Life In The West

Photos By Justin Franz

Missoula, Montana is more then a place. It's a way of life, where people are much more relaxed and actually slow down to enjoy life. That's something I've noticed since leaving Missoula, where I attend school at the University of Montana, just a few weeks ago. Even here in Maine, "The way life should be," people seem rushed and hurried. It's not like that in Missoula; In the west.

I was able to meet Missoula and the people and places that make it up through the lens of my camera for my Basic Photojournalism class and the images that follow are from that effort. It's hard to capture a way of life on film, but maybe with these few images you too will get an idea of what "Life In The West" is like.

PBR: Missoula's Favorite - University of Montana Lacrosse Game - April 2008Montana Rail Link "Dirt Train" - Bonner, Montana - May 2008University of Montana Steam Plant Operator Jack Burns - January 2008

University of Montana Lacrosse Game - April 2008University of Montana student - Clark Fork River - Spring 2008"Philadelphia Phil" - Northern Pacific Depot - Spring 2008Robert Basher - Quality Seamless Gutters - Spring 2008House builder - Depot St - Spring 2008



Montana Rail Link Chief of Safety and Security Pete Lawrenson

Thanks to everyone who didn't have a problem with a college student and a camera (and big time thanks to Lynda Frost of MRL)

Campaign '08 - Life In America

Photos and Story By Justin Franz

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Congressmen Ron Paul at the University of Montana - April 2008

Without question, the politics of running for president have become part of day to day life in America in 2008. You can't turn on the TV with out seeing a campaign ad, you can't drive down the street without seeing a bumper sticker and now you can't see this blogspot free of presidential politics (Starting from now on, this site will feature some non-rail photography. But no worries, for the most part you'll still get a healthy dose of branchlines, Alcos, SD's and mountain grades.)

As a journalism student here at the University of Montana, I had the chance to cover the election (mainly for my basic photo-journalism class) as it rolled into Missoula, Montana, with visits from Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and Ron Paul. Usually the Montana primary, held June 3 this year, doesn't matter but as the Democratic nomination rolls on, more focus has been put in these later states (I'm not quite sure why Paul visited, considering McCain has secured the Republican nomination.)

On Saturday, April 5 Barack Obama (D-Illinois) brought his campaign to Missoula with a rally at the University of Montana Adams Center. Later that evening he continued to Butte for the annual Montana Democratic Dinner that featured both Obama and Clinton as guests. The following morning Hillary Clinton held a rally at the Missoula Airport, but since I don't have a car and I already got up way too early the day before, I let Hillary get by without being the focus of my camera (I mean come on, 10Am on a Sunday is crazy!)

Barack Obama - Adams Center - April 2008

On April 21, Congressmen Ron Paul (R-Texas) brought the message of his long shot campaign to the University Ballroom here on campus. Even though McCain secured the nomination, Paul continues to run. After signing his new book, Paul gave a speech to an ecstatic crowd.

Ron Paul - University of Montana - April 2008

Everyone is a journalist in 2008

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Note: In no way are these images an endorsement of Obama or Paul for President.

Wishing Trains: A Multimedia Exhibition

For those in the Missoula area this weekend, it might be worth your while to check out 'Wishing Trains: A Multimedia Exhibition" by Catherine Moore about railroading in western Montana at the turn of the century. Along with Catherine's poetry and reading will be contemporary images of railroading here in western Montana by Aimee Lewis and myself. The event includes....

* Model railroads, courtesy the Missoula Model Railroad Club
* An original railroad sound composition by Joe Adkins
* McLeod Family films of Missoula, ca. 1930s
* Archival photographs of railroad promotions and Missoula train culture
* Historical railroad ephemera, courtesy Bill Taylor
* Poetry & nonfiction by Catherine Moore
* Local food & drink

Saturday, May 3, 7:30 PM
Stensrud Building
314 N. 1st St.
Missoula's North Side

Spring Time In Montana

Photo By Justin Franz

Finally after what seems like forever, winter has released its icy grip on western Montana. The weather is wonderful and the greens of Spring aren't far behind. While this is the first post since Febuary, I haven't stopped railfanning. Seven days in late March were spent criss-crossing Montana Rail Link in western Montana over my Spring Break and the results of that effort can be seen on Railpictures.net (Check the link at the bottom of the right column). And not to worry, it wasn't all burned into pixels, plenty of Kodachrome 64 was burned during the week.

Hellgate Canyon, April 2008

With school finishing up, finding time to railfan is tough but with the awsome weather it tough not to. That was the case on Saturday, April 12 after waking up around noon and heading out to Hellgate Canyon, on the eastside of the University of Montana campus this westbound BNSF coal train was lensed coming into town. The path at the bottom of the image is the former Milwaukee Road right of way. The grass ain't green and the mountains are still snow capped, but spring is coming to western Montana.

Mullan Pass and Patience

Story and Photography By Justin Franz

In October 2005 when I made my first trip to Montana, railroading here was in a storm of change between past, present and future. While the main purpose of the trip was to visit family and look at the University of Montana, an underlying goal was to shoot Montana Rail Link’s SD45s on Mullan Pass. Unfortunately the invaders had already arrived in the form of SD70ACe’s and on our one day there, they were the motive power of choice for helpers. I soon accepted the fact that classic images of 45s in helper service would be a subject absent from my slide collection.

Fast forward to President’s Day Weekend, 2008. With friend and fellow UM freshman Cameron Chapman offering a seat to Helena with him and his father Ed to shoot MRL, I really couldn’t refuse. So with a few rolls of film and an empty memory card I headed east on Friday, February 15, under mostly cloudy skies. While the weather wasn’t great, trains were moving and hopes of a successful weekend were high. But upon arriving at Elliston, where helpers on westbound trains usually cut off, just after sunset, everything changed. Sitting on the mainline, having just pushed a westbound freight, was three SD45-2s and an SD40. All the sudden six rolls of film didn’t look like enough.

Below are a few digital images of my weekend on Mullan Pass, one spent waiting and hoping for the combination of sun and SD45s. When you’ve waited three years, what’s another three days?

While there were SD45s, the SD70ACes remained the perfered helpers over the weekend. Here set of Ace's roll down hill at East Austin, Montana.

Close, but no cigar: On Saturday afternoon the 45s finally took to the hill, but under mostly cloudy skies. Those "Classic Images" would have to come another day.

On Sunday morning it looked as if it would finally happen, so we thought. Standing at Tobin we found blue skies to the west on Mullan Pass, and SD45s leading a train to the east! Between them however was this soal crushing scene, a derailed tank car.

By early afternoon the tank car was rerailed and dispatchers in Missoula opened the line up to let eastbounds that had been sitting on the hill to enter Helena. A eastbound BNSF grain train is just east of town, at Tobin.

Strike Two: With the line cleared MRL sent that long awaited westbound to the hill; with an SD70ACe on the point. It was sunny, but it wasn't what we were hoping for.

A westbound grain train storms by the station sign at Blossburg. The next day dawned clear, but again the first two trains of the day on the hill would find the SD70ACe's on the job. It appeared that I would again fail in my quest for 45s on Mullan Pass, until......

Victory: After three years, and three days, I finally shot a set of MRL SD45s in helper service, under screaming blue skies on President's Day. An hour or so before sunset the four classic EMDs grind their way up hill in this digi grab shot, just before droping the Canon XTi to burn the classic image on Kodachrome.

Special Thanks to Ed and Cameron Chapman, Eric Vernado and Montana Rail Link.

Unsettled Weather

Photos By Justin Franz

As a student in the journalism program here at the University of Montana, I find I get some nice perks. One of those is being able to scan slides. Here are two of the first batch I scanned. I’m still trying to figure the thing out and these were touched up in photo shop to meet the quality of the original slide, but none the less hopefully you enjoy.

With Glacier National Park in the background, an eastbound BNSF train heads across the plains near Grizzly, Montana in October, 2007.

While the day started out sunny, it didn't end that way for the crew of Montana Rail Link's Polson Local, seen here in blizzard conditions near Evero, Montana in October, 2007.

Back Under Big Sky

Photo By Justin Franz

After five awesome weeks back east, that included many a memorable day trackside, I’ve finally returned to my temporary home here in Montana. Unfortunately, with school work, a life to lead and other photography duties in photojournalism classes, time spent trackside hasn’t been as plentiful. Not to mention the less then perfect weather that has planted itself right over western Montana for the past few weeks. But that’s ok, there will be plenty of time to shoot later on in the semester, especially when the grunge of winter is replaced with the greens of spring. For now, I shoot what I can. Saturday evening was one of those times as my roommate, Dylan Peck (check out his photo-blog at http://chouinardphoto.blogspot.com/), and I went out for a impromptu night photo session around Missoula. One of the targets was the former Northern Pacific depot in downtown, now owned by Montana Rail Link parent company, Washington Corp. With its classic design and NP ‘Monad’ adorning the sides it’s a reminder of Missoula and western Montana’s rich railroading past, present and future. One I hope to capture on film, and pixels, in the next three and a half years.