Starlight on the Rails - Hardcover

Jeff Brouws; Richard Steinheimer; Ed Delvers

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0810941678 ISBN 13: 9780810941670

Publisher: Harry N. Abrams, 2000

Synopsis

The years between the end of World War II and the mid-1960s saw a flowering of railroad photography in America. Photographers vied with one another to find archetypal railroad scenes that they recorded with novelistic precision. The most demanding technical efforts, however, were devoted to capturing the railroads at night. Here, in a stylish and moving book, are the last great steam engines, lonely motormen, silent stations, and more, all evoking the spirit of night railroading-as quintessentially American as cool jazz-in its glory days.

Starlight on the Rails celebrates the work of mostly unsung artists in stirring duotone photographs. The authors of this book and their 20-odd fellows-all highly skilled masters of lighting and composition-created visual poetry that memorializes an aspect of American life that will long be fondly remembered.

JEFF BROUWS grew up in the San Francisco Bay area, simultaneously discovering trains, photography, and the writing of Jack Kerouac at the age of 13. His photographs have appeared in several books, including Highway: America's Endless Dream. He now lives with his wife in Red Hook, New York.

EDWARD DELVERS traveled the country photographing trains through the late 1960s, then studied photographic science at MIT under the tutelage of Dr. Harold Edgerton. He has since worked in fields from aviation to satellite communications. He lives in Techachapi, California.

RICHARD STEINHEIMER, whom many consider the dean of American railroad photographers, has published numerous articles in Trains magazine and several books. He lives in Sacramento, California.

90 photographs in duotone, 6 photographs in full color, 113/8 x 105/8"

About this title

About the Author:

Jeff Brouws grew up around the San Francisco Bay area, simultaneously discovering trains, photography, and the writings of Jack Kerouac (who was a brakeman for the Southern Pacific in the early 1950s) at the age of thirteen. His photographic work has been published in several books, including Railroading West (1976) and Highway: America's Endless Dream (1997). Edward Delvers grew up in Japan at a time when steam was still king. After his family returned to the United States, he traveled the country photographing trains through the late 1960s, then studied photographic science at MIT under the tutelage of Dr. Harold Edgerton. He has made a career in numerous fields, ranging from energy research to satellite communications to aviation, meanwhile maintaining photography as a passion.

Review:

"Although O. Winston Link's work is well known, this volume displays his unsung colleagues whose visual poetry memorializes an aspect of American life that many remember with fondness."

About this edition

• Publisher: Harry N. Abrams
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0810941678
• ISBN 13: 9780810941670
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 144