In April 2023, Lerro Photography sponsored a two-day photo charter at the East Broad Top Railroad. After decades as a freight railroad and then as a tourist line, the railroad ceased operations in 2011. It got a third chance at life in 2020 with the formation of the EBT Foundation. We ran our last photo charter with a live engine at the EBT in 2010 and held photo shoots with dead posed engines in 2020 and 2021. It was nice to be back with live steam running through the hills of central Pennsylvania. In preparation for our charter, the railroad pulled… [Read More]
Southern Pacific #18 Photo Charter
Southern Pacific #18 in LawsMarch 2023 Southern Pacific #18, also known as the “Slim Princess”, is an oil-fired 4-6-0 “Ten-Wheeler” narrow gauge locomotive built by Baldwin in 1911. In 2017, the SP 18 was restored to operating condition and has traveled to several railroads and museums. In the spring of 2023, the SP 18 was moved to Laws Railroad Museum in CA for maintenance and public events. The Laws Railroad Museum Historic Site features several a number of structures including a depot, water tower, turntable, and other buildings. Many of the buildings are authentic Southern Pacific narrow gauge buildings. Sister… [Read More]
Chesapeake & Ohio 1309
Chesapeake & Ohio #1309February 2023 Western Maryland Scenic Railroad #1309, originally Chesapeake & Ohio #1309, is a compound articulated class H-6 “Mallet” 2-6-6-2 steam locomotive. It was built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1949 for the C&O, where it pulled coal trains until its retirement in 1956. It has the distinction of being the last steam locomotive built by Baldwin for a North American railroad. In 2014, the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad acquired C&O #1309 from the B&O Railroad Museum and after a 7-year restoration, the locomotive was finally ready for service. During the restoration, the railroad painted #1309… [Read More]
Yellowstone and Grand Teton Scouting Trip
Yellowstone and Grand Teton Scouting TripDecember 2022 After a very successful fall photo workshop at Grand Teton, I wanted to take the next step and scout for winter photo workshops at both Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. I decided to spend three days in Grand Teton and three days in Yellowstone with an emphasis on wildlife photography. As soon as I arrived, I noticed there were hardly any visitors in the park. Visiting the week before Christmas seemed to be a perfect time. My first day at Grand Teton started off very promising with zero-degree temperatures and plenty of… [Read More]
Hollywood Vintage Lighting Workshop
Hollywood Vintage Lighting WorkshopJanuary 2023 I have had many clients over the years ask me how I do the lighting setups for the Lerro Photography reenactments. This interest was a big factor in deciding to offer this particular new style of lighting workshop. I decided to keep the workshop small regarding participants because I wanted to make it a more personal experience and also because the space we were using was limited. I found a great Airbnb in Rockhill Furnace, PA, that had vintage charm and a style that was the perfect backdrop for our workshop. The workshop was… [Read More]
Strasburg Railroad 611 Charter 2022
Norfolk & Western 611 Charter at the Strasburg RailroadNovember 2022 The 4-8-4 Norfolk & Western #611 was brought to the Strasburg Railroad in 2019 and has been pulling passenger trains on select weekends. Lerro Photography helped run a photo charter with the 611 in October 2019. In November 2022, Lerro Photography was again asked to help the SRR with a photo charter to help raise money for both the railroad and the locomotive. The two-day photoshoot consisted of the 611 pulling an all-red passenger train and featured photo sessions at sunrise, sunset, and a night session. Each of the photo… [Read More]
Old West Photo Shoot 2022
Old West Photo ShootNovember 2022 When someone thinks of the Old West, one imagines images of gunfights, the open range, cowboys with cattle, drinks at the saloon, and adventure. In November 2022, Lerro Photography sponsored an Old West-themed photo shoot at the Old Bedford Village in Bedford, PA. Over 20 reenactors, two horses, and nearly 40 buildings and structures made for a perfect backdrop for our photo shoot. All of our reenactors were hand-picked because they had original and/or accurate reproduction outfits, props, and guns. We do this so we can make sure the photo shoot is as accurate as… [Read More]
Oregon Steam Charters 2022
Oregon Steam Charters The 2022 Oregon Steam Charters featured two separate railroads: The Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad and the Albany & Eastern Railroad. For our first photo charter, we spent two days at the Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad with the Polson Logging Co. 2-8-2 #2 and the Heisler Craig Mountain Lumber #3 as our motive power. Both days were planned to feature both locomotives, but due to mechanical issues, the Heisler didn’t join us until toward the end of the first day. The railroad fired up a third engine, McCloud Railway 2-6-2 #25, but unfortunately, that engine had mechanical issues… [Read More]
World War I – Newville, PA
World War I – The Great War in Newville, PA I finally got to attend a WWI event at Newville and it was quite the moving experience. The Great War Association (GWA) is a 100-acre site in south-central Pennsylvania that boasts over a mile of opposing trenches and crater-pocked No-Man’s Land. There is also an endless site of barbwire, bunkers, bombed-out buildings, and other structures that truly makes you feel you are in 1917-1918 Europe. This event is considered an emersion event, which means it’s for reenactors only, and the general public is not allowed. All the reenactors usually remain… [Read More]
Grant Teton Photography Workshop 2022
Grand Teton Photography Workshop Grand Teton National Park is one of the United State’s premier National Parks and offers both spectacular landscapes and amazing wildlife opportunities. For our photo workshop, we planned our visit to coincide with the fall color. We also hoped to photograph the larger wildlife such as bears and Moose. While I had been to Grand Teton several times in the past, I went out 3 days early in order to see where the fall colors were strongest as well as find out the recent wildlife patterns. Bison and moose tend to move around and then stay… [Read More]
