Steam & Excursion > Monticello's Railroad Days 2017

Here are some highlights from last weekend's Railroad Days at the Monticello Railway Museum at Monticello, Illinois. In operation were Southern Railway 2-8-0 #401, Canadian National FPA4 #6789, Illinois Central GP11 #8733 and Milwaukee Road NW2 #1649. All but the NW2 are seen here (6 minute max, you know).

Mary McPherson
Dongola, IL
Diverging Clear Productions

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Excellent video nice composition and well thought out.........loved the early part with the camera on the tracks.....

Two notes...

I've seen a lot of runover shots on the site that shall not be named (video-Voldemort?) and I've noticed they seem to be shot mostly with Go-Pro cameras. If I'm not mistaken, those cameras are fixed wide angle cameras. I used a small Sony camera for this shot, and the zoom lens makes for a more dramatic sequence in my humble opinion.

The final scene was shot at the Camp Creek Bridge, which is at the bottom of a hill in each direction. With the train headed southbound, it immediately begins climbing uphill before crossing a township road. I planned the shot based on how sound was carrying that day, with the intention of catching the engine opening up on the hill and the sound of the whistle drifting back. It worked out so well, I put the cameras away after getting the shot. I was happy to go into spectator made for the rest of the day!

Mary McPherson
Dongola, IL
Diverging Clear Productions



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/23/17 17:08 by MaryMcPherson.

Excellent, as usual, Mary. Your comment on the "runover" shot was right on and your treatment of it was much better than what we usually see.

Excellent job guys. That IC whistle sounds great, reminds me of my old girlfriend 1522.
My late best buddy Frank Willis would have been in heaven with all the nice IC stuff around. I've not been there yet, but he told me its a class act and it sure looks like it.

Frisco1522 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Excellent job guys. That IC whistle sounds great,
> reminds me of my old girlfriend 1522.
> My late best buddy Frank Willis would have been in
> heaven with all the nice IC stuff around. I've
> not been there yet, but he told me its a class act
> and it sure looks like it.

Very much a class act. I went there for the first time in 2010 and have been going there regularly ever since. The improvements made there since I've been going are astounding and continual.

Just in that time they have built Stair Tower and the motor car building next to it, the car barn in which entire train consists can be parked, the signals which are mostly operational now have been going in over the past year, the restoration of an I.C. diner with another in the works, purchasing the property next to the shops and the Nelson Crossing depot, purchasing a building across the parking lot from the Wabah depot downtown... all that since 2010! This a very well run organization.

There is an E-unit slowly under restoration which will eventually emerge in Illinois Central colors, allowing a pure I.C. passenger train. There are some more big plans in the works for the future as well.

Mary McPherson
Dongola, IL
Diverging Clear Productions

Thanks, for sharing this video, Mary. I have been a life memeber at MRM for over 50 years and at one time my family and I owned the wood, Soo Line, caboose which after jaunts to Minnesota and Wisconsin is now safely back at MRM.

You are right, the folks at MRM are doing amazing things and there are many great things in store for the future. It's amazing what just a few local folks without much money have accomplished over the years and the activities they host over just a few, well, maintained miles and beautiful, equipment is heart warming.

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