Top Budget Camera - a used Sony H5. Pros: burst mode lets you switch between single
shot and multiple simply by how long you press the shutter button. "High-speed shutter" mode
nudges the camera's automatic choices toward shorter exposure times so moving trains don't
blur. 12x optical zoom. Uses common AA batteries. Can be found for under $100 used.
Cons: color fringing, particularly on zoom shots. No HD movie capability. Dates to
2006 so used versions might have a depleted internal battery, which means loss of settings
like the date/time when you swap in fresh AA batteries, but many camera servicers can install
a fresh internal battery.
Top Zoom Camera - Canon SX50. Pros: 50x optical zoom. Long battery life. Cons: autofocus too often gets confused. 50x zoom goes to waste since much beyond 20x usually grabs too much atmospheric distortion from heat at the tracks. Deep zoom photos lack sharpness. No way to switch between single shots and multiple quick photos without fussy reconfiguring. Sample full moon views at right taken hand held, SX50 above, RX-10 below.
Top Quality Camera - Sony RX-10 IV. Pros: low-light ability is remarkable, yielding
best high-ISO photos I've seen. Solar eclipse and moon photos at right were generated hand held,
point and shoot, no filters (click for larger versions). Fastest autofocus I've experienced.
25x optical zoom is ideal. Ready for next photo in under
0.1 sec. Does not have the H5's "high speed shutter" mode, but sports mode is similar. Sports
mode defaults to 20 photos per sec, which is overkill for a slow train, but you can reduce
that to 3 photos per second, which leaves enough time to release the shutter button after just
one photo if that's all you want. Full automatic prefers long exposures that blur trains, but
you can tell it to favor higher ISOs: I suggest ISO Auto Min of 1/500 for slow trains, 1/1000
for fast. Virtually no color fringing. The RX-10 III is very similar.
Cons: default automatic settings blur moving trains, but can be tweaked as
described here. At least twice as heavy as the cameras above. Higher priced than ones above.
Clear Image Zoom feature has trouble choosing proper exposure and focus. Forcing higher ISOs
makes automatic mode favor opening the lens wide, which reults in a shallow depth of field,
but you can compensate by using Aperture priority mode and forcing a smaller aperture than
the preferred F stop 4. Can't access photos via older Windows versions (XP).
Plethora of configuration options would overwhelm a beginner.
There likely exist pricey, high-end cameras that also can do what a railfan needs. I limited my research to ones obtainable in used condition for under $1000.
Someone asked me how to reduce the number of photos in continuous mode. The configuration option is not obvious. What works on the RX-10 might also for other Sony models: in the camera menus, find/select Drive Mode, then find/select Continuous Shooting, then rotate the control wheel to choose between Lo Mid and Hi. I choose Lo (~3 pics per second) which leaves me enough time to release the shutter button when I want only one pic.
Though Baltimore's streetcar system was shuttered during the 1960s, one estimate
says about 400 of its power poles are still standing. Most such poles have a
round ball at top, as in the photo at right, and many have bits of cabling and wooden
insulators still attached, as in the photo at left.
If enough survivors can be located, perhaps I can assemble a page about them, but I need your help finding them. Let me know where you spotted one. For this search, I'm lumping trackless trolleys in with the streetcars.
Note that rusty poles without a round ball at top or wooden insulators may simply be old, and not streetcar leftovers, so I'm not seeking those, at least not until there is a way to positively know they had previously supported streetcar power lines.
Watch for a holiday site update to kick off expanded tour coverage of the
Pennsylvania Railroad / Amtrak Northeast Corridor in Maryland. From thousands of
photos gathered over many years from various sources, the best will be selected for
inclusion in a tour spanning 70 track miles. The approximately dozen new tour pages
scheduled for periodic release into 2019 will include hundreds of Amtrak and MARC
trains, PRR artifacts, area history, engineering marvels, and the like.
Since the mid 1800s various circuses have entertained in locations all
around the USA, moving from one town to the next via train.
The Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus, the last of its kind,
decided that 2017 would be its final year of operation, ushering the end
of an era. One of RBBB's last stops would be Baltimore where during late
April the circus train would be stationed at its usual location, Mt. Clare
Yards, for one last time. This may be your last chance to see a circus
train. The photo at left was snapped April 23 from Washington Boulevard
in Morell Park southwest of downtown Baltimore. The yard is under more
security than usual so enjoy from afar via binoculars and zoom lens.
"He scoured your pages throughout the last years of his life, and it would be
an understatement to say they helped give him some determination, goals, and
enjoyment (or said another way - an interesting project to keep him physically
and mentally active). Both of us had always liked the Patapsco State Park, and
trains, but we never really put it all together until we started reading through
your site. He talked about it to everyone he met!"
Many of the photos at this B&O site were snapped by Mr. Hiteshew, so it is fitting to include one of the man, seen here enjoying a trackside moment just a few months prior. His memory survives through his sharing with all of us the trains and hikes and history he loved so much.
"The Museum will temporarily close the historic station beginning February 2006 to refurbish its rooms and install exhibits. We will present its Grand Re-Opening Celebration on March 10-12, 2006."
Greeting: Unfortunately MARC and CSX have decided to end passenger services at the St. Denis stop. I saw
your pictures(very nice images) and thought you might be interested. I'm trying to get a lot of support to stop
them from closing this historic station. If you or any of your friends are interested in helping stop MARC
please join us at:
Subject: Public Hearing
Date and Time: Dec. 14, 2005, 7:30-8:30 p.m.
Place: Dorsey Marc Station Rt. 100, Dorsey, MD
Add?l. Info: The Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) proposes to discontinue service to Jessup and St.
Denis, MD. Marc Train Stations.
Contact: Glenn Litsinger, (410) 767-8358
Please help us save St Denis Station
Thank you, Charlie Murphy
