Kinsey Photographer the Locomotive Portraits: A Half Century of Negatives by Darius and Tabitha May Kinsey

Rating:
Summary: Compilation of Incredible Locomotive Photographs
Review: I have looked at many hundreds of railroad books (and well over 100,000 photos), but the photographs in this volume are the best I've ever seen. Kinsey used a view camera and 11"x14" glass plate negatives to produce large contact prints for sale to the subjects (locomotive crew members) early in this century. The results are absolutely stunning; every photo has extraordinary tone and detail, impossible to produce with the small format (35mm and rollfilm) cameras commonly available today. This is a "must have" book for any photographer who wants to see what print quality large negatives are capable of producing. Darius Kinsey is the "Ansel Adams" of railroad photography.

Rating:
Summary: Quality throughout
Review: This book is a source of absolutely excellent photos of Shays, Heislers, and Climaxes used in the logging industry in the Pacific Northwest. With his huge box cameras and glass image plates, Kinsey was to B&W photography of the period as IMAX is to color motion pictures of today. The photos are the best B&W photographs I have ever seen on any subject. They are definitely of museum quality.

Geared Steam Locomotive Works

Rating:
Summary: Superb!
Review: This book is a source of absolutely excellent photos of Shays, Heislers, and Climaxes used in the logging industry in the Pacific Northwest. With his huge box cameras and glass image plates, Kinsey was to B&W photography of the period as IMAX is to color motion pictures of today. The photos are the best B&W photographs I have ever seen on any subject. They are definitely of museum quality.

Geared Steam Locomotive Works

Rating:
Summary: Quality throughout
Review: This is a beautifully produced work of a master photographer. The large format duotone prints are a joy to look at, with crisp detail and lovely tones. The book provides excellent examples of Darius' ability to capture the majestic beauty of hard working (but well cared for) steam locomotives (both geared and rod), along with the people whose lives they touched (engine crew, loggers, camp crew and families). I would have paid $20 each for several of the prints in this book. This is primarily a "picture book", but the additional commentary from railroaders and loggers of the Kinsey era adds that personal touch that the photographs so often contain.