Phil Quine

I have no doubt that it was my love of railways that conjured up my love of photography.  My interest in railways goes back to before I can even remember.  I grew up near Roby Station on the Liverpool & Manchester Railway where Stephenson’s Rocket once pounded the metal road.  When out for a walk with the dog we would often stop to watch at least one train go by.  I think my interest really took off when I went to see the last steam engine on Sunday 11th August 1968.  I still remember the excitement of waiting for and then watching the Black 5 locomotive No. 45110 thunder by.  I was hooked!  As a child I spent many an hour thumbing through an Ian Allan 1966 Locospotters’ Annual and a 1967 Trains Annual, not really reading the text, just looking at the photographs within.  It seems only natural that as I got older, I wanted to start recording the railways myself.  My first photographs were taken with an old Box Brownie. Quite useless for railway photography, as you couldn’t capture anything that was moving.  My first camera, a Kodak Instamatic, didn’t fare much better, but at least it was a lot easier to use.  The second-hand Zenit-E SLR that I got for my 15th Birthday was the real turning point.  Upon leaving school I did Photography O Level at the Liverpool Central College of Further Education, but to be honest I learned most of my skills from a free booklet on railway photography that came with a rail magazine.  I owe a lot to whoever wrote this gem.  Of course, everyone learns by doing, and over the years my skills developed.  I went on to have many photographs published including at least three front covers and a limited-edition print.  As time has passed by my interests have also progressed and whilst I dipped my toe into Civil Aircraft and Bus photography back in the early days, I now have a broad interest in all things transport.  The mainline railways are no longer a very inviting place for railway enthusiasts and so nowadays I spend my time at Steam Rallies and Preserved Railways, which have a far more friendly atmosphere.  The two sets of photographs I have chosen here represent two areas of photography I particularly like.  I love to take abstract photographs.  The finer details can often be as interesting or sometimes more interesting than the whole.  I take many a picture of say, a headlight, a windscreen wiper, a buffer or an air intake grill.  My other choice, Night photography, has always fascinated me.  The idea of capturing 30 seconds, or even a minute or two of time, into one single image never ceases to amaze me.  The reflections, rays of light, the way smoke or rain turns into a swirling mist, the mysterious shadowy figures in the background, it’s all quite wonderful.  It’s like entering a different realm.  I hope you enjoy this glimpse into my world.