized grade!

[edblysard]

I printed both photos, taped them to the TV just under the screen, and watched the morning news.....

My eyes kept wandering back to the sunset...

Sorry Jim.

For me, a photograph should do several things...impart information about the subject, and evoke an emotional response.

While Jim's photo imparts information, and a lot of it, Kathi's photo snagged the emotional response even more, it simply jumped out to me more than the steam shot.

[espeefoamer]

I voted for STEAM! Kathi,if the other photo had not been a steam shot I would have voted for your excellent picture of the crossing signal at sunset.

[kicksvette]

Narrow guage steam vs an artistic shot. Vegas odds would probably lean toward the steam but the sunset shot is quite simply a better pic. Had to go with Kathi.

[JeffBrown97]

I love the photo showing odd lighting.  It reminds me of work; real railroading doesn't just happen on perfect sunny days, it happens at dusk & dawn, in the rain and snow. 
Those of us who have gone to work in the groggy half-light of morning, or worked through the night, will never forget the experience.  Thank you for a beautiful railroad sunrise/sunset.

[Rocket Man]

Remembering that this is a photography forum I am going with Kathi's shot at Surf... it was stunning. I had to remind myself of this because I think the Cumbres and Toltec route is simply awesome and would be an easy "emotional" winner for me. If Jim would have used the two horse photo I may have gone with that photo, & I think it was much better than the one he chose for the competition in this volume.

I am curious Jim, why you were using and ISO of 400 with all that sunshine along the Colorado and New Mexico border? It appears that the photo of #315 that you submitted was possible a still photo or very slow indicated by the steam plume which was not trailing the locomotive indicating speed, which would allow for a slower ISO and shutter speed. Consequently, the photo seemed washed out because of fast ISO and shutter speed not allowing for much color saturation. The photo also seemed a little fuzzy and a tad out of focus, was this due to photo editing to make the photo file size smaller for the website?

One more comment if I may, a toast to the hard working volunteers who brought #315 back to life to allow all of us to another opportunity to continue enjoying steam locomotion. If anyone wants to see their journey up close, here is their website: http://www.drhs315.org/

Thank you to Jim for featuring #315! 

[Army_Sailor]

The esthetic value of Kathi's photos is outstanding! But where is the Train, unguarded crossing crossbucks do not count!

Kathi, look at Rose's watercolor called the "Daylight & Sunset" if you can find it, he 'posed' the painting at Goledad about two hours north of LA, in I think, 1953. Then you'll understand.

[drgw17]

There's taking a photograph, and then there's making a photograph, bringing elements together that are more than the sum of their parts.  Kathi, you made a great photograph, and I'm glad to see that (so far) you're getting respect for that in the voting.  Jim's photo is nice (believe me, I wish I'd been there!) and I appreciate the hiking it took to produce a different angle.  But, as someone has already commented, the punch just isn't there, at least in comparison with Kathi's.  The shot of Jim's I really liked was the one of the horse--great balance and composition.  That one would have made my choice more difficult.  Nice job, both of you!  I think this new format is really paying off. 

[CShaveRR]

Samoa is on the ICE, just a couple of miles north of the junction at Sabula.

Funny, my DeLorme doesn't even show it.

I don't have an Iowa DeLorme atlas (Can't believe that!).  I found it in the SPV Railroad Atlas that covers Iowa.

[lhtalbot]

Both excellent pictures! Hard not to vote for the steam, but Kathi's pic just jumps out at me.

Larry in Wauwatosa

[PRRK4s1361]

This was the hardest choice yet for my vote.  Kathi, WOW, what a simply beautiful shot!  Magazine cover / calendar quality, for sure.  So, it made it all the more difficult to vote for Jim's photo of the narrow gauge steam train.  What finally decided it for me was reading the header on my screen... 'Trackside WITH Trains', and only one of the photos was 'with train'. 

I must agree with this comment...though it was very difficult to decide. That sunset just drew me in also (I wish-I wish!!).  To be honest if things go right for us in a couple of weeks my wife and me will be enjoying some well-deseerved time off on the Outer Banks of NC. My birthday and our anniversary are coming up soon. We usually only take one main vacation every year. Keep up the good work everybody!!

Bill Mondo (Middletown PA)

[loadmaster747]

This was the hardest choice yet for my vote.  Kathi, WOW, what a simply beautiful shot!  Magazine cover / calendar quality, for sure.  So, it made it all the more difficult to vote for Jim's photo of the narrow gauge steam train.  What finally decided it for me was reading the header on my screen... 'Trackside WITH Trains', and only one of the photos was 'with train'. 

[blhanel]

Not content with everything in Cedar Rapids, Brian wants Samoa!  (Take that, SJ!)  Samoa is on the ICE, just a couple of miles north of the junction at Sabula.

Funny, my DeLorme doesn't even show it.

[StephenDx]

Steam!! STEAM!! I'm a steam fan, so thats the end of it

So I was somewhat surprised after voting to see that the sunset shot was getting better support. I have not yet had a look at others comments, but my initial thought would be "Steam by a landslide!" But no! It seems that a well executed sunset shot can stand a good chance against steam

... checking the forum comments ...

Having read the forum, I had better now go back and read the column!? I just did a glance through to get the general idea but no details.

... checking the column ...

[Flashwave]

This is I think my first post in a Trackside thread, though I've been voting since it was  just Erik and Mike.

But Kathi, it's just that GOOD to draw me in here. Its a very beautiful shot. The narrow guage is good too, but it's a scene shot, The crossing actually draws me in. And from what I've been reading, it's pretty hard to screw up Surf CA. So that's my vote. It'll be close though.  

[TOMinTN]

The boss gets my X this time.

Kathi's shot is striking, but doesn't say RAILROADING to me as emphatically as the narrow gauge action.

Tough decision!

TJB - Nashville, TN (vacationing in Winnipeg at the moment)

[zardoz]

For me, this was one of the most difficult choices for Trackside.

I really like how the grade is represented in Jim's shot.  Amazing how much incline is apparent in just the short length of the train.  Additionaly, the composition is very pleasing, although if I wanted to be real picky, I'd have liked to see the entire bridge the train was going over.

Kathi's shot was very unique.  I'm impressed with the camera's ability to shoot straight in to the sun without the sensor going crazy.  And the juxaposition of seeing a crossing signal with nothing but ocean behind it was very interesting. 

Actually, I liked the IC&E train shot the best.

[CShaveRR]

Pat wanted to vote, but (and I know everyone will be pleased to know this) each account gets only one vote.  So, Kat, you got another one, even if it doesn't show.  (I think it may have inspired a quilt.)

Not content with everything in Cedar Rapids, Brian wants Samoa!  (Take that, SJ!)  Samoa is on the ICE, just a couple of miles north of the junction at Sabula.

[Partsman_ba]

Kathi, I'm a sucker for a good sunset shot. Too bad you didn't have some high clouds to give you more texture in the sky. And then, you add in a crossing signal? OOOOOH! AAAAAAH!