My 2 cent reply to recent SPORRS postings:
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Jim Gilley wrote:
>To begin, I believe that shots taken today are essentially worthless.
>Note my wording, worthless, meaning of no monetary value, as opposed
>to useless. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of people out there
>taking train pictures these days. The efforts of any single
>individual are irrelevant -- if you don't get a shot of this train,
>somebody else will.
I don't agree with the last statement. At the time I was asked for photos
of Meadow Valley Wash by Mark Hemphill for his LA&SL book, I assumed that I was
just one of many photographers who had lots of shots of that area. However, he
informed me that he could find very few (maybe he just didn't find the right
people). I think that some guys have photos of trains and railroad lines that
very few others have.
Even in my own backyard, I have taken several photos at the west portal of
Tunnel One in Niles Canyon on the former WP, but I've never seen any other
shots, published or at slide shows, taken at that spot. And it's only a 10-
minute walk from the car. So I wouldn't assume that millions of others have the
same shots, especially if part of the joy of photography for you is to hike to
spots that few others have photographed. (And there's always the possibility of
getting spectacular light, even at a well-trodden photo spot, which yields an
image that is so unique that no one is likely ever to reproduce it).
On the issue of why bother taking pictures, I agree with many others that the
bottom line is: Do it because it's fun.
Eric Blasko
--> SPORRS: Serious Photographers of Railroad Related Subjects
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