Western Railroad Discussion > Night Time in the Big City

Following a good day of railfanning in Kansas City, my tour guide 'bnsfsd70' and I headed towards downtown Kansas City and Union Station. Our goal was to shoot Amtrak, after telling Jeff about how I had never actually been inside Kansas City Union Station we quickly changed our plan of action with about 30 minutes till Amtrak showed up. Upon entering the giant building and waiting room it took all I had not to drop the tripod in my hands. The old building is beautifully restored inside and wonderfully lit allowing for photos inside. I couldn't help but stand there in amazement and wonder what the building was like in the heyday of passenger rail travel or World War II. The photos from within' the building are absolutely endless and without a doubt I could have spent all night inside, but after grabbing some photos we headed outside for our intended goal of the night, Amtrak train #3. #3 was running right on the advertised and several freight trains passed by in the process of the train doing its station work. Night photography is one of my favorites, but a lack of railroad subjects in western Kansas inhibit my nighttime shooting. Trips to Kansas City and other locations allow me to occasionally try my hand at night work...shooting a beautiful station and a passenger train? That's just icing on the cake!

1) A lone figure streaks through the empty main concourse of Kansas City Union Station, as viewed from the third floor balcony above.
2) Also from the balcony, a look is allowed down through the waiting room, now devoid of the large wooden benches that graced the empty floor space.
3) The other end of the waiting room provides a magnificent view of the grand station and its towering structure.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/20/13 07:23 by nwkrailfan.

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4) According to my EXIF data I just missed "The Flying Crow" by 37 minutes, but that's okay...the Southwest Chief is waiting just outside.
5) An empty Texas coal train slowly drifts by as Amtrak 86 on #3 awaits its 10:45 PM departure time, which is roughly 15 minutes away.
6) With headlights on #3 prepares to pay Kansas City adieu as it continues its trip to the west coast and city of Los Angeles, California.

Thanks for looking
nwkrailfan...or nekrailfan ;-P



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/19/13 22:02 by nwkrailfan.

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Neat pics from the interior of a station that is much more grandiose than I imagined!

Nice to see this station this well maintained.

~RGDave

Here's a poor close up of the model displayed at KCUS. You can see it in the case in one the photos. (It's hard to take a good picture of anything in a glass case I've decided) The builder's plate says it was built by the AT&SF apprentice class in San Bernadino. Not sure about the date, 1910 I think.

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1" scale?

A night photo of KC is not complete without the Western Auto sign. I'm glad it's still there, just adds a point of permanance to the area.

Great photos! Try using a Polaroid filter when shooting through glass. (Your shot was fine!)

Bill Deaver
Tehachapi, CA

SUPER night pics!!!