The canola tour was pre-empted

The plan was for Neil to drive us around Southern Alberta for canola landscapes. But then, I almost don't read the description for Neil trips anymore. The weather changes. Anything could change, and it often does. The joy of the trips is that Neil has a plan B, and often it's better than the original plan.

So yesterday, for example. The plan was canola and big skies. The big or dramatic skies part is pretty much a guarantee in Alberta this time of year. The canola, however, isn't doing so well. There hasn't been much rain lately, and especially not at the time when canola needs it. The only good canola fields are the ones that were irrigated. He knew where some were. Add in clouds along the foothills, driving us further east. 

And then, life happened. Not as in shit happens life. Good life happens. He heard that steam locomotive 2816 was going to make a test run down the mainline. Whoo-oooo! That was sort of where we were going anyways, so we started scouting for a spot to get a nice view of it, preferably with canola. Guess what?

1. We found a spot between Dalmead and Carseland, just in time. Just.

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6. They paused near a Y junction in the track for a maintenance check. It's a mix between modern technology and from technology that was current about the time my parents were born. No surprise that they want to check everything is working properly.

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9. Slowly going just past the Y junction. The man flipped the switch, the train backed into the Y, then drove out to head west again. 

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13. They paused a few moments to do whatever it is that needs doing. I'd bet any money there's an actual checklist on some electronic device. Then they were off again.

14. I have (I hope) some film photos of this, but I'm not going to see the results for a couple weeks. Fingers crossed I did everything right!

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16. Some of you might remember that we had visited this train in the shop as they were working on it.

17. We actually got to go inside the cab, which is pretty amazing.

This was an absolutely amazing experience. Of course, not many readers will remember steam locomotives pulling trains in regular service. About the only experience most people have with such trains is in the movies. If they're interested, they can find restored locomotives doing limited duty, such as the one at Heritage Park. There are other restored locomotives doing specialty tours. This one is going to Mexico, and I can imagine rail enthusiasts lining the tracks along the way to get a glimpse of history going by.

As I've gotten older I'm getting a bit more nostalgic for the way things were. Don't get me started on software. Pretty much all software has long since reached it's peak in terms of functionality and usability, and has tipped over into decadent corruption. I hate my devices nagging me to "upgrade". 

Lots of my photo buddies are carrying around new mirrorless cameras and lenses that are simply amazing. The camera computer helps take great photos. They're sharp, focussed, colour balanced, detailed, and many other things. But in some cases, all the human has done is point the camera in the right direction and press the shutter button. If they hold it, the camera will take many photos, leaving the human to sort between what could be many dozens of nearly identical photos to find the right one. Then the computer will help the editing. There are many ways to describe such images, but human produced art isn't one of them.

In contrast, I'm carrying around an obsolete DSLR, and that's the new camera. The film cameras were sold about the time I was in high school. I thought that appropriate, to take photos of obsolete technology with obsolete technology.

I'm not going to get into which is better, the new mirrorless cameras, the older DSLR, or the older yet film cameras. Better is a loaded term. It depends on what results you are looking for. I'm looking to create interesting images that capture people's attention. The camera equipment is not limiting my ability to create such images. 

On these photo rambles my challenge to myself is to come out of the trip with at least one really good image that nobody else got. Which is a high bar. Neil is an extremely talented photographer, and most of the people that have been with me on trips are really good. 

So the train photos, I'm pretty sure the other 4 people got essentially the same train photos I did. In fact, their's might be a bit sharper, a bit more detailed, given they are using newer cameras and extremely long (and extremely expensive) lenses. 

But stay tuned for the owl photo. That one is unique, and I'm really pleased with it. In fact, right now it's at the top of the list for IotM.

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