Dave Hill, from Bodenham, Herefordshire.

d.hill952@btinternet.com

Interests:

Bodenham Chapel

Steam Railways UK & abroad

Herefordshire churches, chapels & features.

Football (92 club).

My early trainspotting days began at Bromsgrove High School c1957 due to peer pressure. I initially spotted at Cofton churchyard, Groveley Lane (Rednal) and Longbridge and Barnt Green before discovering the big wide world of Birmingham New Street and Snowhill and then the exotic Tamworth spotters field, Tyseley (relatives there to visit) and trips to Grantham using a 5 shilling Midland Red 'Day Anywhere' ticket - about a 5 hour journey but have 4-5 hours spotting. I then joined various loco-spotters clubs for shed visits but mostly with the Birmingham & District loco-spotters club (also Bromford & Wolverhampton clubs). I then formed 'The East Worcestershire Railway Club and managed about 6 minibus trips around the UK. I didn't travel on steam that much, apart from railtours from Birmingham, until the last Scot trip on 13.02.65. Having boarded and queued for tickets we found that they had sold out and were thus ejected at Wigan. Disappointed but had to make our way back to Birmingham without knowing any of the workings in the area and managed to travel with 45372, 45375, 70027, 70044, 45694 & 73021. The rest as they say is history with regular trips to the North=West, Southern and West Yorkshire as well as numerous Scottish railrovers.

Equipment. My first camera was a 2.25in square neg 'Coronet Flashmaster' with a shutter speed of 1/30 so few photos from that era 1959ish included. I then graduated to 35mm with a Dixon's 'Mastra V35' which was OK then to a Dixon's 'Taron Rival'. Good lens, good shutter speeds but had the problem of the wind-on mechanism damaging the film causing many partial double exposures. Later changed to a Miranda Sensorex, a Minolta ?, then to Canon AE1, A1 then EOS300 which I still use.

Black & White film used can often be spotted from the reference on each photo to the film used F=FP3; H=HP3; p=Pan-X; T=Tri-X. All those with reference numbers I have found the original negatives for, others am still searching,

Colour film used varied from Kodachrome 64 & Ektachrome, to Agfa CT18, Gratispool (actually kept its colour quite well!), Orwo, Perutz, and for the last many years Fuji Sensia, Provia & Velvia. I now (2020) use whatever Fuji film I can get but am more than happy with the new Ektachrome. All slides & negatives have been scanned using a Nikon-LS5000 scanner, and prints with an Epson flatbed scanner. I do not used any 'improvement' software other than Picture manager which I use occasionally to crop or auto-correct the photos, hence many scans from negatives show scratches accumulated in 40 years in the loft. I did dabble in Super 8 cine in 1967-68, and some video but never have time to look at these.

You are welcome to use any pictures for personal (non-commercial) purposes or for Society magazines. If you decide to improve any photos or remove scratches I would kindly ask that you email a copy to me as above. Have fun. Dave Hill.

For those unfamiliar with locations I give below the main city for several mentioned locations.

Kingmoor, Upperby & Citadel - Carlisle

Snow Hill, New Street & Aston - Birmingham

Waverley, Haymarket & St. Margarets - Edinburgh

Ferryhill - Aberdeen

Buchanan St, St. Rollox, Eastfield, Polmadie & Dawsholm - Glasgow area

Ryhope, Silksworth, Pelaw, Seaton - near Sunderland

Cricklewood, Nine Elms, Willesden, Camden, Plaistow, Kentish Town, Stratford, Feltham - London

Colwick, Annesley, Staveley, Langwith, Killamarsh, Bulwell Forest & Westhouses - Nottingham/Chesterfield/Sheffield/Rotherham area