Durango and Silverton Night Photo Train – September 2024
In September 2024, Lerro Photography was hired by the Durango & Silverton Railroad to provide lighting for their annual fall photo train. This year, the event was uniquely advertised as “two” all-night photo trains featuring scenic locations from dusk until dawn—something I’ve wanted to do for a long time but could never find a railroad that tried to do it. Luckily, the D&S called me and asked if I would be interested in helping them do it.
For the photo train, the D&S K-28 #473 pulled a mixed freight and passenger train from Durango to Silverton. We spent all of Saturday night taking photos at seven different locations. Our night photo locations included a combination of stationary shots and night runbys. These sites featured the high bridge, Cascade Canyon, the phone booth, the Needleton tank, the Silverton Bridge, and the Silverton Depot. The photographers and railroad crew spent Sunday during the day in Silverton catching up on sleep. On Sunday evening, we reboarded the train and visited six more locations, including Silverton Bridge, Elk Park, Teft Bridge, and the High Bridge. We returned to Durango around 5:30 a.m. on Monday.
With perfect weather conditions on both nights, we managed to capture more locations than I anticipated. The nearly full moon illuminated the mountains and canyons, allowing photographers to take pictures even as we traveled between locations. All the photographers and railroad staff were incredibly helpful in moving the lights around and setting up each scene. We would not have been able to visit as many locations without their assistance.
The Durango & Silverton Railroad is tentatively planning to host the overnight train again in 2026. We will inform everyone once it becomes official.
