The Age of steam

I took the opportunity to visit the Steamtown National Historic Site this past Sunday.  I had not been to this park since our children were younger and we would take them on the train ride.  This time I had a much different perspective--looking at history from the lens.  I was fascinated.

The yards consist of train specimens that have rich history on the rails, many of which are in need of refurbishing.  I was so attracted to these old engines and the old cars.

As a kid I grew up in an area with trains aplenty.  I live in coal country.  Coal was transported regularly out of my region in coal cars and long, long, long trains that we would count the cars as they went by.  Our hope was that there would be a RED caboose at the end, and a friendly trainsman who would wave his hat at us.

Steamtown brought all those memories back to me as I walked the yards and snapped away.  

The setting wasn't without its problems.  First, I disregarded all of the recommendations to shoot there early in the morning or late in the afternoon.  Steamtown opens at 9:00 a.m. and closes at 5:00 p.m., but my schedule on Sunday was a bit hectic and I didn't arrive until 11:00 a.m. and I had to leave before 1:00 p.m.  It was sunny, so I was there at the peak of sunshine on metal cars.  Great.

Also, some of the inside areas of Steamtown use very odd lighting.  It is actually YELLOW.  This is a great place to learn the operations of a new camera, which is exactly what I was hoping for.  I shot in Live View.  I spent quite a bit of time getting my first shots as correct as I could in the lighting, then later on things got faster.  I actually learned alot this day.

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It was really an eye opener to see the small areas of travel that were considered luxuries at the time.  I guess this way of traveling is still way more comfortable than airplane travel.  One hallway was so narrow I had to turn sideways to walk down it.  I could not imagine moving down that hall on a train that was in motion.  I probably would have hit my head several times.

All-in-all my time there passed by very quickly.  I need to go back and spend at least another three hours.  There is so much more to explore, especially in the old train yards, and I didn't even get to the Trolley Museum.

I would highly recommend this trip if you are traveling through the Scranton area.  You won't be disappointed if you are a photographer!