No matter which of those historical eras you find yourself most enamored with, every inch of the station provides a visually interesting viewpoint to appreciate. While a visitor’s camera lens could focus on something old, or something new, the (somewhat cliché) shot to get is from the platform stairs, capturing the steel arch of the new train hall framing the historic structure—a blend of 1914, 1952, 2014 all in one image.

Initially, much of the plan for the Metro was based around Qatar’s bid for the 2016 Summer Olympic Games, but was revived in 2010 when Qatar was awarded the World Cup. The Qatar Railways Company was birthed in 2011, and will oversee the Metro, a new light rail in Lusail, and the planned long distance and freight routes to Saudi Arabia and Bahrain (which appears to be stalled, and the severing of ties between Qatar and its neighbors likely means it will be halted indefinitely).

Aesthetically, no matter where you travel through the system, you will ever be reminded that you are on the Doha Metro. The system itself has a unique identity, using locally-sourced sandstone for station exteriors, a nod to traditional architectural materials. Vaulted spaces evoke traditional Bedouin tents, stylized arched columns resemble the sails of time-honored dhow ships, and large panels of glass ensure that the stations will be lit by natural light, said to resemble the inside of an oyster. The visual cues continue on a line basis – as each will have their own identity and feature a distinctive wall finish and pattern. In the case of the Red Line (nicknamed the Coastal line, as it hugs Doha’s West Bay and terminates in the new planned city of Lusail), that pattern is iridescent mother-of-pearl, a reference to Qatar’s history of pearl diving.

The trains themselves were produced by Japan’s Kinki Sharyo, and are said to resemble Arabian horses. The three car fixed sets feature Gold class, with larger individual seats at 10 QAR (approximately $2.75 per trip) and family and standard classes, with typical subway style benched seating, at a price of 2 QAR (approximately 55 cents). Standard class trips are quite a bit cheaper than the Karwa bus service that operates in Doha, where a round trip ticket costs 10 QAR. For safety, station platforms have full-length barrier doors that only open when a train is ready for boarding. The system is fully driverless, and as a result the large windows at either end of the train are extremely popular with passengers to look out at the tracks ahead.

The Metro is a continuing work in progress, and as of the soft opening earlier this month, only 13 stations along the Red Line are currently open (10 underground, and 3 above ground). More stations along both ends of the Red Line are planned, along with a spur connecting Doha’s airport. Two other lines are currently under construction, the Green (Education) Line, as well as the Gold (Historic) line. Phase 1 of the system is planned to be complete for the World Cup and will have nearly 40 stations across the three lines, with central interchange point at Msheireb. A future Blue (City) line is also planned, and once fully realized, the Doha Metro is envisioned to have nearly a hundred operational stations.

All in all, I greatly enjoyed my visit to Qatar. Initially I had been fascinated with the city of Dubai, but many travelers to that city have stated that it feels a little “soulless” – they’ve given up much of their history to steam forward with glittery skyscrapers. In contrast, it seems that Qatar has found an interesting balance of ultra modern skyscrapers and planned cities, while respecting their rich history (take a visit to the traditional market Souq Waqif – you won’t be disappointed), and incorporating traditional elements in modern architecture, like on the Metro.

With the aid of old timetables, I was able to track the history of the banner, and the trains it once represented. Though the train number changed a few times, for the majority of it’s life, the it was for a Sunday-only morning train from New York to Chatham.

Unknown – 1958: Train 1053, which made a stop at Boston Corners.
1958 – June 30, 1964: Train 905. Ghent was blacked out in 1959 when it was removed as a stop.
July 1, 1964 – November 30, 1968: Train 909.
December 1, 1968 – March 19, 1972: Train 9009. Number was changed after the Penn Central merger.
March 20th, 1972 – unknown: Eliminated stations were covered in black paint, and used for Train 9013, a Saturday and Sunday train.

Early photo of Grand Central’s lower level, showing two departure banners, and the cabinets the banners were stored in when not being used.

After purchasing the banner, I was slightly torn as to what I should do with it. Keep it as is, as a testament to what happened when Penn Central eliminated the Upper Harlem? Or should I restore it, to what it once was, showing all of the original stops? Part of what swayed my decision was that it was obvious that the writing underneath was not completely gone. You could just barely make it out under the black layer of paint, but it was still there. I decided to see how difficult removing the black would be, and to my surprise, it wasn’t that hard. With a little bit of elbow grease, I revealed a line once hidden under black – “Visitors not permitted through gate”:

I made my decision. I was going to restore this banner. I started next on the paint covering the station names… Ghent and Chatham are revealed:

The big reveal was, of course, getting the original destination at the top of the banner to show. Dover Plains has morphed into Chatham…

After revealing everything that was hidden in black, much of the paint was chipped and fading. Repainting was the final step of the restoration.

Although it still needs a little bit of work, for the most part, the sign is done.

Though the Tunnelbana has a wealth of stations filled with interesting art, it is some of the stations located deeper underground that have captured the interest of many riders and photographers. As a unique design choice, during the excavation of these stations the bedrock was left exposed, creating the feeling that you are deep inside a cave. Each cavern is painted wildly by an array of artists – some in pink camouflage, and others in bright primary colors. While some are clearly unnatural, others evoke a real sense of a hidden cave – painted in subdued colors with primitive illustrations of a mammoth and of the sun. And even others create an interesting interplay between the rough exposed rock, and walls of colorful polished tiles. Suffice it to say, the Stockholm Metro is quite an interesting, and exceptionally unique system.

Words, of course, can’t adequately describe the varied – and in some cases, downright wild – decor of these stations, so let’s take a little visual journey together!

For her work in Minnesota, Blum designed work for the East Bank and West Bank stations, located on either side of the Mississippi River in Minneapolis. At West Bank you’ll find the work Immigration/Migration, which features birds fabricated out of stainless-steel, and wire mesh etched with patterns. The etched mesh is certainly my favorite, as it is extremely subtle. The patterns are just barely visible under normal light, but when direct sun rays hit the mesh, the pattern is extremely bright and really shines.

  
 
  

For the East Bank station, Blum’s art reflects mathematical formulas – referencing the station’s proximity to the University of Minnesota’s main campus. The formulas are sandblasted into concrete, and hypocycloids cut out of stainless steel mounted above. The effect is both interesting and attractive.

  
 
  
  
  

Art plans from the website of artist Nancy Blum.

Anyway, that is it for today’s quick post. If you’re interested in checking out some of the other transit based art we’ve featured here, be sure to have a look at our Arts for Transit tag.

In terms of transportation systems, the Northstar is relatively young, with passenger service starting at the end of 2009. Operating on an already-existing BNSF freight line, money was invested to purchase equipment, build stations, and to construct a maintenance facility near Big Lake. The line stretches from Target Field in Minneapolis, where it connects with the light rail, to Big Lake in the north. Although hopes were for the line to continue all the way to the city of St. Cloud, just north of Big Lake there is a several mile stretch of only single track, and it would be a significant expenditure to add another track so the line can continue to accommodate both freight and commuter traffic. Instead, bus service called the Northstar Link carries passengers from Big Lake to St. Cloud.

There are a lot of comparisons one could make with Metro-North – the most obvious being the overpasses used on the line. Along the Hudson Line there are severe limitations on the height of freight trains due to low bridges and overpasses. The line on which Northstar runs, being mostly freight, in contrast has very high overpasses to allow the plentiful freights to pass underneath. Another leg up the Northstar has over Metro-North is the fact that each passenger coach is equipped with wi-fi, something customers here have been wanting for years. On the other hand, service on the Northstar is very limited, focused around commuting hours with an occasional extra train for baseball games and concerts at Target Field. Much of this limitation is due to the frequent freight on the line, which can often delay trains (especially Amtrak’s Empire Builder).

All in all it was an interesting trip to see another one of the country’s commuter rail systems. Enjoy a collection of photos from Northstar:

  
 
  
 
  
   
 
 
  
 
   
  
   
  
   
  
 
 

The famous High Bridge, New York City’s oldest bridge.

The facility here is, of course, named after the Aqueduct Bridge, or better known as High Bridge. The bridge’s roots stretch all the way back to 1848, making it the oldest bridge in New York City. As one would gather from its original name, the bridge was an important part of the Croton Aqueduct, supplying New York City with fresh water. Originally a stone arch bridge, five of the arches were replaced with one steel arch in 1928 to allow easier water navigation under the bridge. By this time the bridge was largely obsolete, and no longer carrying water – however it did serve a secondary purpose as a pedestrian crossing. That crossing was closed in the 1970s, until it was recently reopened last month after many years of restoration. From the newly reopened pedestrian crossing, one can get quite a good view of what is now a Metro-North railroad facility below.

  
 
  
   
  

The view from the newly reopened High Bridge

Today, Highbridge is where you will find Metro-North’s Car Appearance Facility, where both interior and exteriors of train cars are cleaned. Highbridge is one of three Metro-North washing facilities, and it possesses state-of-the-art brushes and sprayers that use 280 gallons of water per minute – 200 gallons of which are recycled, making it more environmentally friendly. 20 cars can be cleaned every shift, and each car gets this full treatment about every 60 days. The washing is completely computerized, and does not require an operator.

Heading into the Highbridge car wash. Photo by Paul Pesante.

In addition to the appearance facility, Highbridge provides storage tracks for trains that is close to the city. While in days gone past, the New York Central used Mott Haven for this purpose, most of Mott Haven’s tracks were ripped out long ago. Highbridge has stepped up to fill that gap, which will especially be needed due to the East Side Access project, where Metro-North needed to give up quite a few storage tracks in Grand Central in order to bring Long Island Rail Road trains to the east side.

The original passenger station at High Bridge in 1961. Photo by Ed Davis, Sr., from the collection of David Pirmann. By the 1970s the station had some scheduled trains, while on others it was listed as a flag stop.

Other noteworthy details about Highbridge are that you can see some old remnants of the New York Central’s Putnam Division here – Highbridge was a point of transfer between the Hudson and Putnam Divisions. It is also where the Oak Point Link joins with the Hudson Line, permitting freights to avoid the bottleneck of Mott Haven to get to Oak Point Yard.

The evening CSX garbage train waits at Highbridge after coming on to the Hudson Line from the Oak Point Link

Anyway, let’s take a quick behind-the-scenes glimpse of Metro-North’s official employee station at Highbridge… the only place we neglected on our original tour of the Hudson Line.

If this is a technique you’ve always been interested in trying out, or you’re just curious to see how exactly one makes a panorama (especially one featuring a train) – from camera to computer – read on.

Making a panorama

Taking the shots

The first part of any panorama is getting the shots that you need to blend later on. As a beginner looking to do a railroad panorama, I would suggest you try to capture a train that is not moving. Whether it is tied up for the night or just stopped at a station, having everything stationary is best – moving objects can cause issues and anomalies in the stitching process.

These days, programs are usually good enough to accommodate photos not taken on a tripod. But you’ll want to remain in the same spot, and most importantly, keep the camera at the same angle within each shot. Rotate your body to get a wide field of view across multiple shots. Make sure to overlap – 40% overlap is usually the rule of thumb – so the stitching program will have room to blend the images together. It doesn’t matter if you shoot horizontally or vertically, but if you want to get the highest resolution image, shoot vertically (it will likely require more shots to capture the full field of view, however).

   
   
Here’s an example of seven shots I took of an M7 making a station stop at Harlem-125th Street. Note how I’ve rotated along the field of view, while allowing some overlap between the photos. Since the train was not moving, I was able to capture it across multiple shots.

Things that move

If you’ve tried the stationary panoramas out, or your feeling a bit bold, you can go for a moving object. If you’d like to capture a moving train, for example, what you need to do is capture the ENTIRE train in one photograph (unless you want the train extending off the side of the image). For this reason, it is better to capture your photos in a horizontal format, so you can better capture the entire train. If you capture the train using multiple shots, because it was moving it will appear in different places each time, and thus impossible to stitch properly.

If you’re shooting a passenger train, after the train has passed, then capture the rest of the shots of your field of view. If you’re capturing a long freight (where in this case you probably would have the train extending off the edge of the image) it is probably best to get your other shots before the train arrives, since it may take so long for the train to fully pass that the sunlight has changed, making it very hard to stitch those images together.

 
  
  

Here’s an example of five shots I took of a P32AC-DM on the Hudson Line, passing West Point. Note how in the first shot I capture the moving train, and then in the subsequent shots capture the field of view after the train has passed.

This is what those photos look like stitched together in a final panorama.

What program to use?

In order to make a panorama from multiple shots, you’ll need some program to stitch the images together. There are various free options out there, like AutoStitch, which I used regularly years ago (and was what I used for all of the original panoramas for the entire Harlem Line in the Metro-North Panorama Project), but these days I use Photoshop’s Photomerge tool. If you’re serious about photography, Photoshop and Lightroom really are the best programs for you to be using to make your images better. They’re the industry standards.

Using Photoshop’s Photomerge tool

Photomerge is relatively basic, from the File menu, go to Automate and choose Photomerge. In the window that pops up, select the images you’d like to stitch together using browse. For almost all instances you don’t need to change any of the default preferences. Auto layout usually does the trick, and you want to keep Blend Images Together on, as it blends any color discrepancies between the images, to make it look like one complete image in the end. Depending on your lens and camera, your photos may have some Vignetting, or a darker ring around the edge of your photo. If that is the case, you can check off Vignette Removal (I prefer to remove any vignetting in Lightroom prior, and if you use both programs that is what I’d suggest).

The menu showing where Photomerge is, and the Photomerge window.

Now you have a stitched image…

Your photos may now be blended together, but it isn’t quite yet perfect or how you imagined it. You’ll need to crop unwanted jagged edges, and make minor adjustments with the warp tool in order to get that perfect panorama.

The stitched image that Photoshop spits out from the seven Harlem-125th photos. Note that each individual photo is a layer, which allows you to fix errors in stitching if there are any. Provided that everything looks good, you should merge all your layers before proceeding.

Working on the image – cropping and minor edits with the warp tool make the final image.

The completed panorama.

Questions about the process

Why make a panorama out of multiple pictures using stitching, when many new cameras and phones have a dedicated panorama feature?
The panorama feature you’ll find in newer cameras or phones requires you to pan the camera across the field of view, and it will automatically assemble the panorama for you. While this is, of course, easier, it doesn’t necessarily yield the highest quality result. If you’ve ever wanted to print out your photos, you’ll find that the resolution of an in-camera panorama job is low. In contrast, the West Point panorama above has a final pixel size of 14329×4000 – sufficient resolution to print the final image at a width of nearly six FEET. Now I’m not saying you’ll ever have to do such a thing, but you’ll get a higher quality, more detailed image that is croppable if you desire by stitching.

What are some fun things you can do with panoramas?
Once you get the whole “moving train” thing down, you can try this funky technique, which I’ve always liked. Capture the train entering your field of view on the left side, and then capture it yet again as it leaves your field of view on the right side. It looks something like this:

What other methods can you use to capture wide fields of view?
Besides panoramas and stitching, you can capture wide fields of view with very wide angle lenses, and fish-eye lenses. A wide angle does capture a wider field than a normal lens, but it can never capture as much of the field of view as a stitched image could. Fish-eyes are nice (and I enjoy them very much!) but the distortion they cause is a little too much for most people.

But sometimes there is distortion in panoramic images. How do you minimize that?
From an artistic perspective, I tend to enjoy the distortion you can get in a fish-eye or panoramic shot. It is almost like a visual cue that what you’re seeing is something beyond the capability of your own two eyes. In terms of railroad photography, it also introduces a break in the abundance of long, straight lines from railroad tracks and platforms. However, it isn’t for everyone. In a stitched image, you’ll get more distortion the closer you are to the subject you’re photographing. If you’re capturing a train that is on a platform (like the Harlem-125th panorama above), it is very difficult to achieve no distortion. In the Hudson Line panorama, however, there is no noticeable distortion, as I was far away from my subject.

What is your favorite panorama from the Panorama Project?
Although I definitely consider the photos I initially took of the Harlem Line to be subpar considered to my work today, I’ve always liked this photo of Harlem-125th Street for some reason. I have a printed version hanging on my cubicle wall at work.

That just about wraps up today’s post – have more questions about panoramas? Have a panorama you’d like to share? Want to make a suggestion for a future Trains & Modern Photography post? Drop a line in the comments!

All of this reinvention has kept Grand Central relevant – it has retained its character as a landmark, yet constantly refreshed itself to keep with the times, all while remaining dedicated to its primary purpose of being a train station. As we speak, Grand Central is in fact reinventing itself yet again, although you may not be able to see the changes quite yet – they are far below your feet and deep underground. As cars clog our highways and roads, public transportation on the east and west sides of Manhattan are almost islands unto themselves. The MTA’s two railroads, Metro-North and the Long Island Rail Road, operate from separate stations with little linkage between them. Metro-North’s riders filter into the east side of Manhattan, while Long Island’s into the west. But what if we could change all that – give Long Island riders the option to arrive in the east side, and give Metro-North riders the ability to board trains to Long Island inside Grand Central, all while opening up a far easier public transit connection to JFK airport from the east side? All of these are goals of the ongoing East Side Access project, which is expected to continue for at least the next eight years. The project will create a link between the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North, adding a new terminal below Grand Central with eight new tracks, as well as the addition of 22,000 square feet of new retail space.

 
Diagrams of East Side Access, how the new terminal is situated under current buildings (left), and how trains from Long Island will be routed into Grand Central (right).

In reality, East Side Access picks up a project that had begun in the late 60s that had been cancelled due to lack of funds in the 70s. Restarted in earnest in 2007, large tunnel boring machines were assembled underground and began to carve out the tunnels necessary for the trains. By 2011 the tunnel boring had been completed, and work slowly continues to further excavate, pour concrete, and waterproof the tunnels (all the while, no fossilized turtles were found to halt the project, as we joked for April Fools Day 2013). Contracts for the concourse, which according to renderings will imitate the aesthetics of the Terminal, were recently awarded, although work has not begun on that portion of the project as of yet.

So what does East Side Access look like as of right now? Grab your protective gear, and let’s take a journey deep underground to take a look…

                      

In some ways, Devon Transfer is not a true station – it is inaccessible to passengers in any form other than exiting a select main line train, or Waterbury Branch train. One cannot wait at Devon Transfer for any extended period of time – conductors, along with train masters and/or MTAPD are usually present to herd passengers from one side of the platform to the other and get on the connecting train, nor can one purchase tickets there. It does, however, have the typical trash bins one finds at Metro-North stations, lights for after hours, a public address system if ever necessary, as well as station name signs (I wonder who gets to keep these once work is done) on the platform. Utilizing the same wooden-style temporary platforms we’ve seen at other New Haven Line stations during track work, Devon Transfer is a decent substitute for keeping the Waterbury Branch running during the bridgework. In fact, it is arguably nicer than some of the permanent stations on the Branch (Ansonia‘s low-level platform comes to mind).

The Devon Bridge, currently undergoing work, with a six month expected outage on Track 3 (the one closest to the photographer in this picture). Aerial photographs of the Devon Bridge via the Historic American Engineering Record, Jack E. Boucher, photographer, taken April 1977.

For most passengers, the transfer at Devon is relatively convenient, with the exception of anyone coming from/going in the direction of New Haven, who would have to make an additional transfer at Bridgeport for their journeys. Additionally, all New Haven Line trains stopping at Devon will have an increased running time of about a minute, due to the extra stop. However, all of the work here is necessary to address one of the banes of the New Haven Line – its ancient movable bridges. Crossing the Housatonic River, the Devon Bridge (also known as the Housatonic River Railroad Bridge) is a 110 year old, 1,067-foot long rolling lift bascule bridge. It was prefabricated by the American Bridge Company in Trenton, New Jersey, and installed in 1905. Although less problematic as the notorious swing bridges on the New Haven Line (namely WALK), it is well in need of some attention. Suffering from the same lack of standardization found on many of the line’s movable bridges – each one being unique, with its own exclusive mechanical components – it requires custom created parts to fix.

Why is Devon Transfer needed? Looking from the Milford side of the river toward Stratford, an aerial overhead view of the Devon Bridge. Track 3, which is currently out of service, is the track on the far right. Note the diverging track on the bottom right of the photo – this leads into the Waterbury Branch. Because of the track outage, this lead-in is inaccessible, necessitating the Devon Transfer station on the other side of the wye.

Diagram showing Devon Transfer, and how it bridges the gap between the out-of-service Track 3.

While Track 3 is out of service, the timber decking on that section of the Devon Bridge will be removed, the underlying steel will be repaired and replaced as necessary, and then new deck timbers will be installed, with the running rail reinstalled atop. The miter rails, which are integral to movable bridges, allowing the rails to connect and disconnect for movement, will be replaced. Once work on Track 3 is complete, it will return to service, and Track 1 will be taken out of service for repair, with the same process repeating itself. At that point, however, direct access to the Waterbury Branch from the main line will be restored, and Devon Transfer station will become obsolete.