Matt Ditch Photography Blog

 The view from Slate Fell near Cockermouth around the time of Sunset. 

  A quick snap of the remains of Whitwell level crossing on the Leamside line. I passed over here yesterday whilst out exploring the Shincliffe and Sherburn areas. The leamside line is currently mothballed with no trains having ran on it in over 30 years. 

  Afternoon everyone, I have a few things I need to get off my chest regarding the use of my photography. It goes without saying that I take a lot of pride in my photography, and I enjoy sharing it with you across social media and on my website. However, there have been a few incidents recently regarding the use of my work that I wanted to address here. Firstly, relating to people using my work without my permission. To put it simply, don’t do this. Photography is my job and people do pay me to use my images. Not only is it illegal and a violation of copyright laws, but it is also disrespectful to the time and effort I put into creating these images. If you want to use my work, please ask for permission and credit me appropriately. Secondly, there have been cases where people have cropped or edited my photos without my consent. This is also unacceptable. When you crop or edit my work, you are essentially changing my art and presenting it in a way that may not align with my original...

 

  Hawthorn Leslie 0-4-0ST No 14 (Works No 3056) the last steam loco to work on the HCR returns to Hetton on the 18/06/22.  Full gallery

  BR 2-6-4T Class 4MT No.80136 passes through Goathland with a demonstration goods train

  Looking down Nanny Mayer's Incline My latest disused railway gallery is now live on my website. It covers a walk along the Stanhope & Tyne railway from Lydgetts junction to the top of Weatherhill incline. Below is a small selection of images from the gallery, see individual photos for more details. The full gallery can be found here If you'd like to learn more about the Stanhope & Tyne railway then I highly recommend the books by Rob Langham

Looking back to a cold and grey day in February this year. Hudswell Clarke 0-6-0ST “Illingworth” creeps under the old Wallsend road bridge with a short freight train on the North Tyneside Steam Railway Full gallery >> https://www.mattditch.photography/rail#/north-tyneside-steam-railway-freight-demonstration-day-260223/

It's been a little while since I posted any new models. Well, today I'm very pleased to be able to share my latest creation.  Going back several years one of the first 009 kits I designed was for a Pre-War Sentinel. The model quickly became outdated as I learned new skills and improved my offerings. However, I always intended to re-release it at some point in the future. Over the last several weeks I've designed a completely new model from scratch, which I'm now happy to share with everyone. The attached photo shows my very work-worn-looking Pre-War sentinel trundling along with some wagons. The model is designed to fit a shortened Kato 109 or 108 chassis (Not included)  If you'd like your own the kit can be purchased on either of the below links Website  Ebay

My previous visit to Beamish was in less-than-ideal conditions (rain!). So, when I found out visiting Andrew Barclay No.1219 would be running during the week I decided to make another visit. thankfully the weather was much nicer! And, I was able to record a video of it shunting. Which I'll release this weekend on my Youtube channel (Matt Ditch Photography) The attached image shows 1219 passing by the colliery engine shed with a rake of Chaldron wagons. The full gallery can be found here

 

  I didn't manage to get too many shots at the York show on Saturday. The above shot is probably my favorite from the handful I was able to take. I didn't manage to get the layout details, unfortunately, but it was a very impressive layout! I've always liked the idea of modeling in 0 gauge. But space is a problem for me, so I think I'll be sticking with 4mm for now. I hope to start sharing some of my own modeling projects on this blog shortly. 

 Video of the day - Beamish steam gala. 01/04/23 Unfortunately due to a fault with my video camera, I could not capture any meaningful footage from the recent Steam gala at Beamish. I have therefore put together this video slide show to show off a selection of the images I was able to capture at the event. But, this has given me the opportunity to experiment with a new type of video.

  Hunsley Austerity "Repulse" runs round its train at Haverthwaite on the lakeside & Haverthwaite railway. 

  Return of the blog It has been over a year since my last post on my blog. And I recently found myself wondering how to bring it back. I initially stopped posting because of creative burnout. And looking back I feel like I was limiting myself to only posting certain things that were very time-consuming to make. My idea now is to post shorter posts on a more regular basis. My ideas are things like; * Updates on when I have a new gallery on my website. Possibly including a brief review of the event/railway. These posts would contain my favorite pictures as well along with a link to the full gallery. *Disused railway walks * Photo of the day - a way to maintain near-daily posts. The first one of these is now up. * Modeling - updates on my various modeling projects. I may return to writing more longer posts in the future. But for now, these are my ideas for easing myself back into blogging. I've already made several new posts, which can be found by following the link below. I d...

  One of my many ideas for bringing this blog back from the dead is to have a daily "Picture of the Day" post.  To kick things off here is a picture from the 2019 Tanfield Railway "Legends of industry gala". The photo shows both visiting gala guests outside Marley Hill shed. These are Backworth Collieries No.12 and Stephen Lewin No.18.  The full gallery can be found here 

 Sunderland & Durham Railway - Ryhope to Murton Several weeks ago I walked the trackbed of the Sunderland & Durham railway from the site of Ryhope station (2nd site) up Seaton Bank to Murton station (site of). It was an enjoyable walk and below are some of the highlights, with a bit of information. More information on the line can be found here. The platform remains and NER footbridge at Ryhope Station (2nd site). This shot is looking toward Seaton Bridge over the A1018 starting the climb up Seaton bank Bridge over the A19 with Seaton in the distance The Site of Seaton banktop station the station remains in the bushes Seaton bank top. The Seaham & Rainton railway crossed from left to right at this location Looking towards Murton station and the junction for the line to Durham Elvet. Station masters house on the left Murton station remains, possibly platform? Station access path, which was cleared by locals

 Beamish Steam Gala. 01/04/23 Over the weekend of the 1st &2nd of April, Beamish Museum held its first transport-related event of the year. The star guest for the event was Andrew Barclay 0-4-0ST No.1219 visiting from the Pontypool & Blaenavon railway in South Wales. The engine was operating on the colliery railway with museum resident Coffee Pot No.1. 1219  is staying at the museum till early May.  Below are some of my favorite pictures from the event. The full gallery can be found here. Visiting Andrew Barclay 0-4-0ST No.1219 Foden "Mighty Atom" No.1 behind the Colliery engine shed 1219 & Stephen Lewin replica "Samson" Fowler road locomotive and Sunderland tram No.16

Ribble Steam Railway & Museum steam gala 25/03/23 I felt like the steam gala was a good excuse to make my first visit to the railway. I arrived the night before and stayed in the local Premier Inn, which was quite nice and reasonably priced. My trip down was plagued with cancellations and overcrowded trains, so it wasn't the best ride down! The walk from the City Centre to the railway was very pleasant. And I even managed to find several Geocaches on the way.  Grant Ritchie No.272 of 1894 & Hawthorn Leslie 3931 of 1938 "Linda" cross the level crossing at Lockside road with a mid-afternoon train. The railway itself is just over a mile long and runs through the redeveloped Preston Dock area. It isn't the most scenic of lines. But, it's nice to see Industrial steam locos working in an industrial setting. And that was one of the things that made me want to visit. I found the line very reminiscent of my local railway, the North Tyneside Steam Railway. FR.No.20 ...

  Keighley & Worth Valley Railway Steam Gala. 10/03/23 This was my 4th trip to the railway for their annual steam gala. And, my first visit with snow! I haven't had too much experience with photographing steam trains in the snow. And, I was very excited at the prospect of doing that. Although that did bring some challenges. Namely getting to some of the more remote photography locations. And, I'll openly admit I did fall on my arse several times! ha. The bad weather had affected the day's timetables so trains were either running late or canceled, which was an understandable shame. However, it was still an enjoyable event and a railway I would highly recommend and visit again. Below are some of my favorite images from the day. LMS Jubilee "Leander" crosses Mytholmes viaduct with a mid-morning service to Oxenhope. "Bahamas" shortly after leaving Haworth 52044 & No.85 double head a train away from Haworth. The full gallery can be found here YouTube...

 Head, Wrightson & Co No.21/ Seaham Harbour Dock Company No.16  No.21 was built in 1870 by Head, Wrightson & Co as No.21 at their Teesdale Ironworks in Stockton-on-Tees for the Londonderry Railway to work at Seaham Harbour in County Durham, just south of Sunderland. In 1899 the Londonderry Railway became part of the North Eastern Railway. And in 1900 the Seaham Harbour Dock Company Ltd was formed and the locomotive passed into their ownership, where it became No.16. It remained at Seaham until 1959 when it was sold back to Head, Wrightson & Co. Who restored it to how it would have looked when built. Today the loco is on static display in Preston Park near Stockton. Sister engines No.33/17 and No.1 are based at Beamish museum. No.1, which is nearly identical to 21 is operational and steamed regularly (pictured below).

  North Tyneside Steam Railway Freight demonstration day 26/02/23 Hudswell Clarke 0-6-0ST “Illingworth” is currently visiting the North Tyneside steam railway from its current home, The Embsay & Bolton Abbey Railway in Yorkshire. “Illingworth” was built in 1916 for use at the Ministry of Munitions at Gretna Green, during the First World War. In 1922, it was sold to Bradford Corporation for use on the Nidd Valley Light Railway, where it was initially named “Mitchell”. In 1930 it was named “Illingworth” after William Illingworth, who opened the Nidd Valley Water Supply Scheme. The engine was sold again in 1936 to Sir Robert McAlpine Ltd who renamed the engine “Harold”. It was used in the construction of Ebbw Vale steelworks in Wales. 4 years later in 1940 it was again sold, this time to Mowlem’s who renamed it “Swynnerton”. Following sale to them, the locomotive was used at a variety of industrial locations. Including, Workington breakwater project and Mowlem’s Braehead power st...