Filming (for Fun) This Saturday (???)

[bbj3man]

Hello,

I am from CT but I frequent the Midcoast and often make amateur films of the Maine Eastern (youtube.com/bbj3man). A while ago I heard from a man named Joe (don't know his last name) on youtube, and he has many videos of the WW&F. This weekend I'm coming up, and may stop by on Saturday. I'm hoping I could film the railroad-the more youtube videos the better for publicity I suppose-and was wondering if I should contact anybody here before I come. This would allow me to get to know where to film (aka crossings, fields, etc.) Just shoot me a reply here or an email at bbj3man@yahoo.com with any suggestions.

Thanks so Much!
Oliver Porter

[Duncan Mackiewicz]

Oliver,

May I suggest you return to the WW&F website and contact James Patten.  He is the contact person for the museum.  He can advise you better than I about answers to your questions.

Duncan

[John McNamara]

There are a lot of good photo locations in the main yard at Sheepscot Station. The right hand side of the first curve is also a popular photo location. A bit further up the line, the train comes into a clear spot under a power line. There is a nice broadside view if you bushwhack into the clearing further up the nearby hillside. About halfway through the trip, there are some good locations around a 30-foot trestle that spans a small stream. The Alna Center station also has several good photo opportunities.

I think that the best thing to do is to buy an all-day ticket ($15) and take an initial "scouting run" followed by some trips to specific locations. Depending upon the crew, they might let you off at random points for pickup later, but for sure you can stay at Alna Center and take the next train back. There is also road access at several points along the line.

Hope this helps!
-John

[Mike Fox]

I know the Joe you speak of rather well. He actually put some of my videos on you tube. I did the Plow extra videos. He was on the crew so could not film them. John's suggestion is the best. And also the best value. Trains start running at 10, with the last leaving at 4. There is enough time between trains to change locations.

[bbj3man]

Thanks so much for the information. What I'll probably end up doing is driving to a few crossings for runbys when the train is running, and maybe hike to other spots. I would get the all-day pass, but I still am not 100% sure if I'm coming since I'll be pretty busy Saturday. In any case, I really appreciate all the advice and if for some reason I can't make it on Saturday, I'm looking forward to coming in the future.

Oliver

[Steve Klare]

The WW&F is actually a really easy railroad to film: the trains are frequent, the line is short enough to hike and since it's usually just one consist on any day you can film it in a bunch of different places and it looks like the same trip when it's put together. You just can't do that on a hundred mile long railroad that has a only a couple of trains every day and a different consist every time.

When I first came there I shot my opening and ending shots in Sheepscot, rode the train to get my on-board scenes, then hiked the line to get my run-pasts (I asked first). The best part is the guys were kind enough to offer me a ride back north on #51 so I had some shots to throw in with my end titles.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7d1vGxZRFH8

When #9 is in steam again I'll do the sequel. Maybe color this time, more of a 1930s look…

I was there a few weeks ago and I just railfanned. Sometimes it's good to leave the cameras home and just enjoy being someplace.