NIR/RPSI Steam Day 1989

[GNRi1959]

Myself and the late Norman Johnston travelled to several steam excursions together from Omagh long before he ever started writing books on the railway. On this occasion it was the NIR/RPSI Steam Day celebrating 150th Anniversary of Irish Railways. The tour visited Belfast, Bangor and Lisburn and I managed to get a nice shot of Charles Friel on the footplate of 'Merlin'. The same picture made it into the Irish News the following week. 

They were memorable days, Norman would sit in the carriage with his notebook while I hung out of the window shouting back carriage numbers. Its ironic that this Christmas I found his book 'A Parting Shot' among my Christmas presents.

 

9th August 1989

 

Edited December 28, 2017 by GNRi1959

[Georgeconna]

Fab quality for 1989 GNRI, Just shows a good picture stand up well. What were you shooting on Medium Format?

 

[GNRi1959]

George, thanks

I have always used Rolleiflex cameras and still do today. My only digital camera is on my iPhone. I used to go out in the morning and take pictures and develop and print them later the same evening. Unlike today, I could go away for the day and take as little as 7 shots and be satisfied with what I'd taken and finish the roll of 12 the next day or at the weekend. These were scanned in at 1200dpi but I can go to much higher on my Agfa 4490 scanner. In those days Charles was shooting with a Pentax 6x7. Glad you liked them.

[popeye]

Great quality pictures, you must have some amazing ones.

Do you have a flickr account? if not you should so these great pictures can be seen by everyone

that was not around then or missed these events. 

[GNRi1959]

Popeye, to be honest I don't have many like these. Much of my work is portrait and landscape. I do though have almost 200 pictures of Omagh alone that I have gathered up over the years. I have a flickr account but only joined to view other work. Thanks, I'm glad you liked them.