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I have now done all of the Coast Starlight route. I've taken it between Portland and Seattle previously, so I get to say that without having had to leave from Seattle for this trip.
I've heard from a number of sources that this route is the 'most scenic'. I guess aesthetics differ. The train had some people who had flown to Portland or Seattle to do this specific trip. It's mostly farmland. More lush farmland than the midwest, but still farmland. The train is only at the coast for about an hour at the end, and the light is already low. It hits the mountainy part of Southern Oregon in the late evening. That part is nice, but it's nearly impossible to photograph. The speed, the light, the view coming and going as trees fall away or come back, it's definitely hard mode. So, I gave up on still photography and made my first ever gif.
Aaaaand my image host keeps turning my .gifs into formats that DW doesn't seem to support. It's this Instagram post. I've just spent like 20 minutes trying to fix this. Arg.
Based on this trip I wound up writing an article on train photography. I took a picture I was excited about because it turned out clear and sharp even going at full speed. Since there is nothing in the photo that lets you know it was taken from a train it just looks like a shot with meh composition.
This is the photo I was initially excited about. On a train there are limits to how much you can control composition.
That sort of farmland is also the aesthetic of most of the trip. It was what people fly in to see from a train. I don't get it. I'd much prefer mountains, cities, national parks, desert, those interesting western US rock formations, etc. Empire Builder in winter is more my speed.
This line is also the only place where Amtrak runs vintage cars. The parlour cars are typically restored 1950s ones. They only have a few and one is being serviced right now. So we didn't get a vintage car, only a second dining car.
I love this shot:
It's sort of the polar opposite of the farmland shot. It's got aggressive framing, but it really captures something about being in a train in So Cal sprawled back in a seat taking pictures. It's a shot I love enough that I might print it out and stick it on my wall.
Part 2: Layover in LA.
I've heard from a number of sources that this route is the 'most scenic'. I guess aesthetics differ. The train had some people who had flown to Portland or Seattle to do this specific trip. It's mostly farmland. More lush farmland than the midwest, but still farmland. The train is only at the coast for about an hour at the end, and the light is already low. It hits the mountainy part of Southern Oregon in the late evening. That part is nice, but it's nearly impossible to photograph. The speed, the light, the view coming and going as trees fall away or come back, it's definitely hard mode. So, I gave up on still photography and made my first ever gif.
Aaaaand my image host keeps turning my .gifs into formats that DW doesn't seem to support. It's this Instagram post. I've just spent like 20 minutes trying to fix this. Arg.
Based on this trip I wound up writing an article on train photography. I took a picture I was excited about because it turned out clear and sharp even going at full speed. Since there is nothing in the photo that lets you know it was taken from a train it just looks like a shot with meh composition.
This is the photo I was initially excited about. On a train there are limits to how much you can control composition.
That sort of farmland is also the aesthetic of most of the trip. It was what people fly in to see from a train. I don't get it. I'd much prefer mountains, cities, national parks, desert, those interesting western US rock formations, etc. Empire Builder in winter is more my speed.
This line is also the only place where Amtrak runs vintage cars. The parlour cars are typically restored 1950s ones. They only have a few and one is being serviced right now. So we didn't get a vintage car, only a second dining car.
I love this shot:
It's sort of the polar opposite of the farmland shot. It's got aggressive framing, but it really captures something about being in a train in So Cal sprawled back in a seat taking pictures. It's a shot I love enough that I might print it out and stick it on my wall.
Part 2: Layover in LA.
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Date: 2017-04-22 10:59 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2017-04-23 11:04 pm (UTC)From:no subject
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