Colne Valley Railway shoot

12 Photographers. 10 gorgeous models. Makeup and props. Camera, light, action! No, this isn't Hollywood, and it isn't the next cover for Vogue (well, at least nobody has said so yet). It was the Essex Strobist photo shoot at Colne Valley Railway. The railway let us use all their trains, carts, buildings, tracks and props, and the models looked prettier than ever. Even the weather had decided to cooperate, with clear blue skies at the beginning of the day.

We photographers paired up, and tried to ensure there would be an experienced photog working with each less experienced, giving everybody a chance to learn a little from each other. The models used the prep time to help each other freshen up makeup and get ready.

We initially agreed to swap locations and models every hour or so, but with us all scattered over the large area available, this soon proved unfeasible. So instead we just fell back on the old principle of available models and photographers spotting each other around the dressing room. The pairing of photogs and number of models meant it worked well, and nobody was waiting long.

The long list of great scenes or backdrops at the railway included

* Steam as well as Diesel engines - great for interior as well as exterior shots
* Several carriages
* Luggage carriage
* Mail carriage
* Rural tracks
* Ticket office
* Platforms
* Dining cart
* Signalling tower
* etc, etc, etc

Rather than read a lot of words about how great it was, have a look for yourself

Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

A great time was had by all, and when the shoot finished around 4pm, photographers and models all agreed that it had been an outstanding event.

Tomas