British Railways class 4MT 2-6-4T 80002
Nikon D600, Nikkor AF-S 24-120mm f/3.5-5.6G at 120mm, 1/200s, f7.1, ISO 640

What was I photographing on this day in previous years?

Ten years ago it was this British Railways standard class 4MT 2-6-4T steam locomotive at Keighley station on the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway.

The tight curve and steep gradient out of Keighley station always makes locomotives work hard and there are a number of spots from which interesting and dramatic images can be captured.

Southern Railway Battle of Britain class 4-6-2 34053 SIR KEITH PARK
Nikon D600, AF-S NIKKOR 24-85mm f/3.5-4.5G ED VR at 48mm, 1/125s, f8, ISO 2000

What was I photographing on this day in previous years?

Five years ago it was a steam gala at the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway (K&WVR).

Southern Railway (SR) Battle of Britain class 4-6-2 34053 SIR KEITH PARK was visiting from the Severn Valley Railway (SVR) but managed to wreak havoc with the day’s timetable thanks to defective sanding gear (something vital for the constant climb up to Oxenhope) and a leaking piston valve.

Built by the Southern Railway at Brighton Works in 1947 as 21C153 (designer Oliver Bulleid employed an idiosyncratic numbering system for his locomotives) and named after Air Chief Marshal Sir Keith Rodney Park, GCB, KBE, MC & Bar, DFC, the First World War flying ace and Second World War Royal Air Force commander, the locomotive saw only 18 years service before being withdrawn in October 1965 but luckily preservation would beckon and 34053’s restoration was eventually completed in 2012.