Train in Fraser- Grand County, Colorado

Trains have undoubtedly had a tremendous impact on the settlement and development of the western United States and have shaped the course of our country's history, demographics, population, etc. With this photo taken in the town of Fraser, Co., just before sunset on July 4th, I pay homage to the capacity of the train to shape our lives and landscape.

In Grand County, Co., the train continues to play an important role. In the past, it carried tourists and supplies into the mountains and carried out lumbar and other natural resources to Denver, Chicago and the East Coast. The trains also had everything to do with shaping my favorite pasttime- skiing.

Today, Winter Park Resort remains one of the only ski resorts in the world still connected to its roots via train. The historic Ski Train routinely takes skiers to and from Denver right to the very bottom of the chairlift through Moffat Tunnel, one of the most famous and longest train tunnels in the world! It runs throughout the year and enables modern day tourists to experience a little bit of the "old west."

With this photo, my aim was to capture the train at a "standstill," even though it was speeding past me while I was snapping away. I quickly toyed with the various settings on the camera, and although admittedly too many of the pics in this series came out blurry, or didn't capture the feeling I was looking for, this one did it for me. Although its moving so fast, it appears to be somewhat still. My hope was that the stillness of the train emphasizes the constant, enduring and inflexible character of the mountains in the background. I typically find myself trying to juxtapose everything in my photography, so my natural inclination was to capture the train and its speed to contrast the mountains; however, with this photo, I feel that capturing the trains stillness infact highlghted the mountains even more so.