When this image was taken over a half century ago, it’s unlikely the photographer had any inkling that others would benefit. But…through a chain of lucky circumstances the photo ended up being scanned, posted online, and labeled effectively, creating a form of immortality for the photographer if you will. Give some thought to doing the same for others.
Our hobby is research based, photos, maps, and text. As modelers, we rely on photos the most. We all owe a debt of gratitude to that sole who A) at some point in the past took an image we needed to create a model, and just as important , B) created a chain of “historic preservation” in a way that people could find that image. An amazing photo that is never digitized, never copied, and sits in a box in someone’s attic isn’t very helpful to future generations.
We’ve all benefited from the efforts of our predecessors. It’s worth considering that, looking into the future, perhaps to a day when we’re in the big show in the sky, that someone else, another historian or modeler, could benefit from OUR work. Perhaps that person hasn’t even been born yet. It’s worth thinking about paying it forward, giving somebody else information that benefits them just as we benefitted.
It’s really a tragic circumstance where you have a prolific photographer that passes away and, due to benign ignorance, made no plans for the images to live on. Their family likely has no clue what to do, or even an inkling of their value. It’s quite possible they’ll grow moldy in an attic and eventually get pitched. Also problematic is the situation where an image was taken, and uploaded, but is labeled in such a way that search engines can’t find it.
Here are some thoughts if creating a photographic legacy, paying it forward, matters to you:
First, digitize your images, and upload them. That alone provides an enormous amount of protection for the photos. Consider uploading them to several sites so if one platform is discontinued the shots don’t disappear. Flickr is one good site.
Second, HOW YOU LABEL THE PHOTOS IS ABSOLUTELY CRUCIAL!. Despite what you may have read, my experience is that Google keys in on only one thing, the image title. Tags? Long and detailed descriptions? I’ve find them to be totally useless as far as searches go. For example the image above should titled: “Los Angels Junction Railway Alco S2 #4” Don’t label it along the lines of IMG_1234, LAJabc97, CoolLA shot etc. I’ve done that with a lot of my old posted shots and now need to go back and re-label them.
Give some thought to the photo format. Art shots and roster shots have their place, but are a dime a dozen and don’t impart that much information. Make a point of getting shots of everyday action, crews working, cars being spotted, etc. Also, when shooting structures, get some dead on ninety degree angles.
A more controversial topic is one of copyright and use. I can see both sides, but things are slanted very much towards an attitude of “This image is mine dammit, do not, I repeat, do not think of using it”. Mine. Mine. Mine! Again, I can see that side of things, especially if you’re selling the photos. Personally I’ve had only one photo (of a model) that someone else took credit for. It’s rare. Maybe it’s just me but if an image I took helps someone, let them use it. I don’t need credit. The more a shot is downloaded, the higher the likelihood it will live on. Just knowing I was able to pay things forward, help somebody the way people have helped me is enough. Knowing one of my images lives on, even without my name attached to it, is a very satisfying legacy to me.