8th December 2020 · ‘The Photographic Artistry of Railway Cameramen’

Presenter: John Hillier

On 8 December we held our 3rd virtual meeting when John Hillier of Rutland presented “The Photographic Artistry of Railway Cameramen” – and what a draw it turned out to be with 66 participants including one from Norway and one from South Africa!

John is a member of the Rail Camera Club which was created in 1976 after the demise of the Railway Photographic Society which had been founded by the renowned photographer, Maurice Earley in 1922. John, the author of the book of the same name which features photos by all 36 Rail Camera Club members and their personal profiles, commenced his talk with a photo of Linlithgow Railway Station which lays claim to have been the first train station to be photographed in the world in 1845. This was followed by a wonderful image of the world’s oldest surviving steam locomotive “Puffing Billy” taken at Wylam in 1860.

Continuing in alphabetical order, all 36 RCC members were covered along with their profiles and samples of their work commencing with Bill Anderson through to Barry Wynne. Obviously, with such an array of talent, the photography was fantastic and extremely nostalgic and it would be impossible to pick out any specific image. However, on a personal note, as a Sheffield member, I always look forward to Les Nixon’s fabulous shows and despite seeing his depicted photos before, I never tire of them. Get well soon Les, we all hope that it won’t be too long before you are in full steam again.

A wonderful show which was much enjoyed by everyone ‘present’. Thanks John, please come back soon!