Seventy Years of Railway Photography

Book excerpt: Colin Boococks' railway photographs are already familiar as they have been featured in a variety of railway books and magazines. This book shows around 300 of his favorite images that illustrate the many different aspects of railway photography.The key seven chapters in this book each cover one decade from the 1940s up to the present day. Not only do they display the early improvement in his photography as he gained experience, they also bring into focus how much railways have changed over the last seventy years. Grimy steam locomotives in smoky surroundings persisted in ever-reducing pockets as more modern forms of traction spread across our railways. Working steam finally disappeared from UK main lines in 1968 and around coal mines in the mid–1980s.The later chapters benefit greatly from Colins' worldwide travels, in which he searched for more unfamiliar railways. The growth of heritage railways also features.Useful appendices add insights into Colins' experience of camera technologies and photographic techniques. These emphasize the changes that have faced him as his photography has moved from black-and-white to color, and from films and darkrooms to the computer and the digital age. Colin last used film in early 2004, having embraced digital photography with enthusiasm.