PDP #163: Vernonshot

During the course of gathering impressions and information for my Tunnel Visions: The Los Angeles County Metro Rail post, I assembled a lot of photographs - far more than I needed, if only because I was keenly aware that I had to try and anticipate everything I might need for the post, because I would not have an opportunity to return and gather what I'd missed. So I was gathering plenty of photos of the stations themselves - I would alight from the train, get some good photos of the station exterior, return to the platform, board the next train, ride to the next station, and repeat the process. The long headways on the Blue Line made this somewhat stressful - sure, I had plenty of time in theory, but if a southbound came along earlier than I expected, I'd be on the platform for another fifteen minutes waiting for the next one.

Below is one of ten photographs I took in the immediate environs of Vernon station on the Blue Line. Since I was hurriedly skittering clockwise around the intersection taking shots from every angle before the next train showed up, it's no surprise that I attracted some attention. One guy, waiting at the station entrance for some reason, asked if I was "some kind of photographer" in a tone that suggested he didn't think I was. Another asked me if I was a cop, because if you're an undercover cop and someone asks you if you're a cop, you have to say yes (this is NOT true). No one in Toronto, Montreal, or Chicago has reacted to my transit photography before - for two guys to do so at the same place was something I didn't expect.

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