Waiting to attack the Sierras (trains)

[Belmondo]

These are a couple trains sitting at the west end of the Sparks, Nevada, yard. They're on their way over Donner Summit to Sacramento.

This was taken at night with the 500 f/4 through a window, and heavily corrected for color because of the mercury vapor lamps. I'll post a daytime shot later.


http://www.onlinephotographers.com/gallery/albums/Hot-August-Nights/out_the_window.jpg

[marie]

that's just beautiful Tom
it's almost like a toy train set, no insult intended
I love what you done with the colours and the lighting is great


are you away from home at the moment ?

[Belmondo]

Here's the daylight shot:
http://www.onlinephotographers.com/gallery/albums/Hot-August-Nights/out_the_window_2.jpg

[Ballen Photo]

Nice shots Tom. I prefer the first one. :D
-Bruce

[marie]

I love it
I love both , thanks
beautiful shot. those colours are lovely
I love how the image is showing as regards size
(just for a change)

[Belmondo]

Thanks, Bruce and Marie.

The daytime shot is interesting mainly becuase it allows me to see how badly I missed the white balance on the night shot.

Oh well. It's art.:lol:

By the way, the presence of BNSF engines in Sparks is interesting because these are not their home track. This is Union Pacific's turf.

[stoneylonesome]

Beautiful, I love them both in there own way. The night shot has kind of mystery about it. Donner summit, how much snow up there now?

[Belmondo]

Beautiful, I love them both in there own way. The night shot has kind of mystery about it. Donner summit, how much snow up there now?

Thanks, Sandy. None yet. They'll certainly have plenty by the end of next month. Actually, Donner summit is only a little over 7,000 feet, and even though they do get tons of snow up there, it's still a little too warm for there to be anything significant. On the other hand, I did have to put chains on my car in late June a few years ago, so nothing is absolute.

[tim]

Like the first shot better, it emphasizes the train more and the background less.

[Maureen Souza]

I like the nighttime feeling of the first photo.... the lighting gives it a feeling of a lonely and kind of spooky train yard. That is cool.

I like the day time shot too. Everytime I go to work and see the trains as I pass by them, I think.."I should have brought my camera and taken a photo for Belmondo!"

[Tom W]

I prefer the daylight shot, but I like the unique angle either way. Nice. Sodium lighting is very difficult, if not impossible to get natural color. On the other hand, it does offer a unique ambience of its own that can add to a shot.

I'm going to have to start recording engine numbers - we're likely to find a repeat appearance of some of this motive power.

[Jon Foster]

Both shots are cool but I like the night shot better.

We're waiting for the buy out to be completed out here in the east. UP is buying CSX and should be a done deal before the end of the year. So the scuttle butt says...

Jon.

[Belmondo]

I didn't know that was happening. I'm so sick of railroad mergers/acquisitions, I no longer really care or even follow them. We're ultimately headed for the day where we only have 2 Class I railroads, and that will be sad on many different levels.

Thanks for the comments on the shots. I agree that the night shot is more interesting, and really only included the daytime shot to show how badly I missed the colors, especially on the BNSF engines.

[delinian]

Was always facinated by the train's at Donner in the winter, with their snowblowers. Any chance we might see one this winter? Now in E.Ohio, but used to watch them when I lived in Sac., Ca. on ski trips to Tahoe.

[Belmondo]

The chances of actually being there on a day when they're using the blowers are pretty slim. They are usually able to keep the line open just using flangers and spreaders. It takes a very heavy snow for them to bring out the rotary snow plows, and that by itself would make it difficult to get into a position for a photo.

A lot of the line, especially near the summit, is still covered with snow sheds, and that helps, too.

[Jon Foster]

I have some really cool shots of the old rotary blowers working in the passes. Some of them were still steam powered not too many years ago as well. I didn't take the pictures but saved them because I was planning to make a working model for my outdoor layout (G scale). But, the plows on my diesels and a wedge plow can move enough snow to keep the trains running in six or eight inches of light snow. If you guys want, I can dig up the pictures and post them...

Anyone heard what will happen with Amtrak? The rumors were September of this year was the end for them but I still see they are running.

Jon.

[Belmondo]

I'd love to see photos of your garden railroad.

I dabbled in G-scale for a while but never really had a suitable confluence of time, location, and money. I still have some older LGB out in the garage that I drag out at Christmas.

BTW, we have a huge permanent G-scale layout at the Living Desert here. http://www.livingdesert.org/exhibits/model_train.asp

[Bentron]

Belmodo..

As a model railroader I totally agree with your comment concerning rail mergers. The joke at my club is that pretty soon we will all be doing the same railroad.

Your shot are excellent I do like the night shot the best.

"Main Line Thru the Rockies" DRGW
http://www.trainweb.org/utahrails/rr/drgwlogo.jpg

[Bentron]

Sorry I mispelled your name. I hate it when that happens.
Belmondo :-)

[Bentron]

By the way since your a moderator I have a question. If I mess up a post as I just did, can I fix it?

[Carzee]

I like the top shot in the night, you can hear the engine and shunting noises clearer in the midnight hours.

...and that top image in black n white isn't bad at all.

[Belmondo]

Sorry I mispelled your name. I hate it when that happens.
Belmondo :-)

Usually, if you click the 'edit' button before someone else posts to the thread, you can edit yours. If you're unable to, and if the change is important (the spelling of my name is not;)) The moderators will be happy to make the change for you.

[Bentron]

Thanks for the info.

[RockOne]

Very nice indeed !

[Tom W]

By the way, the presence of BNSF engines in Sparks is interesting because these are not their home track. This is Union Pacific's turf.

I see BNSF motive power here on the NS tracks as well, sometimes mixed with NS engines. This leads me to believe that BNSF does a bit of leasing out of their motive power.

Interesting to hear about CSX being acquired by UP - I am old enough to remember when Chesapeake and Ohio (C&O) got hold of Baltimore and Ohio (B&O), then somehow became Chessie, and then CSX. Now, it'll be UP.

I have no idea what happened to Pennsy or the Erie Lack-a-funds railroads. :)

[Belmondo]

I have no idea what happened to Pennsy or the Erie Lack-a-funds railroads. :)

The Pennsy merged with the New York Central becoming Penn Central. Eventually they became part of Conrail along with Erie-Lackawanna and others..

Interesting thing about Conrail (from their website)

In the spring of 1997, Norfolk Southern Corporation and CSX Corporation agreed to acquire Conrail through a joint stock purchase. The Surface Transportation Board officially approved the acquisition and restructuring of Conrail on July 23, 1998. The the approved merger plan restructured Conrail into a switching and terminal railroad that operates as an agent for its owners, Norfolk Southern and CSX, in the Shared Assets Areas of Northern New Jersey, Southern New Jersey/Philadelphia, and Detroit.

[Tom W]

The Pennsy merged with the New York Central becoming Penn Central. Eventually they became part of Conrail along with Erie-Lackawanna and others..

Interesting thing about Conrail (from their website)

NS has several Conrail engines running with the NS engines. This might be one of the better "Conrail Quality" engines:

http://www.pbase.com/photosbytom/image/43129778/large.jpg

According to one NS engineer I spoke with, Chessie got all the good engines and NS got the trash. I suspect that I'd hear similar from a Chessie engineer. One might think that Conrail's motive fleet was lacking in maintenance or aging (or both).

[Belmondo]

Once in a blue moon, we'll see Conrail engines out here, but they always look really ratty for some reason. Even the newer ones have a distressed appearance. Part of tghe problem is the really bland, uninspired livery.

[marie]

NS has several Conrail engines running with the NS engines. This might be one of the better "Conrail Quality" engines:

http://www.pbase.com/photosbytom/image/43129778/large.jpg

According to one NS engineer I spoke with, Chessie got all the good engines and NS got the trash. I suspect that I'd hear similar from a Chessie engineer. One might think that Conrail's motive fleet was lacking in maintenance or aging (or both).
:cool:
nice to see Tom
and Tom

[RadAL]

I might be a bit late, but I think if you moved the camera down a little and got a little more of the engines (picture seems bottom heavy) that would have helped out a lot more.

[Belmondo]

I agree the pictures could use a little cropping off the top. These were done in a hurry without a lot of regard for composition. Interestingly, it was so dark, it was almost impossible to compose the nighttime shot because it was very difficult to see anything in the viewfinder.