| Welcome to Valve Gear Media :: Aboard the action! |
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What is Valve Gear Media? Valve Gear Media is a subsidiary of The Intercity Platform. It specialises in the post-production of the The Intercity Platform''s showcased video content - all with many themes depicting the railways of Australia and other abroad. For many years The Intercity Platform has showcased many railway photographs from Australia, Asia and the United States. They all follow a common theme depicting and exhibiting the Trains, Tracks and Stations of the railways concerned. Now, with the common availability of broadband internet connections world-wide, the affordable availability of Digital Video cameras, and the increasing popularity of websites showcasing video content, The Intercity Platform seeks a new medium and dimension. The Intercity Platform will showcase the Trains, Tracks and Stations of today's railways through video and sound. So far in the United States, Valve Gear Media have captured the very unique, artistic and uncommon footage of some of today's railroads. These range from the PATCO in Philadelphia; the world famous San Francisco Cable Cars; and a rare and exciting cabride aboard a Decapod (2-10-0) Steam Locomotive. In Australia there is continuous footage on the world famous Great Zig Zag Railway in Lithgow, NSW; and of mainline excursion operators in Sydney.
Why the change from stills to video? It all started with stills. I took photographs and lots of them. Not just to detail and record our railway activity and history, but also to tell a story. It began by the wonderful discovery that putting these photographs into a consistent chronological line told a story to all those who were interested in hearing it. Then I moved on to capturing some steam trains on to video using digital cameras. It wasn't a simple case of press-record-stop. It involved a similar process to editing digital stills: the upload to the computer, the editing, the adding all sorts of nice and fancy touches, and finally, a story was made! I got a strange sense of satisfaction out of all this. Compared to digital stills you can see, and more importantly hear, the train and everything else in the action.
Abit About yourself
It should be obvious now that I'm a railway enthusiast. There is not much about me really. I'm 20 years of age, live in Wagga Wagga, NSW, and I'm studying television production. I like long walks on the beach, and candle lit dinners... If reading about my life does really intrigue you, read the About section on The Intercity Platform |
