steve

I'm a photographer who specializes in trains and grain elevators. I like to tell stories.

CN’s Rail Inspection Portals

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In May 2018, CN awarded a contract to Duos Technologies to provide four Rail Inspection Portals (rip®) around Winnipeg, Manitoba to perform automated inspection of passing trains. These portals incorporate high speed cameras and thermal imaging to inspect rail cars at speeds up to 70 MPH (110 km/hr). These portals are now in operation, and … Read more

Chasing Along the Weyburn Subdivision

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After visiting the Stony Beach grain elevator, I went out again on February 1. This time I had decided to head to Pasqua then head down the CP Weyburn subdivision toward its namesake town. I had never been along this line. As I arrived at Pasqua, where the Weyburn subdivision branches off the main line … Read more

Visiting Stony Beach

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It has been a long time since I was in the Regina, Saskatchewan area… August 2015, I guess! A member of my wife’s family passed away and we had to travel to Saskatchewan for the funeral. We spent a few days in Regina to attend the funeral in Moose Jaw, and to catch up with … Read more

Generosity and Thievery

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I’ve always thought that photos are for sharing. I’ve never seen the point of taking a photo, then keeping the negative (or digital file) to yourself and never showing it to others. If that’s your thing, great. It’s everyone’s choice, but my choice is to share. Sometimes, though, sharing can backfire. Here are a few … Read more

Zoom Is A Railfan’s Best Friend

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I think one of the best tools for a railfan photographer is a zoom lens. With a zoom lens (aka a telephoto lens), you can get a vastly different perspective than you can with a wide angle lens. The “reach” of a zoom means you can isolate the subject from a cluttered background, or photograph … Read more

New Cars for the Rocky Mountaineer

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The Rocky Mountaineer is getting some “new” cars. On January 21, 2019 I spotted this pair of cars in Symington Yard in Winnipeg, Manitoba. I recognized these cars as belonging to the Charlevoix tourist train operation in Quebec. The “RMRX” reporting marks on these two cars (RMRX 201 and 202) told me that these now … Read more

VIA 2 And Much More

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On August 30, 2018 I went out in the evening to catch the eastbound VIA Rail “Canadian” coming into Winnipeg. It was a beautiful evening, and I was hoping to get a nice sunset. The Rivers Subdivision Parking Lot I hit the road a little early and caught my first train, CN 2962 East, stopped … Read more

CN’s New Power

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Over the past few years, CN’s traffic has grown significantly, which has led to a need for more trains to move this traffic. This means more locomotives and more crews. CN has been hiring and training new conductors all across Canada and the US, and they’ve been buying new locomotives and leasing locomotives as well. … Read more

Eight Locomotives, One Train

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Saturday, September 5th, 2018 was a big railfan day for me – and not just for flying my drone. OIL and Foreign Power My youngest son was busy downtown for a while mid-day, so I had an hour and a half on my hands. As I usually do, I drove up to the CP yard … Read more

First Impressions of the DJI Mavic Air Drone

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I’ve wanted a drone for a long time. I’ve seen drone photos and video from talented railfan photographers like Jeff Wizniak, and I appreciate the change in perspective that a drone can bring. I had some “found money” late in 2018. I looked at a few different DJI drones – I considered a discounted Phantom … Read more