What's in a train picture?

Western Australia has a rich railway history. Since the first rails were laid either be it by the early government, from an early timber tramway or private company, to the latest high speed railway to Mandurah, people have always enjoyed recording these events. Railway photography in WA has been well documented, with people from the past having taken "that shot" and recorded an event or specific train, steam locomotive, carriage or wagon that they probably thought would be around forever. But with the progression of railway transport from steam to the first diesels to the newer generation electric, trains have been evolving since the beginning. Although pictures from the past provide great research,  nostalgia and bring back memories, railway photography is often overlooked or disregarded by some. You often speak to a railway person about this and they will often say "I wish I had taken a photo".

However today a small group of people  still enjoy railway photography. Although it can be hard to find a train in some parts of WA, people still  travel the distance in search of that elusive "great photo". From the great mining railways in the far north to the grain branches in the  remote wheatbelt, WA still offers a great variety of trains and locations.  Railway photography is although at times not easy and can be painfully difficult. For example you may be waiting a couple of hours for a train to arrive at a specific location only to find out later that it derailed a few kms away, the sun goes behind the only cloud in the sky blocking that great early morning light. The train may turn up but so does that heavy shower of rain, when it was clear skies 15 mins ago! 

However some situations may prove difficult and challenging like taking photos at night or on a cloudy day, but with some clever use of the camera, a dull situation can be greatly improved to yield a fantastic result. I have seen some great railway photos, not the standard 3/4 frame shot of a train standing still, but railway pictures taken at night,  deliberately blurred, in pouring rain, heavy fog or at a different angle with great effect.

What makes a good train or railway photo? It depends on what the photographer is trying to achieve. 

This website represents some photos of trains or events that have happened in Western Australia, so please enjoy.

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