Southampton and the New Forest - No. 1 : Southampton and the New Forest

Following the demise of steam, there was for a while the impression that the contemporary railway scene would be of little interest to the enthusiast.

Faceless boxes on wheels pursuing their efficient course through the landscape with little in the way of variety.

With hindsight, this was far from the case and as time has moved on, more and more enthusiasts are looking back at the railway scene in the decades after the end of steam with a great deal of nostalgia.

Fortunately there were people around who continued to record what was an ever changing spectacle in those years.

One of these was John Dedman. His photographic efforts were focused on the area around Southampton and the New Forest which he knew well.

His good local knowledge and connections allowed him to record both the unusual as well as the regular workings.