Steam trains + new camera = Fun! - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

Bill Wood · #1 08-13-2007, 11:02 PM

I finally broke down and bought myself a really nice camera. It's a Nikon D200 DSLR with an 18-200 VR lens. I've had a couple of Nikon CoolPix cameras and I've had an old Minolta SLR film camera but nothing in the same class with the D200. It rocks to say the least.

When you get a new toy you have to use it! My brother-in-law and I packed up and went to Cass, West Virginia. It's just on the other side of the mountain from "you can't get there from here". Cass is the home of the Cass Scenic Railroad. It's a State Park that contains an almost fully preserved logging town from the early 1900's. They also have eight fully operational steam powered locomotives that make daily runs up and down the mountains.

Bill Wood · #2 08-13-2007, 11:04 PM

We took a 4.5 hour 22 mile trip to the top of Bald Knob and back. What a blast! These locomotives are 100 years old and running fine. Most of the locomotives are Shay Locomotives which were made in Lima, Ohio. These locomotives were specifically built for logging in mountainous areas.

It's an interesting design because each wheel along the right side is driven by a gear on a long drive shaft. The drive shaft is powered by 3 huge pistons.

Check out the the controls...

Bill Wood · #3 08-13-2007, 11:09 PM

They have a full service shop on site to keep these babies running.

All in all it was lots of fun. This is a great park and well worth visiting...if you're into trains.

BAVBMW · #4 08-13-2007, 11:10 PM

Isn't a Shay something to see? Linkages and shafts and gears all working along in harmony...

There's one living in the woods near here. CA law won't allow the ex-logging locomotive, built to run on forest waste (as opposed to good wood the company could sell), burn wood. So it's been converted to oil. Now a diesel truck has to drive up the mountain to bring it fuel, while forest service (and a healthy number of prisoners) have to work constantly to clean and manage the forest to keep fire risks down. Instead of letting the railroad do it to fuel the train. And we won't even bring the pollution and "carbon footprint" of the tanker truck into the mix...

Crazy. But I love to see steam trains run. Lucky for me Sacramento and it's famous railroad museum are close enough to visit.

Enjoy the new camera!

MV

Medmech · #5 08-13-2007, 11:18 PM

The D200 is hopefully my B-day present

How do you like the 18-200? I had a bit of a problem fine tuning the zoom but was impressed by the min focus range @ full zoom. Do you shoot in RAW, GIF or JPG?

Is there a good site for post hi-res pics? I have some killer butterfly pictures with the D70 but they go to crap once the quality is chopped.

Bill Wood · #6 08-13-2007, 11:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Howitzer

The D200 is hopefully my B-day present

How do you like the 18-200? I had a bit of a problem fine tuning the zoom but was impressed by the min focus range @ full zoom. Do you shoot in RAW, GIF or JPG?

I love the 18-200 and am extremely glad I decided to get it. My brother-in-law loaned me his 12-24 and I used it on some of the pics when I needed more wide angle but, the 18-200 does most everything well.

I shoot compressed RAW + normal JPG. The camera records both simultaneously. The images I uploaded here are from the JPG's. The camera was set to the most vivid mode so the JPG's have very bright colors.

Larry Delor · #7 08-13-2007, 11:46 PM

I was just reading about these yesterday, (at this site: http://www.dself.dsl.pipex.com/MUSEUM/LOCOLOCO/shay/shay.htm) and here you have some great pictures of one in near brand new shape.

Good stuff!

Medmech · #8 08-13-2007, 11:58 PM

I emailed you a work in progress and here is a post from photo bucket-----------personally I think the image quality diminishes the detail.

but butterfly's are challenging targets, I've been working on Humming Birds with limited success.

raymr · #9 08-14-2007, 12:42 AM

If you ever get to Cumberland, Maryland, take a ride on "Mountain Thunder". It's a 1916 Baldwin that seems almost alive when its sitting there with its boiler going. Its actually a little bit scary. I have wondered if a good camera could capture that feeling.

Eskimo · #10 08-14-2007, 01:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Howitzer

Is there a good site for post hi-res pics? I have some killer butterfly pictures with the D70 but they go to crap once the quality is chopped.

You might look at FileAve.com. I just got an account with them to see how they do for hosting images for my eBay items.

Free accounts get 50 MB of storage, with file sizes up to 10 MB, and a monthly data transfer allowance of 1 GB.

cmac2012 · #11 08-14-2007, 02:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BAVBMW

Isn't a Shay something to see? Linkages and shafts and gears all working along in harmony...

There's one living in the woods near here. CA law won't allow the ex-logging locomotive, built to run on forest waste (as opposed to good wood the company could sell), burn wood. So it's been converted to oil. Now a diesel truck has to drive up the mountain to bring it fuel, while forest service (and a healthy number of prisoners) have to work constantly to clean and manage the forest to keep fire risks down. Instead of letting the railroad do it to fuel the train. And we won't even bring the pollution and "carbon footprint" of the tanker truck into the mix...

Crazy. But I love to see steam trains run. Lucky for me Sacramento and it's famous railroad museum are close enough to visit.

Enjoy the new camera!

MV

Oh my God. They could be burning new carbon instead of fossil carbon. Amazing. Where's that train at?

I was in Durango, CO in '92 and they have a narrow gauge coal burning locomotive that does tourist runs up to Silverton, I think it was. Good Lord, when that thing fired up, the black cloud of coal smoke was thick and stanky.

Didn't have time to ride it, to my everlasting regret.

ltrain300D · #12 08-14-2007, 03:02 AM

I knew that train looked familiar!! I went there a few years ago on one of our many family road trips - we stayed at Watoga State Park. I remember it being beautiful there, and I agree Cass is well worth the visit!!

diametricalbenz · #13 08-14-2007, 03:55 AM

Bill those are some great shots!

It's great to know that they're still running the engines for more than very sort excursions. Those Shays are great, and the all but forgotten Heislers. We have a few over here in Felton, Jamestown, and Yosemite.

Pete Geither · #14 08-14-2007, 05:38 AM

Now there is a coincidence,,,, my wife and I just went down to Snowshoe last weekend and rode the ski lift down to the lake. Went by Cass when we left, but didn't stop,,,, Duh. Will get down there again soon, as I would love to drive those roads in the SL,,,, we had the TE. GREAT pics BTW.

Dee8go · #15 08-14-2007, 09:11 AM

Nice pictures, Bill. Are you a fan of O. Winston Link's pictures? If you haven't seen them, you should. I think you'd like them. He did some incredible nighttime, flash photography of the trains in VA back in the forties.