My thoughts on the situation. I do like the fact you got creative here and shot beyond the crossing. As you know I am not a big fan of downhill shots, but this one works as you got a little smoke, and I like the way you composed the shot....it is different!
The problem with setting up behind any crossing like this is that you do leave yourself open for last minute chasers. This is more true with mainline trips than on the Narrow Gauge, but as you saw it does happen. Think about it, on a given day some folks will always be chasing the train from Chama. Once they reach Cumbres they are likely going to shoot down below Tanglefoot, or just at the crossing at Cumbres. Their next obvious location is the Apache Canyon road. So the guy arrives at the last minute and parts at the crossing, and gets his shot. Even if he did see you back there, it would be difficult for him to do anything at the last moment, except to apologize afterwards. A lot of fans are not that considerate however, nor do they know any of the courtesy among fans and photographers.
I know I like to shoot beyond crossing simply to avoid the loud whistling and to obtain more stack talk. This being downhill it would not have mattered. I in fact shot the image coming along the curves before the crossing downhill in perfect light, the only downhill shot I made in this region.
I guess my point here is that we noticed on Saturdays(we were there for 2), there were far more chasers out, and it was more of a problem getting shots we had done during the week, where we had out pick. Even some known fans were a bit obnoxious where we were clicking their shutters within sound of our mics and chatting away even after mentioning we were doing sound. Then the hightailed out of their before we were done with the scene. These are things you sometime have to account for when selecting a location....How can someone ruin it for you? Will this be good sound? How many motor-drive shutters will we hear? Who will drive into the shot if we are near a road. A couple of times drivers actually waited 10 seconds more for us to finish a shot we were talking off Hwy 17 before the second crossing. In those cases when I shoot off the road, all bets are off, and I cannot expect drivers to stop or wait. Thats my choice to be there, so you take a chance.
As you said earlier Dave, this is why you enjoy doing those hike-in spots where its quiet and unlikely to have anyone ruin your shot. One of my favorite shots of the trip was my hike into Cresco. I could enjoy the sound of the engine working towards me for a full 7-9 minutes before it actually went past me. A few slips made it fun to listen to. I did start the camera recording early so I now can enjoy the whole experience again.
Despite some issues with foamers in shots, one has to admit the treasure that is the C&TS is worthy of time spent riding and photographing over and over. Every day is different, and the same locations can produce different shots each time as well. The challenge is finding some different ones.
Cheers,
Greg Scholl
