O Winston Fingerhood

This is my most successful attempt to pay homage to O Winston Link. Link was a well known commercial photographer who documented the last days of steam railroading in the 1950s. He is famous for his nighttime action shots, images that moved railroad photography into the mainstream of the art world. His work was an inspiration to me, and influenced my photographic journey.

This particular scene is on the Arcade and Attica Railroad, a tourist hauling shortline in upstate New York. We had been in contact with the railroad beforehand, and they gave us run of the property, even moving equipment around to be where we wanted it posed, such as on this bridge. The town even helped out, turning off streetlights for us. This shot became a family affair, as the two daughters of one of our group waded into the river (at my suggestion) to give the shot more human interest - definitely a Link touch.

I actually met Link once, at a railroad show, selling and autographing prints of his work. He was quite old at that point, in his 80s. I began in awe in the presence of this famous person who had inspired me, but that quickly turned to dislike, the more I talked with him.  Perhaps it was his age, perhaps the setting, but he struck me as rather unpleasant, both unfriendly and arrogant.
 http://www.linkmuseum.org/collection.html