Echoes of Steam Photo

Photographer’s Note

Abandoned and forgotten. Only echoes of steam still cling to the water tower. In its heyday, hundreds and hundreds of locomotive tanks were filled to keep the boilers working and the wheels turning. Now all lies silent. Rotted pipes and grass and weeds abound.
All over South Africa there are disused and crumbling railway stations. This water tower still stands proudly at Fouriesburg Station. Once a busy bustling place during the steam era and up to the latter days of the 1900's. Its demise is the result of the gradual reduction of passenger rail services between small towns. Cars and trucks have taken over that role. The occasional goods and grain train pulled by a diesel still rolls through here, but never stopping.

ben4321, stardam88 has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

ben4321 (9807) 2007-05-12 12:31

An interesting study in dereliction, and I like how the darkness of the rusting water tower and the discarded pipe contrast with the bright sunny conditions.
I think the composition may have worked better with the water tower positioned a bit less centrally in the frame, and placing it further to the left would have enabled you to reduce the impact of that bright area of sky.
It was a natural for a black and white conversion though, it works well.

Cheers,
Ben

[2] +

WepWaWet (3955) 2007-05-16 3:35

Hello Irmgard,
Very beautiful framed and very nice composition. The contrast are fine. I like to your note. Regards,
Seref

polter (6118) 2007-05-25 5:41

Wow ! Great composition, great space. So nostalgic. There is a touch of absolute in the picture. Like it extremely. Greetings T.

wimmels2010 (122) 2007-06-02 14:39

hi Irmgard, I loved this image the moment I saw it on your computer screen the other day. It is the industrial feel to it that I like - I could imagine seeing it in a booklet of a CD of a grunch rock band! I also feel the water tower could have been shifted a littlebit off-center. Maybe one could try make more of the pipe in the foreground by means of a wide-angle shot (24mm) and then the water tower in the distance (in the background)-depending on what the focal point should be.
regards
wim