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selected seconds |
a selection of my sidetracked or rejected IR pictures from 1980 to 2000
by: S.SHANKAR
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16 Apr. 1853 - 16 Apr. 2002 |
| Welcome to selected seconds! Here is a collection of my photographs from all over the IR. All of these pictures had been either sidetracked or rejected earlier on: either because I'd overlooked them, or because they did not meet my quality standards for one reason or the other. Also included are pictures contributed to my collection by friends, which I somehow never used before. The pictures are not arranged in any sequence whatsoever, nor have they been graded or classified or arranged mode-wise, region or traction-wise. The idea of pulling them out of the rubbish heap is merely to present them in a random order. Hopefully, they should help you appreciate the sheer variety and heterogenity on the IR: the sole factor that draws so many railfans towards it. Several of the pictures are necessarily of a poor quality, largely due to the primitive equipment I was using earlier: plastic lens toy cameras, discounted end-bits film rolls, 110 film cameras etc. Yes sir, photography was once a luxury in India. Not any more, thank goodness. Add to that of course, parental restrictions on spending too much money on film, esp. for photographing trains. In some of the photographs, I will even tell you why I'd rejected the shots in the first place, if it will add to your interest. Let me hasten to remind you once again that these are seconds: initially rejected photographs. These are not my best pictures. To see some of my other pictures, you should refer to my other webpages, a link to which appears at the bottom of this page. Enjoy!!
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1.A lone YG steamer at Mysore station. Mysore was a bastion of mg steam when this picture was shot in 1988. Sadly, mg is gone at the town: and the station is no more as laid back and friendly as it used to be. I'd totally overlooked this picture earlier, which is why it has not figured on any of my sites before. |
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2. 4-wheeler bottom discharge hopper cars at Manikgarh (near Nagpur) in 1986. I was fascinated by the fact that these are the first (and so far the only) 4-wheeler hoppers I'd seen so far. I'd rejected this picture earlier as the main subject is way off centre: not good for a subject at standstill. However, I was concentrating on the bottle jack buffers of the still older car coupled to this one. Either way, its a lousy shot from a photography technique point of view. |
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3. Railroad tracks from the depths of nothing to the middle of nowhere. A civic excavation in the middle of the busy Flora Fountain (now Hutatma Chowk) in Bombay revealed old tram tracks. Note grooves on the rails themselves to keep the trams on the track. This picture was shot in 1982. The local Indian Express newspaper ran an almost identical picture a couple of days later. I'd rejected this earlier due to a grainy print on account of the 110 film format. |
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4.A far shot of a WCAM/3 as she runs through Shivajinagar station in Pune (Poona) with the Deccan Queen to Bombay in 1997. There is an early morning fog in the air, and the engine has her aspect (parking) lamps alight. I'd rejected this earlier as I thought it was a very long shot. |
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5.The pantry car of the Brindavan Express, shot at Bangarapet in Oct.1997. Note the fluid run-off marks below the first two windows. Last minute disposal of unused curries? I'd rejected this picture earlier as it somehow seemed to lack purpose. Think of it, I really don't know why I shot this picture. |
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6. Made b/w by using 'grayscale', but originally on brown paper, this was for a while the only pic I possessed of a WCAM/1 bi-current electric, seen here at the time of inauguration of the Bombay Central-Gandhidham Kutch Express. This pic appeared in the Times of India around 1982. |
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7. A decreipt YP with unpainted smoke deflectors runs into Samastipur in Bihar with a passenger train from Darbhanga. I'd shot this pic in 1986. My skills at shooting approaching trains were still rudimentary, so I shot this a moment too soon, due to which I'd rejected this picture. |
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8.A Mankhurd bound local train leaves Kurla station in Bombay in 1988. I was fascinated by the '420' number of the train. The catenary wire necessitated this odd shot. I'd overlooked this shot earlier, which is why it did not appear on any of my pages before. |
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9.A trio of 4-wheeler inspection cars at Pune Junction. These used to be permanently stabled at the Bombay end of Platform 1 till the mid 1990s. I shot this picture in 1992. These 4-wheelers were originally passenger cars in regular service. |
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10.One of the last steam hauled trains out of Pune: a WP puts up a hefty effort with the Pune (Poona)-Daund shuttle train in 1982. I've travelled by this shuttle on a couple of occasions: the speed of the train was indeed amazing: the WP was at her best: hauling a puny 7 car shuttle was kids' play for a locomotive designed to haul 17+ cars at some 100 kmph. The magnificent WP used to make a terrific high speed entry into Pune on the inward journey. |
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11.My fist camcorder (1991) was a horizontal format Sanyo. Here is a shot of me filming a WG at Daund in 1992. I was so much enamored of the magnificent beast on the other track that I did not even realize when my brother made this shot. I now use a Sony with a 2.5" LCD screen. (whenever I do.I always prefer still cameras and photography). |
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12. A WCAM/3 at Karjat with the Hyderabad - Bombay Express in 1998. Not actually seconds: this is a nice shot by Sundar Krishnamurthy: he'd sent it to me for my collection. I'd not put it up earlier as I thought it was not my shot, so I had no right to. (Photo courtesy Sundar Krishnamurthy). |
| 13. Not really seconds: this is a first class shot of a YDM/4 about to leave Madras Egmore in 1992 with the superfast Pallavan Express to Tiruchirapalli. I'd not used this picture before as I'd put up a similar image in vertical format: this would have been a mere repetition. Of course, the blazing heat emphasized shadows a great deal, so the dark patch on the right might have influenced my opting for the vertical format picture in the first place. |
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| 14. Looking back at the rear end of the train as we climb up the steep hill en route to Matheran. Believe it or not, this picture was shot as recently as 1992, with my brother's trusty Canon AE1 SLR. We'd decided to use monochrome in an attempt to relive our older days when we used to go trainspotting together, armed with agriculturally simple and primitive equipment, and b/w 120 roll film. |
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| 15.Meanwhile at the other end, a dimunitive NDM/1 # 505 has just taken a curve and is straightening out till the next one a few feet away. |
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| 16. The Pune-Bombay Deccan Queen runs through Shivajinagar station under a jungle of catenary masts in July 2000. I'd rejected this shot earlier as I'd felt it lacks purpose. I now realize I'd shot it for the jungle of catenary masts and not for the train per se. |
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| 17.A lone WDS/6 shunter runs through Trombay station in Bombay. Trombay is the base for oil tanker trains, as the refineries are located just after the station. I made this picture with a zoom-less camera from the terrace of our building in 1987, and had rejected this picture on account of distortion at the corners due to a poor quality lens. The engine too is not very clear anyway. |
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| 18.A WDS/4 diesel shunter prepares to leave Karjat in 1987 with the shuttle to Khopoli. The line is now electrified, and e.m.u. services operate to Khopoli from Bombay direct. I had overlooked this picture altogether. This was taken with a 120 film Agfa Isoly II camera. The color rendition too is a tad washed out due to primitive equipment on a cloudy day, and slow 100 ISO film. |
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19.A lone YG shunts in the blazing heat in Madurai in 1992. This picture was shot on 16 Apr. 1992, exactly 139 years after India's first train ran on 16 Apr. 1853. Note the various notes chalked onto the side of the first car. I'd rejected this shot as I'd posted similar pictures on my other sites before, and this was one too many! |
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20. Three trains moving simultaneously are a common sight during peak hours in Bombay and other large cities. Here, my friend is sitting in the Bombay - Hyderabad Express (note window bar in the foreground). A slow local moves on the next track while another train speeds fast in the opposite direction. (shot by my friend Venu). |
| Did you like what you have just seen? Join the IRFCA (Indian Railways Fan Club Assoc.): Its a free of cost, friendly and informal e-mail club for exchange of news and views about our favorite subject: the IR. See the irfca page on the egroups.com website at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/irfca Or visit the still under construction irfca.org website at: http://www.irfca.org/ |
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