There would have been an update last Saturday of the pair of 67s returning from the Severn Valley Railway but due to my foolishness I forgot to check the settings. I had left the ISO on 800 and I exposed the shot as if I was using ISO 100 so mega over exposure. It was virtually a white out and even these couldn’t be rescued. If you get a digital exposure slightly wrong you can rescue it if it is not too far gone but not these ones. As you can tell by the existence of an update there must be a picture but all did not go as planned.
Pathfinder ran a Kettle Ex to Ely today which used a diesel from Bristol – London and return so I thought I would try a photo on the return. I expected the train to stop on platform 1 and as the platform is longer than platform 2 the only shot I could do was a going away shot. I thought I would try something different so I headed up to the car park footbridge to see what I could do. With the 200 a decent view was possible, that was until they decided to put it in Platform 3 while an HST overtook! Now the train was a few hundred yards back than planned and if I had realised I could have got a decent platform shot of it.
I fired some shots off anyway and didn’t expect much but when I got chance to look at the full image I was pleasantly surprised. The traction was supplied by 67029 in case you were wondering. I do like doing time exposures and they are one of my favourite types of photo. One thing I have noticed is with my new camera is how flimsy my tripod is, this camera is a lot bigger and heavier than my old Olympus. I think a sturdier tripod is the order of the day. I used a very sturdy one for the shot above as I rested the camera on top of the bridge and just clicked away. Enjoy!
Well look what we have here, two updates in two days! Things must be picking up. Yesterday Pathfinder had run a trip from Cardiff to York with 47635 ‘The Lass of Ballochmyle’. The 47 was deputising for a pair of Fragglerock Cromptons which due to failure/lack of TPWS couldn’t haul the train. 47635 had been stored at Old Oak Common during the week but had been let out one last time for this trip. With the trip over, all that was required was 47635 return the coaching stock to London which it was booked to do so on the Sunday.
Running as 5Z33 Cardiff – Old Oak Common it set off, normally given the weather conditions I wouldn’t have bothered going out but given the fact that it is due to go back into store after today it could be the locos last working which deserves a photo I think. The light was shocking and I had to bump the ISO up to 400 to get a decent shutter speed. She gave me a little toot on the way by and the shot came out fairly well considering the conditions. Don’t expect an update tomorrow unless the Sun gods are smiling!
A few weeks ago you may remember I went out to photograph the Pride of the Nation at Grove, well the time has ticked by and its time for the second trip to Oxford for the PoN. I had been over to Didcot in the morning to see what was on the train and it produced two 67s this time in top and tail formation. The motive power was 67008 up front and 67007 on the rear. The weather was pretty dismal and didn’t plan to go out and photograph the return but things cleared up mid afternoon and the sun was just about managing to shine.
As I didn’t have much time I opted for a loaction near to home so I chose Culham, although a new location seen on Thames Rail this is one of my first loactions I found when I started linesiding. The shot is only possible in the winter as the brown bushes in the bottom left of the shot are ferns and in the summer these block out the shot even if you use a stepladder! Until next time thats all folks…
