The Jacobite 2020

Couldn't agree more Al,Ive always found the crews up there to be excellent.(and the photters)

 

It certainly does. To take from the four regular crews this Autumn, Matt Earnshaw and John Hunt are both incredibly gifted photographers in their own right and enjoy the hunt for the mastershot as much as the rest of us and are then willing to aid us in our efforts.
Ian Riley loves to see his locomotives and works efforts being appreciated front and centre, and I dare say enjoys the out of course requests. It shows a great in depth knowledge of the line and enginemanship by him and all the crews involved to pull it off.
Calum Titley is one of the Strathspey lads who were key to crewing our 2016 and 2017 charters and so knows the score and measures we go to to show off the railways in our photos. He enjoys a challenge as much as the others, and comes full prepared with a notepad ready for the photters wandering up the platform.

It helps to see them looked after in return. I try to ensure my photos are shared among the crews by the end of the season, and available to West Coast/Rileys/NELPG should they be needed for their materials. Also, a bag or two of snacks and then a drink when not rostered (and we could get into the pubs pre Covid!) is a great way of returning our thanks, as well as some socialising.

 

Some lovely photos on this thread really would like to say a big thank you to both traincrew and photographers for their efforts.
As someone sprawled out on their sofa waiting for the washing machine to finish on a day off it really is appreciated.
Nice one people

 

No photographs from today, it has hammered it down all day! Hoping for some gaps tomorrow morning. Meanwhile, another one from Saturday ...


Shades of blue ... by Phoenix Images, on Flickr

 

A few from me from last week.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/146487151@N02/50495211751/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/146487151@N02/50499297977/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/146487151@N02/50498432023/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/146487151@N02/50490664506/

And a video from September



Karl

 

Crackin shots Karl

 

Thankyou and I couldn't agree more about the shutter, sadly I was somewhat balanced and even with a directional mic just couldn't move far enough away for it not to get picked up.

 

Is anyone more familiar or local to the FW area able to help me on here? I arrived yesterday and am here until Sunday. I managed two shots with my camera and will now not turn on. Thinking it was the rain, it’s spent all night in a bag of rice and has been charged and tried with multiple different batteries too and still won’t turn on - a slight problem. Anyone able to recommend a repair shop or a solution? TIA

 

Sadly there is no camera shop in Fort William, the nearest ones are in Inverness or Glasgow! The only place you could get some camera gear is at Argos or see how quickly Amazon can get something sent up. Best of luck getting it sorted.

 

Ouch. That sounds bad. My deepest condolences.

James

 

Yes ouch ! They never go wrong at a convenient time.
Unfortunately as @Macko says it's the west of Scotland and camera shops are rare.

You didm't say what camera it was . maybe someone there can help out.

If you need a replacement then I'd make two recommendations (I've dealt with both in the past)
1) WEX (formerly Calumet) in Glasgow
Address: Block 4, Unit 1
Oakbank Industrial Estate, Off Garscube Road
Glasgow, G20 7LU
Phone: 0141 353 0875

2) Ffordes at Beauly (quite probably the best range of s/h gear in the UK)
The Kirk, Wester Balblair, By Beauly, Inverness-shire, IV4 7BQ
(currently open by appointment only)
Contact
T: 01463 783 850
E: info@ffordes.com


There is also this online but I know nothing of it.

Name: Oban Photographic Centre
Address:
122 124 . GEORGE STREET
Postcode/City:
PA34 5NT Oban
County:
Argyll and Bute Scotland
Phone:
01631 562917


Good Luck.

 

I will only add from what people have already said @Will RL that if it is from the rain, I know it won't help now, but allow at least a fortnight for it to dry out. I had pretty much given up on mine around 10 years ago, but it did eventually turn back on after about two weeks.

 

Thanks for the suggestion gents. After doing the rounds I’ve been informed the nearest store for a 4K (and compatible with my external kit) camera is Glasgow! Considering the photographic tourism in Scotland I’m surprised at just how little there is to offer.

Not to sure on Amazon Prime to a hotel...

 

You should have experienced the north and west of Scotland four or five decades back, my late dad used to describe Fort William as a frontier town.. You would have found very little other than a grocery store (not supermarket) and and a hardware store in most places north and west of Perthshire. Mind you Dad (and myself) used to love the hardware shops and he rarely came away empty handed.
It's very different now but better. I'm not sure.

 

This maybe sounds silly but it has worked for a couple of chaps.As you are in a hotel your room should have a hairdryer.Set the hairdryer to the lowest heat and blow over camera for a while.You can also make sure that terminals are clean on battery connections etc.Good luck

 

If you look at the state of Fort William High street you can see that it has been devastated by the last few months, many shops and cafes permanently closed, the tourist number drop off must have huge here. A typical people gallery at Glenfinnan viaduct before Covid 19 would be over 200, 300+ if you include the visitor centre crowd as well. I would estimate that at least 80% of those tourists would be foreign. Virtually all of those foreign tourists have not been this year and you can tell it really has hurt the economy up here.
The Jacobite has done well to keep going but do bear in mind it is running at 50-60% capacity. It must be a lifeline for Mallaig businesses but chatting to a cafe owner today (who's business is up for sale like several others) they are hanging on by a shoestring and not sure how they will get through the winter. Great cullen skink though

As regards cameras, pretty much all tourists will turn up with a camera already bought and there is just nowhere near enough of a local market to support an electronic shop up here, hence argos and Amazon being sadly your only possibilities. Hope you can work something out. It's going to be wet for the rest of the week so get something more waterproof

 

Credit to WCRC for taking a chance and running this year which as you know I said in April was a pipe dream. Sadly as well as WCRC have done and continue to do, the local businesses up there will continue to struggle until rules on international travel change for the better. Its extremely worrying that a number of them are permanently closed.

 

Another wet day, so here is a grand vista at Kinloid, steam courtesy of Matt Earnshaw and John Hunt from last Saturday.


Kinloid at the edge of the West Highlands by Phoenix Images, on Flickr