I love it! The idea of a 'birds eye view' or more to our point, a model railway view.

Thanks for the video.

Michael.

Did anyone notice the crazy flying these helicopters must have done for the shots? I think you would be hard-pressed to find anyone to do that kind of flying nowadays.
The result though is some really elegant, if at times head spinning, film work.

My favorite part is seeing, and flying around, the industrial installations and getting to observe the interaction with ore and the railway using diesel locomotives.

- Mark

Yes as a pilot myself every internal instinct was screaming wire strike.
I fly rotary wing (gyrocopter) and would not consider flying that low at that speed in a built up and occupied area.
Times have changed.

And thanks for sharing this post.

Regards............Chook.

Hello Mark,

Thanks for the post.

Fantastic train views ........ and even wilder helicopter flying !!


Regards,

PJ

Nice

Hi all,
The film reminds me of the images conjured in my head by countless books.
And in one case a poem, by W H Auden as below, in part:

"This is the night mail crossing the Border,
Bringing the cheque and the postal order,

Letters for the rich, letters for the poor,
The shop at the corner, the girl next door.

Pulling up Beattock, a steady climb:
The gradient's against her, but she's on time.

Past cotton-grass and moorland boulder
Shovelling white steam over her shoulder,

..... " and so on.

The written and spoken words are indeed as lively as a film.

The complete poem can be found here. http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/night-mail-2/

regards
Kimball

Many thanks for this post. I just finished watching the "film".
The question came up at the end as to what will happen in the next 50 years in areal photography.

Now about 25 years later, we have drones. Some are rather powerful and have good range and speed.

The rail network is more busy than since the film was produced. We also have trains with more speed and sleeker, better looks.

However, I would agree with previous posts that it would be more difficult to be able to take as close up to the subject as it has in the past.

I did recognize near the end that very close takes were done on moving cars that had placard stating "Out of service"....

I would have loved to be a passenger on one of those trips!

That being said, I still think that it is possible to reproduce the photography today but more permissions will have to be sought out.

This reminds me of a recent IMAX movie on the Canadian Pacific Royal Hudson called Rocky Mountain Express filmed in the Rockies. Now I want to watch it again!

Hi Mark.

Go for it.... the editing and the post.

You may pick up one on ebay, but I have a little booklet, a collection of railway prose and poems.
Title "The Train" compiled by Roger Green, OUP 1982, 110 pages, line illustrations.
Strangely, it quotes a few of Auden, but not "Night Mail".

regards
Kimball