Stone Chapel Railroad Crossing

Waking one late August morning, back in 2015, I decided to venture out and capture some local images. The light was an intense golden tone, warm in texture with blue skies and high clouds. The perfect conditions for high contrast black and white images. 

For years I have been driving past a railroad crossing on Stone Chapel Road in Westminster, Maryland. This backroad in Carroll County is my preferred route to soccer fields, baseball fields, and Westminster High School. It is a winding and meandering road with sections open to the sky as well as covered by old growth trees.

I have passed this railroad crossing many times. Each time, I have looked to either side and thought… This crossing would be lovely to photograph. This morning, those thoughts became reality. 

Walking around the crossing this morning, visualizing the images in my mind, I could not help but think… Rails emerging and disappearing into the landscape. Beginnings… Endings… The future… The past… How many trains have been up and down these rails? How many engines, passenger cars, and freight cars have traversed this crossing? So similar to each of us, our lives, and the people we come to know and love. Always in motion and ever changing. 

The images presented below were capture with a Canon DSLR with a Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 IS lens. All the images were processed using Lightroom with a slight vignette and grain added. The frame ratio on all images is 16:10.

Enjoy!!