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Hey everyone,

This past Friday, November 25th I ventured out to the SRC with a friend to catch their annual Santa's Paradise Express. During these trips they have two train operations. I shot some 4K video which is below, rather dreary weather that day but it definitely made for quite a show. Enjoy the pacing video at the end! (Forgive the shakiness in the pacing video. The road we drove on is very rutted and pitted in some spots making it difficult to hold the camera steady.)

Some pictures: 

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That evening the SRC hosted its first Night Before Christmas train for the 2016 season. These trains have been around for a couple of years (if not more) now and are extremely popular. The tickets ask that passengers, particularly the kids, dress up in their pajamas to emulate the Polar Express in a sense. During the trip, actors and actresses dressed up in sleeping attire read story books to the children. The trip was sold out that night well in advance of departure so be sure to buy your tickets online before they run out! 

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Santa has arrived! 

Santa

As a discussion point: What are you favorite memories of running/witnessing steam in the Holiday season? 

Enjoy! 

 

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Last edited by PennsyPride94
Original Post

Replies sorted oldest to newest

smd4 posted:

In that pacing shot, steam is leaking out from under the jacket covering the cylinder. Weird.

So here is the official word from the Engineer in the pacing clip: 

" There are exhaust cavity drains in the bottom of the cylinder block. They are open to the air and drain out condensation (water) that will form when the engine is cold"

"On 475 the right rear cylinder head is leaking (about the 3 o'clock position). Piston rod packing leaks slightly on both engines. Not sure about the cylinder cocks. If it is coming out from under the cylinder block and is more of a cloud and not much force, then it is coming from the exhaust cavity drains as some exhaust steam will escape through them"

 
 
 
pennytrains posted:

Right about now I can't think of anything prettier than watching that vintage N&W power rolling through the countryside...

I have to agree!  I volunteer at the museum across the road, and if I time it right, driving to the museum I'll be pacing the train along Route 741 for a little bit.  When the 475 is running, it's such a beautiful sight!

Mike, the stills above are very nice.

The video is great. Well shot, and uses (IMO) 4k to great advantage, especially in the long shots. I loved one of the first long scenes, where you could see the farmer taking off with the four-horse team..I wondered if the whistle would scare them!

One wants to know what video equipment you used to capture the 4k, and also what editing program you used. I thought the video was just great, can't wait to watch on the big tv.

Again, well done, and thanks for posting it up here!

Ed

 

Last edited by Ed Mullan

Hi Ed,

Truth be told I utilize my cell phone to shoot the video. It's a Samsung S6 edge plus that has the ability to shoot 4K at 30 frames per second. It's a convenient way to shoot video without having to buy an expensive camera. Cell phone cameras are getting better and better. I get a lot of "odd looks" from serious railfans with their fancy cameras and expensive gear, but their original impressions are quickly changed when they look at the picture quality. 

I do plan on upgrading eventually to a full sized 4K camcorder since sensor size does matter when it comes to overall picture quality and I would like the ability to zoom in a little. I find 4K to be the best way to shoot trains especially because of the picture quality. Then again, I may not buy a camcorder since the technology will eventually make them obsolete. 

The software that I use to edit it is Cyberlink Powerdirector 14. Its an excellent editing software that is able to produce videos in multiple formats at multiple video qualities (720, 1080, 2K, 4K). If you are serious about making quality videos Cyberlink cannot be beat for Windows operating systems. If you are super serious about video editing, Adobe Premiere Pro CC is the best, but in reality the differences between both company's top models are minute and you actually own Cyberlink instead of paying a monthly subscription to Adobe for their software. 

Thanks for the nice comments Ed. I really appreciate it! 

49Lionel posted:

Great video, Mike.  I often admire British railfan videos for how they showcase the beauty of the surrounding countryside, and you've done just that.  Great angles not usually seen.

Thanks! I agree completely, the countryside is what makes the steam locomotive romantic. Mountains to hills, valleys to rivers, its all encompassing in the experience. Too many railfan videos IMO just make you watch repeated sequences of the train passing by which gets boring. I want the viewer to take in the scenery and almost be able to see the sights and smell the smells. 

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