Center for Railroad Photography & Art 2015

[Mgoldman]

Who here will be attending the Conference this year?

April 10th through 12th:
http://www.railphoto-art.org/confere...13-conference/

Add me to the list - seems tickets are still available and even the flight via Southwest from Philly was still available on the "Wanna Getaway" tier.

Had a blast last year, hope to see some of you there!

/Mitch

[skyliner]

Mitch:

See you there!

George Hamlin

[Noct Foamer]

I've been going since 2009 and will be there again. Hope to spend another night roaming the The Loop too.


Kent in SD

[Dennis A. Livesey]

I'll be there bunking in with Eric Williams.

I am his good luck charm.

Huh?

At last years conference, we were trying to figure where to go shoot after Saturday CAP was over.

I suggested the CTA junction at the intersection of Lake and Wells Streets in downtown Chicago AKA Junction 18. (Me suggesting transit, go figure.)

Well, Eric got his current CRPA First Prize shot that night.

So like I said, I am Eric William's good luck charm.

[travsirocz]

I will be there as well. I even put this together as I was thinking about things to do in the evening.

Top 10 Tips to Photographing the 'L'

I also put together this quick map on the most dangerous stations out of data I found searching the web and news.

[Noct Foamer]

I had always been told the green & orange lines to the south were the most dangerous, but it appears that the southern end of the red line and extreme end of the orange are the ones to avoid. I've been riding CTA trains once or twice a year for 14 years now (mostly business trips plus trips to hear Chicago Symphony.) I've not had any problems but I do use common sense.


Kent in SD

[JRMDC]

Travis, thanks. I may be the first to make use of your info as I will be in Chicago hopefully with free time Monday afternoon and evening.

[JRMDC]

I just read the material, Travis, the overview is excellent. Love the "infrastructure" shot and the "light" shot.

[travsirocz]

Not a problem J. Maybe I will be able to get a photo of the 'J' on the 'L'

For the map I used statistics and a few news sources. I also searched through a bunch of forums but the results of which places were unsafe and safe were so scattered and unsupported so I did not include them. I also didn't way the thefts as heavy as more severe crimes. But I almost added a few more on the blue line around California. But common sense is your best tool.

[RobJor]

I have been riding "L" forever so probably less wary. Like most area kids in the 60's rode every line for one fare except for Evanston and Skokie.

First thing is to know where you are and where you are going so you don't look lost or confused or end up on the wrong line. Unless you are really on the wrong line at the wrong time the biggest risk is a grab and run which can occur anywhere, anytime so good to not look like a photographer and keep camera under coat. Probably good to leave the really big impressive zooms behind or find a way to keep them out of sight until needed.

Red and Blue lines are the big lines with most frequencies and most passengers so safety in numbers.
Like anywhere, if you get off at platform, everyone else will get on or exit and that platform can look very lonely at night and the lines with low frequencies can leave you on deserted platform for while with nowhere to go. CTA site has train frequencies by line and time.

If night is the thing, I'd scout during the day, do the outlying stations as early as possible and stick around the Loop later.

Bob Jordan

[Noct Foamer]

Originally Posted by travsirocz

I will be there as well. I even put this together as I was thinking about things to do in the evening.

My approach to down town Chicago has evolved over the decades. I started out only able to photo at night since I was there for business meetings during the day. I was using Nikon film cameras shooting ISO 800 color film, mostly. I was out alone, with the "stragglers," the people who were getting home after the rush, in the dark. I came to see the Loop Trains as sort of lonely and melancholy. When we were dating and for a few years after marriage my wife & I would fly to Chicago from Kansas City to hear Georg Solti conduct the Chicago Symphony, and once to hear Kiri te Kanawa perform a Mozart opera. We were out mostly during the day, and that had a different feel to it. In the past 30 years Chicago seems to have become more run down and a bit dirtier. This has affected my interpretation of it. I've switched from shooting color with a DSLR and for the past three years have preferred a more grainy high ISO b&w film camera. It's fun to hang out all day long and watch as the light, the people, and the mood changes. All in all, I still prefer the melancholy feel of the night. Things are more relaxed, and people seem more reflective as they retreat into themselves. The dark shadows with islands of subdued light create a drama that is lacking during the hurried light of day.

The Leica has been a favorite for street shooting since it's invention in the 1920s, and I still think it's the best camera for the job. Small, unobtrusive, German precision, with a life time of human experience seen through its lenses. For this year I am torn between taking a 1951 Rolleiflex with classic Tessar lens, or a 1937 Voigtlander Bessa with a superb Heliar. Both were the best available camera when they were made. A video I made from shots I took a year or two ago. A Leica IIIc was used, vintage 1942.

https://vimeo.com/124154859


Kent in SD

[Flowing]

I won't be there but I'm glad to see J. Parker Lamb will be a headlining presenter. I admire his work, and since we have heavily covered some of the same geography, I've been inspired to try to find some of his locations to take 'then and now' comparison shots.

[Noct Foamer]

Looks like it will be raining that weekend. I love Chicago in the rain. It adds to the melancholy.


Kent in SD

[MassArt Images]

Nice video Kent.

[ken45]

Finally taking the time to check out the conference, so I'll be a first time attendee jetting in for a quick weekend. Looking forward to some great presentations, talking with fellow photographers, and maybe snapping a picture or two.

[railfanzone]

Wish I could join you all, but once again family and financial commitments are trumping the trip to the midwest...looking forward to attending vicariously through your reports and photos...

As a life-long Red Sox fan I'm used to saying "Maybe next year"... I figure if they can break the cycle, so can I...

I just hope it doesn't take me 86 years to do it...

[JimThias]

[MassArt Images]

What no conference reports or photos of the L yet?

[travsirocz]

Here you go Carl

PhotoID: 526900 Photograph © Travis Dewitz

[JRMDC]

Can I get mine in? OK, I was there a few days before the conference.

PhotoID: 526314 Photograph © Janusz Mrozek

Seriously, Travis' is the first to appear on RP; seems to be no rush. Of course, many of the CRPA crowd aren't big on RP, but some do participate. Waiting ...

[travsirocz]

One more from the 'L'.

PhotoID: 527039 Photograph © Travis Dewitz

[JimThias]

Originally Posted by MassArt Images

What no conference reports or photos of the L yet?

[MassArt Images]

Originally Posted by JimThias

Nice slant Jim. That is Jim behind those "dark-sunglasses"?

[Noct Foamer]

Originally Posted by MassArt Images

Nice slant Jim. That is Jim behind those "dark-sunglasses"?

Yeah, the guy who took that shot was hitting the wine pretty hard that night.


Anyway, I have a few shots. I would have had a lot more, but in the wee hours of Friday morning a robot called me on the phone and told me my 8am flight was cancelled! I checked for another flight from Sioux Falls, Sioux City, Omaha, Twin Cities, and LaCrosse. No luck at all! Finally got a seat on the last flight out Fargo at 3pm. (500 mile round trip.) I didn't get to run around downtown before the meeting started as I usually do. I guess I was lucky I didn't end up having to drive the ~10 hours! Here's a link to some shots I did get on Saturday night, starting with one of Steve Barry, Otto Vondrak, and some guy from up north.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/96826069@N00/16541968973/


Kent in SD

[JimThias]

Originally Posted by Noct Foamer

Yeah, the guy who took that shot was hitting the wine pretty hard that night.