1. FANTRIP By ANDy CUMMINGS
Truth is, I dislike pain ... >> R&LHS awards
There’s a case for braving snow and freezing temperatures for winter railroad photography
Please don’t get the wrong idea way plow-truck driver will have deposited come in handy if you have car trouble. Bet-
when I say that I love winter. I don’t look drifts on the sides of each grade crossing. ter yet, make sure your car is running
forward to months of frozen feet, one Plan to shoot as the locomotive’s snowplow properly before you leave. Also, a cell
good bout of flu, or the never-ending chi- pierces one, sending a million little frag- phone enables your friends to call and tell
ropractic nightmare that is shoveling. ments of snowdrift airborne. Just don’t you where the trains are, and it’s useful in
Truth is, I dislike pain as much as anyone stand too close! A less dramatic but equal- an emergency, too. Those of us who live in
else, and winter would not make my list of ly stunning option occurs when it snows northern climes get used to driving on icy
top three favorite seasons except for one and then gets cold quickly, producing light roads, but use your head. If the roads are J. David Ingles, senior editor of Clas-
reason: winter train-watching. and fluffy snow. This type of snow will get really bad, stay home, or at least keep it siC Trains, (above, left) received the
With the sun at a low angle all day, caught up in the wind created by a passing close to home and drive extra slowly. 2007 Fred A. and Jane R. Stindt Pho-
there’s great light for photography from train and envelop it in a cloud of powder. Last but not least, take care of your tography Award from the Railway &
sunrise to sunset. In summer, you have Just imagine the photos! Hoarfrost makes camera in the elements. Cold drains bat- Locomotive Historical Society. Soci-
to crawl out bed before the crack of dawn a pretty picture, too, forming on cold, clear teries. Make sure your camera and scan- ety awards chairman Mark Entrop
to avoid the harsh midday sunlight glar- nights, but because it’s so delicate, you ner batteries have plenty of life in them. presented Ingles with the award at
ing down from directly above. That’s not need to get to it before the sun. If you use rechargeable batteries, re- Kalmbach Publishing on Sept. 10.
a problem in winter, and early sunsets Personally, my favorite place to go in charge them the night before. Also, dras- Ingles began his career with Kalm-
free up evenings as well. winter is Minnesota’s Missabe Iron Range tic changes from cold to warm will cause bach Publishing in 1971 as assistant
Another advantage of winter is the op- where the Canadian National and BNSF condensation to occur inside your cam- editor of Trains magazine, ultimately
portunity for glimpses of otherwise unseen haul trains of taconite pellets (a type of iron era. Through insulation, such as putting becoming editor, then senior editor.
trains. With snowfall comes the plow ore that’s processed and baked to 2,400 de- your camera back in its bag before you The society also announced its
trains, chuffing a path along the tracks. grees). On a clear, crisp day, there’s nothing get in a warm car or house, you slow 2008 award recipients. The David P.
Also, the cold slows down operations, cre- like watching the thick, roiling clouds of down this process, and preserve your Morgan Article Award went to Fred B.
ating another opportunity. Pick the coldest steam emitted by the freshly baked pellets. equipment for many, many more winter Wrixon for his story on “FDR’s War-
morning of the year, and it’s a good bet you Just thinking about it warms me up. photographs of trains. time Train Travels” in ClassiC Trains’
can spot that elusive local that ordinarily Which brings me to the battle against I hope you now see why I can’t help but special edition railroads and World
runs under the cover of night, still meting the elements. Who says there’s anything like winter. However, for those of you who War ii. Don L. Hofsommer received the
out cars somewhere along the line. wrong with sitting in the car, heater on full still think I’m nuts, I have but one thing to George W. and Constance M. Hilton
The day after a big snowstorm, go to a blast, until you’re ready to jump out and say in my defense: There are people out Book Award for “The Tootin’ Louie: A
one-train-per-day branch. Your local high- take your shot? That said, you should bring there who, in the middle of winter, like to History of the Minneapolis & St. Louis
enough winter clothes with you so that you cut a hole in the surface of a frozen lake, Railway.” Canadian photographer
On a subzero December day, steam rises won’t freeze to death if your car breaks strip down to skivvies, and dive right in. James A. Brown received this year’s
from hot ore pellets on a Duluth, Missabe down. Blankets, a first-aid kit, a shovel, Granted, I might be a little weird, but Stindt Photography Award. The Gerald
& Iron Range train. Andy Cummings and some candy bars are other items that those people are bonkers! M. Best Senior Achievement Award was
shared by two well-known authors and
railroaders, Arthur L. Lloyd and Wil-
liam W. Kratville. Tr a i ns : Mat t Van Hat tem
>> FANTRIP BRIEF
Kodachrome to go?
With only one commercial lab in the
world processing Kodachrome,
(Dwayne’s Photo of Parsons, Kan.) and
no announcement of future produc-
tion, speculation is growing over the
slide film’s possible discontinuation.
Easier-to-process E6 films and
digital photography might be taking
Kodachrome’s place worldwide, but
not so much in railroad photography
circles. Countless color slides of the
late steam and early diesel era that
survive in near-perfect condition
make it difficult to give up Koda-
chrome’s high archival quality.
www.TrainsMag.com 69