Mechanical Landscapes

  • #147 – Shadows

    Ok, so this seemed like a good idea at the time, but in retrospect, I don’t think it worked. I noticed that the sun was casting a perfect shadow of the locomotive that was pulling our train, so I went to the window to photograph it. I wasn’t sure what effect I was really after,…

  • #146 – Ribble Steam Railway on Film

    A few from the Ribble Steam Railway charter in January 2010. I’d forgotten that I’d taken my F100 loaded with some Kodak BW400CN, until I got the film processed the other week. To be honest they’re broadly similar to the digital ones, but what the heck, you can’t beat a bit of real grain.  

  • #145 – Book Review – Shadows Of Change – Leigh Preston

    I’ve been in and out of my local photographic society (or camera club as some call it) for several years. Unsurprisingly, the photos I enter into competitions are unlike anything anyone else puts in, and generally do quite well, although some judges just don’t get them. Fair enough, you either love or hate what I…

  • #144 – Book Review – Henk van Rensbergens Abandoned Places 2

    After months waiting for the book to arrive (I ordered it in June), Amazon have finally delivered my copy of Henk van Rensbergens new book, Abandoned Places II. Ok, so the title lacks a bit of imagination, but in fairness Abandoned Places is the name of his website, and the photographs definitely don’t lack imagination, and…

  • #143 – A Photo From Hans Steeneken

    A great thing about having websites (and the internet in general now I think about it), is how information and people have become more accessible. I wrote a blog article a few months back on Hans Steenekens All Trains To Stop, and a few weeks late, Hans contacted me via my blog, and we have exchanged…

  • #142 – East Lancashire Tornado (again)

    Didn’t get chance to actually ride behind Tornado last week, partially due to other commitments, partially due to the fact that I knew it’d be packed. So I left it a week and headed to Ramsbottom on a rather nice day. Nikon D700, 16-35mm, ISO200, 1/500 @ F11 Now if on the off chance you read…

  • #141 – East Lancashire Tornado Part 3 of 3

    Another set up shot, but I’d faffed around with various compositions and shutter speeds without getting something that I was really happy with. So I left the rest of the gathered throng and went to look at the other locos, before coming back and trying again. By then everyone else was looking at Leander and the Black 5’s,…

  • #140 – East Lancashire Tornado Part 2 of 3

      Tornado must be one of the most written about steam locomotives in the country, and one of the best known. With it’s appearance on Top Gear and massive media coverage, it has single handedly brought steam railways into the public conscious. I was intrigued to hear a comment on the platform at Rawtenstall station from a lady,…

  • #139 – East Lancashire Tornado Part 1 of 3

      Last train of the day at Rawtenstall. I must have misread the timetable as I didn’t think Tornado was timetabled for this train, but I nipped over anyway to experiment with some low light shots, and was pleasantly surprised to see Tornado hauling the train in. It wasn’t as dark as I’d expected or…

  • #138 – Two Views

    Despite sending in photos to the railway mags, I’ve never had any published. I presume it’s because they’re either too alternative (possible) or not good enough (probably more likely!). I’m not losing sleep over it, I don’t photograph with the intention of publication, I do it as I enjoy the challenge of doing something different.…

  • #137 – how to create a Blurb photobook

    Over the past couple of years, I’ve created a few photobooks using Blurb and have always been very happy with the service and the product. In addition, their Booksmart software has got better especially with the ability to customise the templates or even design your own. This has opened up a huge range of creative…

  • #136 – Sunrise Over London 2

    Panasonic Lumix LX-3, ISO 400 I’ll admit that I’m not overly happy with the composition of this, but I was in a moving plane over which I had no control, so I was reduced to taking snapshots really. Actually, seconds after this was taken, the cabin lights went on for landing resulting in all kinds…

  • #135 – Mechanical Landscapes Book Now On Sale!

    Despite a complete lack of public demand, I have just self published a book on Blurb;) Actually, lets make this clear, this book is for me, but if for some reason other people wish to buy it, then they can do, it’s listed at cost price so I ain’t making any kind of profit, at least initially.…

  • #134 – Sunrise Over London

      Panasonic Lumix LX-3, ISO400 **Another off-topic post** There aren’t many consolations to flying back into the UK from Boston at 6 on a Saturday morning. The two things that did make it worthwhile were 1) business class (I wasn’t paying, the company was) and 2) watching the sun rise over London. Panasonic Lumix LX-3,…

  • #133 – Narrow Gauge in North Lancashire

    Unlike my post a few weeks back on the West Lancashire Narrow Gauge, this railway no longer exists. It was only in existence for about ten years during the 1920’s – 1930’s, to assist in the construction of the Stocks Reservoir, deep in the Trough Of Bowland. It linked the Jumbles Quarry with the main construction…

  • #132 – Mechanical Landscapes book finished!

    Finally, after months of sorting, editing, writing, and goodness know what else, I’ve finally finished my book ‘Mechanical Landscapes’ and sent it off to Blurb for printing. You’d have thought it would be straightforward to just put a load of photos in a book, and if that’s all you’re doing, then yes it is. But…

  • #131 – Finishing Department

    Sometimes as explorers and even as photographers, we overlook the stuff closest to  home and yet travel for miles to see other stuff. Such was the case with this old mill near my house in Chorley. It’s literally 5 minutes away, and although I was aware it was empty, I’d never made the effort to…

  • #130 – People in railway photographs

    The overwhelming majority of railway photographs tend to be of the hardware, but I find it just as interesting to take photographs of the people on the railway as well. This is a subject that is rarely covered by railway photographers, but why is that? I think people who are involved with the railways are often (but not always)…

  • #129 – An Unusual Visitor – Part 2

    Just a few more of the River Carrier before it left Preston. I packed a camera and visited the dock on my way into work in the morning, and as expected, I got a nice reflection due to the stillness of the air and the sun being low. Shame about the dockside being on the bottom…

  • #128 – An unusual visitor!

    ***Another somewhat off-topic blog post!*** Preston Docks shut to commercial shipping in 1981, having only made a profit 17 times in 90 years. One of the biggest problems was dredging – being an inland port, the River Ribble needed constant dredging and in 1975-76, 45% of income was sued to keep the channel clear. With ships getting bigger…

  • #127 – A close shave!!!!!

    A nice afternoon out in Liverpool, or so we thought……. Half way through the tour, we were going over the large speed bump in Duke Street, when BANG, we’re thrown all over the DUKW as it jolts side to side, and the driver brings it to a halt. Thankfully, no-one was thrown from the vehicle…