have to put yourself in a place where the action is or where it will be when it happens (this is getting profound). All of our experience and acquired railfanning skills are utilized in putting us in the right place at the right time. We get to know how railroads operate by working for them, by observation, by talking to railroaders, or by reading books and magazines. Those with experience will be able to encounter a railroad situation, evaluate the available information (either from visual observation, from talking to a railroader, or by listening to a radio scanner) and anticipate what will happen. His odds of being correct will be pretty good, while the inexperienced railfan is likely to miss the clues and get flim-flammed. To learn these railfanning skills requires time in the field, making judgments, making mistakes, and learning how the railroad world works. That’s the sport of railfanning. As a beginner, don’t be discouraged if everybody else seems to know where to go and you don’t. Follow the crowd until you figure you can make better choices than they do. But first, you have to “be there.” Artistic and camera skills can be put to
work only after you have gotten to know your subject — anyone can walk into a railroad yard or weekend tourist line and take dramatic or artsy “train shots”; the camera club galleries are full of them. But to get photos that highlight the subjects which will be of interest to other railfans, you have to know what to look for. This is another way of saying that you have to know your audience. If your peer crowd is into roster photography, you’d better not come back with shots taken at noon in the summertime when the all-important trucks are in shadow; you would know to work in the morning or the evening hours when the light is right. You have to “be there” at the right time. This goes for action photography
as well. You can’t control the light and environment, but you can judge in advance whether the composition and lighting will be right for a given situation: Maybe you’d be better on the other side of the track... Maybe you should go around the next curve where the light will be on the nose... Maybe you should even resort to the “dark side” for dramatic crosslighting. It’s all part of the game. So now you’ve gotten pretty good at
railfan photography and want to take the next step, sending your photos to a magazine for publication. “This is a great shot. It’s as good as anything I’ve seen in that rag of Boyd’s. Let’s go for it!” So you send it off, wait a year, send Boyd a nasty letter or two demanding your slides back and wonder what happened. It’s like being rejected by a girlfriend. You feel you’re not good enough to break
RAILROAD PHOTOGRAPHY EXPOSITION AND RAILROADIANA SHOW & SALE
MARCH 18, 2017 CORVALLIS HIGH SCHOOL, 1400 N.W. BUCHANAN AVE., CORVALLIS, OREGON
Established in 1978, we are celebrating our 39th year of bringing quality digital photo presentations and railroad collectables to the discerning railfan. Join us in Corvallis, Oregon!
★ CORVALLIS OREGON 2017 PRESENTERS
Enjoy shows by Steve Barry, Steve Brown, Ben Kletzer, Scott Lothes, Don Marson, Ken Rattenne, Robert Scott, and Craig Willett.
TICKETS: $ 35.00 Includes admission to Railroadiana Show & Sale OR SEND YOUR ORDER WITH PAYMENT AND LSASE TO VIC NEVES, PO BOX 944, ALBANY, OR 97321 Winterail2017
3sq.indd 1 11/29/16 8:23 PM
2017 Corvallis
Pizza Party & Slide Show Attending Winterail? Join us in Corvallis, Oregon!
• FRIDAY • MARCH 17, 2017 Hosted by editor Steve Barry
Your admission includes pizza and pop (while they last), and a night of railroad themed slide shows. Pizza is served at 5:00 p.m., shows begin at 6:00 p.m. To present a brief show at the Pizza Party, email
editor@railfan.com for details.
AT THE WINTERAIL VENUE AT CORVALLIS HIGH SCHOOL TICKETS $
10.00 AT THE DOOR • CASH ONLY Pizza Party 2017
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