Headed for Rochester, GW-1 rolls north through rural York, NY. This particular angle not only catches the locomotives on a curve, but shows the entire train length as well, something to help stress the large scale of railroads. Photo taken on April 17, 2006.
	This map of Western New York illustrates the region where these photos were taken.
	The first night I was out, April 14, 2006, I decided to try out some night shots, notably the classic “streak” shot. For this shot, I held the shutter open for 30 seconds, allowing the locomotives and a string of doublestack cars to scream past the camera at 60 MPH. The light from nearby street lamps helped give the orange glow. This scene was recorded at Lake Road in Bergen, NY.
	A uniform pair of CSX EMD SD70 locomotives, both sporting widecabs and flairs, rolls eastbound through Fairport, NY, on April 15, 2006. For this shot, I tried to use the smokestack on the right as a photo prop, with the train strung out along the bottom of the frame.
	While waiting at Daansen Road in West Palmyra, I decided to take a different perspective on things. On Saturday, April 15, 2006, I snapped this shot around 4 PM to take advantage of the dramatic direct lighting. This combined with the nice shade of blue in the sky helps put forth focus on the details of something we often times take for granted while trackside.
	Another attempt at creativity... as the sun began to set on April 15, 2006, I shot this westbound CSX stack train as it faded into the west at Macedon, NY. I used the old New York Central milepost as a prop and location identifier.
	CSX train Q625 picks up a cut of cars in Rochester Yard before continuing its way on to Buffalo. Photographing a pair of clean BNSF units as sole power on a CSX freight was a treat. This photo was taken on Easter Sunday, April 16, 2006.
	CSX train Q625 leans into the curve at Sanford Road in Churchville, NY. I used a telephoto lens to emphasize the curvature of the tracks. The shot was taken on Easter Sunday, April 16, 2006.
	A pair of LA&L Alco’s smoke it up as they roll into Avon Yard. Even though I composed this photo quickly, I was able to capture the smoke from the units as well as the conductor on the ground walking the train. April 17, 2006.
	The LA&L road train passes Jones Lane in Avon, NY, after working Avon Yard. This shot was taken low to the ground to try to emphasize the size of the train as well as show the large fill that existed here. April 17, 2006.
	I took this shot in an attempt to emphasize the green grass and blue skies, creating a somewhat peaceful, blissful scene as the LA&L road train descends the grade into Lakeville Yard at Conesus Lake Junction, NY. At one time, the Erie’s Rochester Branch continued south to Livonia, Wayland, and Corning.
	Rochester & Southern train GW-1 crosses a field as it heads away from the Hampton Corners salt mine, which can be seen in the background. For this shot, I wanted to include the field as a neutral foreground, the long train strung out across the field, and the origin, the salt mine, centered behind the train. April 17, 2006.
	GW-1 swings off of the salt mine branch and onto the former Lackawanna mainline at Mount Morris, NY. I like how the curve in the station roof supports complements the curvature of the train. Eventually, this train will terminate at RSR’s Brooks Avenue Yard in Rochester. April 17, 2006.
	Train GW-1 rolls through York, NY, as it makes its way north to Brooks Ave. Yard in Rochester. I used a 300mm telephoto lens to zoom in and exaggerate the elevation change in this shot. April 17, 2006.
	While visiting the Buffalo Southern Railroad, we stumbled upon this piece of equipment – an old Conrail rotary snowplow. This snowplow was originally built in December 1889 for the New York Central & Hudson River Railroad, and has been overhauled several times and was used by Conrail well into the mid 90’s. April 18, 2006.
	A westbound CSX van train heads down the West Shore Branch at Water Street in Fairport, NY. The branch is a single track line that allows traffic to bypass Rochester as needed, a remnant of the old West Shore Railroad. Show was taken at Water Street in Fairport, NY on April 19, 2006.
	A westbound CSX stack train blurs across the bridge over High Falls in downtown Rochester on a warm spring night. This photo was a 30 second exposure at the lowest possible F-stop to ensure good lighting, as well as to blur the train and waterfall. April 19, 2006.

By Nick Wilson/Photos by the Author

I’ve often sat in a dark room late at night, staring at the glowing monitor in front of me at photos of far-away railfan spots, rare locomotives, and all-but-lost memories of the past. It seems like just yesterday that slides ruled the world, and catching rare power was purely luck. In these modern times, however, technology has taken over – railfans now have the luxury of knowing what’s coming and when, thanks to the Internet and cell phones, with the digital camera being a center-point. Despite all these advantages, however, taking a good picture is still an art in itself, and technology only takes you so far. I have been using SLR-type cameras for nearly five years, and their use had become quite natural to me. However, I always took for granted the final product – I was so lost in the technical end of things that I’d managed to completely forget the artistic side of photography. And as a result, none of my pictures ever stood out.

Things soon changed. When scheduling my senior year in high school, I decided I wanted to enjoy myself a little. For fun, a photography class made it onto my first semester. All of a sudden, I was submerged in an wildly creative environment using a fully-manual SLR and developing my own film. I quickly built an appreciation for the art form that photography is. I learned there is more to photography than taking a hurried grab shot in which the train is blurred and up in the top right corner.

Before I knew it, the semester was over, and I was still thirsty for more. With help from my teacher, I managed to receive a spot in his Photography II course. Around the same time as the change between courses, I started making weekly railfanning trips with my cousin and a borrowed Canon EOS 20D. These weekend outings helped me learn about the camera, yet I wasn’t creating the kinds of successful images I wanted.

My good friend Drew and I had been planning a trip over Spring Break – nothing over the top, just a local outing with some friends to enjoy the mild spring weather and to shoot some trains. Living a half-hour outside of Rochester, New York, there was plenty of local railroad action I wanted to see- from mainline to regionals to shortlines. Drew recently purchased a Canon EOS 20D, freeing up his Canon EOS D30, which I quickly claimed as “my” camera for the trip. It didn’t take long until I learned how to work the camera to my advantage and get relatively good results. After admiring the work of others for so long, I finally had a chance to go out and create some quality images of my own.

We started on the CSX mainline in Bergen, New York (formerly Conrail’s Chicago Line, the ex-NYC “ Water Level Route”). While this line hosts the majority of its traffic during the day, I was looking to capture a nighttime scene.

I wanted to duplicate one of the classic “streak” shots I’d seen on other sites, but hadn’t successfully executed one to date. The night of April 14 found us at Lake Road recording the passage of a fast CSX intermodal train. I was pleased that I captured the elements of action and dramatic lighting that draws me to these kinds of shots.

The next day I found myself east of Rochester at Daansen Road in West Palmyra. This particular day, nine railfan vehicles could be counted at this popular location. There was a steady parade of CSX freight and intermodal trains most of the day, so I was able to practice on a variety of subjects. After shooting traditional three-quarter “wedgies” for most of the morning, I decided it was time to explore some different angles and opportunities. During a lull in the action, I noticed the crossbucks guarding the grade crossing. They are a ubiquitous part of the railroad landscape, but hardly photographed. I waited until late afternoon until the lighting got better. I then took the shot from a low vantage point, making the crossbucks appear to tower into the deep blue sky. The direct lighting really makes the crossbucks stand out from the background, almost as if shot in a studio environment. While not as exciting as a fast moving freight, I enjoy the study in details.

Shortly after, a westbound stack train passed by, and I decided to use the hard lighting to my advantage. After the train passed the old concrete milepost, I turned around for the “going away” shot. The direct lighting created hard shadows and contrast that emphasize the lines of the train and its cars. I enjoy creating images that evoke emotion and mood, and the lighting and composition for that shot accomplished that. I was already off to a good start!

The next day I awoke to a call from a friend alerting me to BNSF power working CSX’s Goodman Street Yard in downtown Rochester. While more common these days, exotic western road power is always a treat. Drew and I decided to head down to the yard to check out the situation. We arrived downtown and set up on the Main Street overpass to watch the train shuffle cars at the west end of the yard. To put the scene in context, I made sure to photograph the BNSF unit with the yard tower and “CSX ROCHESTER YARD” sign plainly visible. When the train was ready to depart, we already had a westbound location curve near Savage Road in Churchville. I’d been itching to shoot this curve for years in good lighting, and what better a train to use than this? I set up my tripod and used a 300mm telephoto lens to exaggerate the radius of the curve. I captured the monstrous C44-9W/SD70MAC combo grinding through a curve with the rest of the train blurred by the heat rising off the rails. I love the way this photograph emphasizes the large-scale, heavy operations of the railroad industry.

When Monday arrived, we decided it was time to take a break from the mainline action for a bit. With no particular plan, we pointed the car south and headed for shortline country. We caught up with the Livonia, Avon & Lakeville road train as it headed back to Lakeville. The LAL is a fan favorite, running over a portion of the old Erie Rochester Division with immaculately kept Alco Centuries. The road is friendly and easy to chase. While we would have many opportunities this day, my favorite shot of the bunch was a going away shot at Conesus Lake Junction. I tried to compose a somewhat blissful shot with the LA&L road train going away from me surrounded by a blue sky overhead and a green grass pasture below. This shot is also telling of the LAL’s traffic base, mainly tank cars of corn syrup and sweeteners.

We left Lakeville and headed over to the salt mine at Hamptons Corners hoping to catch the Genesee & Wyoming unit train. While the current version of Genesee & Wyoming enjoys success as an international shortline operator, the original road can trace its lineage back to the salt mines of Livingston County. Fast-forward to the present day, and the salt mine is still served by the G&W line. As we descended the hill down into Mount Morris, we spotted some activity off in the fields along the highway. It looked like a unit salt train was ready to go north to Rochester! We quickly swung off the highway and headed for town. Taking advantage of the rural landscape, I photographed the salt train strung out across a farmer’s field with the salt mine behind it. We then raced ahead into Mount Morris to set up a photo of the train rejoining the main and passing by the old Lackawanna depot (located at the end of Lackawanna Avenue). I didn’t even notice that the arch on the station complimented the curving train until after I loaded the shot onto my computer.

We decided to follow the salt train north towards Caledonia. The salt train made for a classic railfan chase as we raced ahead on Route 36. While the depot was great, my favorite was a telephoto shot of the train going through a few elevation changes with its train bathed in exhaust fumes. I’ve wanted to try this technique for a while, but never had an opportunity with a severe enough elevation change until now. I had several opportunities as we followed the train north to York and Caledonia, where we broke off in search of another subject.

The “roster shot” is often shunned by railfan photographers. While great for showcasing equipment, nothing can be less interesting than a static piece of equipment. That’s what I was thinking I came across a former Conrail rotary snowplow stored on the Buffalo Southern at Hamburg, NY. Then I realized that a roster shot was the only way to capture all the intricate details of this rare piece of equipment. At first glance, it appears to be a typical piece of Conrail snowfighting equipment. A glance down to the builder’s date offers the first bit of intrigue- “12-89.” This plow was originally built for the New York Central & Hudson River Railroad in December 1889! How many industries can claim a piece of 19th century equipment is still useful? Glance down to the rails, and you’ll notice the unit is riding on ancient Fox-style bolted trucks, refitted with roller bearings somewhere along the way. Also notice what appears to be a headlight from an early diesel switcher is mounted to the top of the rotary. Finally, the stenciled outline of a buffalo is the only indication you need to know where this equipment has been assigned. Even though the sun was a bit high when I took this photo, I thought the subject matter outweighed any perceived shortcoming in lighting.

Returning closer to home after our day trip to the Buffalo area, I managed to execute another photograph that I am particularly fond of. I wanted to capture a night train crossing the historic High Falls in downtown Rochester, on the CSX mainline. Despite the shady individuals that kept us company on the Pont de Rennes bridge, my friend and I waited for an hour before we were finally rewarded with a stack train. I used a 30 second exposure to ensure that the train would blur, as would the rushing waterfall. The long exposure also allowed a higher aperture setting, allowing for greater depth of field.

The night shot in Rochester concluded a successful week of railfanning in western New York. They say persistence pays off, and I found it to be true. Not only did I learn how to get good results from my camera, but I felt as though I was starting to carve out a unique style of photography. Most of all, it was a break from that hectic thing called life where I got to just hang out with some friends and shoot some trains. All in all, it was a good introductory lesson and a week well spent.

Nick Wilson, 18, is a Rochester, NY native, and has been shooting trains for several years now. He is currently preparing himself to go to college for Computer Engineering. When he's not shooting trains, Nick can be found playing his guitar, listening to various forms of music, or working on computers.