I love the Southern Cross article in the current issue of GR. WOW! A rocky landscape with a mining theme …lots of steam and pulling lots of wagons…my kind of garden railway.
Of course I also enjoyed seeing the German freelance line from Franz Grund years ago–two layouts with two very different approaches in the garden. What I liked better about this article though, as much as I enjoyed the German article, was the point-of-view of the photographs. The Southern Cross author has taken much time in finding the right height to snap his photos! Where as, in the Grund review and others, the point of view of the camera was mostly “helicopter” views–not very realistic if you like being “track side”. Other layouts really have a lot of detail and to appreciate it, you need to be up close to the tracks. I think this is why the European layouts don’t look at realistic in magazines as photos such as these.
GR (I have noticed at times) does make a point about taking pictures trackside but maybe some reviews it just isn’t possible or logistics or something else gets in the way of that “realistic shot” looking up at a passing steamer . Thus, as much as I have enjoyed seeing photos of a Euro layout in GR, many times they don’t look realistic because of the point of view of the camera.
However, I have NEVER seen–in any publication—45mm gauge large scale trains shot at a better angle than in this article for the Southern Cross. WOW! And what a railroad! That railway must be as fun to run as to look at!
Any opinions welcomed about this extraordinary line!
Regards,
Tom M.