360° View of an empty Cullinan Station

[Gabor Kovacs]

I have just found something very interesting on Google Earth, as a recently new add-on feature in the Google Earth, which is called 360 Cities .

Basically, 360 Cities is dedicated to promoting geo-mapped, VR panorama photography and VR photographers around the world.
They are a unique global network of members who are specialists in VR photography and our platform is a highly developed, feature-rich system designed to display the finest quality panoramas to an audience of casual internet browsers, photography enthusiasts, tourists, and those involved in the tourist industry.

One such member of VR photography, is fellow South African - John Gore, who has taken the time to 360° photograph a rather empty and vacant Cullinan Station, which we as FotR regularly use as a terminus for our Cullinan bound trains.

CLICK HERE to see his rather unique photographic view, of a 360° view of an empty Cullinan Station!

For those who don't know how to use this 360 Cities site, simply click on the above given URL, and wait a few seconds until the picture downloads fully.
Even with a rather quick ADSL connection, it does take about 30seconds or so, to get a fully focused picture.
Once the picture has downloaded fully, using your left mouse-button held down, move the mouse in any direction, ie. Left to right or right to left, even up and down, which gives rather interesting results! One can also zoom in and out using your mouse’s' scroll button, which is rather usefully to see how full the ash-pit at Cullinan station, really is!
Spikkels, where are you? The ash-pit needs to be cleaned! ;o)

On the top left-hand side of the picture there is a "control feature - screen buttons", for the real novices of the cyberspace world!


To John Gore, I have directed you to this posting on our forum!

Firstly, thank you very kindly, for your rather interesting photographic work that you do. We as FotR would kindly like to invite and ask that you pay Cullinan Station yet another visit. This time, your visit should coincide with our next trip/s (probably our last trip/s will be at the end of May, before the commencement of "fire-season") when FotR operates our final 2008 -2009 summer season steam excursion trains/s to Cullinan, and we would be honoured if you could take another picture of Cullinan station, when the station is occupied by our vintage steam locomotive and matching rolling stock! I think it will be rather unique, and add yet another interesting "Feather-in-the-cap" 360° photograph, to your already interesting collection on 360° Cities profile!
We really hope that you will accept our invite, and please check listings of our next trips to Cullinan from our FotR Home page or Train Trips page!

Thank you kindly!

[John Ashworth]

Good find, Gabor. If this photographer can get a picture of our train onto Google 360, then I'm sure the FOTR Board could be persuaded to give him a free ride on the train!

[Nathan Berelowitz]

Nice one Gabor and it would be great to see our train in Cullinan on this format. Also now be able to see around your stomach!!!

[John Gore]

Hi guys.

Thanks for the mention. Sorry it has taken so long to reply to this. I was actually not living in Pretoria, so was not sure when I would be able to get around to visit the train stations and create some 360 degree panoramic virtual tours of these fascinating trains and stations.

Anyway, enough excuses, I have now moved to Pretoria pertinently, and am very eager to get in touch with the right people at Friends of the Rail, so we can arrange a meeting in person.

Please PM me with the details of the person I should contact, or contact me through my website below.

[Tom Macrery]

Excellent! And VR stands for what? I'd like to see a picture of the camera. How does it swivel in 360 degrees about 2 axes? Does it stand on a narrow support on the ground? Is that guy in the picture our photographer, John Gore?