Hi. I bet youe wondering why they call me "Mr. Slides." This name was given to me in 1979 by my late friend, photographer James P. Marcus (Jungle Jim). It a name sought after by many imitators and the like, but no one will ever live up to the reasons it was given to my by Jimmy. Unfortunately, due to the envy of this name, I was unable to use it for Ebay, so I chose 02c5vets I have enjoyed collecting the sleek General Motors Corvettes over the years.  I currently have a 2002 C5 ragtop and a 1995 C4 coupe.  I also collect builder plates and Nickel Plate Road/Wheeling & Lake Erie/Lake Erie & Western/Toledo St. Louis & Western railroadiana. 

I started photographing in the early 1970s during college and while working  as a tower operator for the N&W. Traveling was another interest of mine, so I thought what better way to see the world than to photograph trains in as many countries as I could.   I received a BA from the University of Akron and a MA from John Carroll University. 

It over 30 years laternd what a journey it has been. I retired after 35 years in education as a teacher and administrator.  I have photographed railroads, streetcars, buses, planes, and ships in every continent except Antarctica (only because they don have any railroads there), 62 countries, all 50 US states, every Canadian province, Mexico (85 trips),  and all  of the Australian states, including the Northern Territory.    There even a cliff called Benson Falls in Western Australia, which was named after me following a 70 foot drop down an embankment!

During the early 1970s, the railroads started painting locomotives in Bicentennial paint schemes. I made it my goal to photograph as many as I could as these were some of the neatest paint schemes I had ever seen. This was a huge challenge, but I knew I could do it. There were many sleepless nights driving for miles and sleeping in rest areas for the chance to get one of these unique units. Luckily I have a great ability with words, as I had to do a lot of talking to get some of the locomotives pulled out and spotted. With all of this effort, I was able to photograph 80% of the Bicentennials.

In 1973, I started my famous World Tour slide campaigns, photographing trains in the United States, most of Europe, Africa, China, Australia, Mexico, South America, and Canada. I am a Million Miler on United Air Lines. 

One place that I fell in love with was Australia. My first trip there was in 1989 and I have been there 17 times since. I have become very good friends with many of the railroads officials and have photographed most of the country's  locomotivesseveral different timesn numerous paint schemes. My other favorite is Mexico and after 85 trips, I have met a lot of great people, made a lot of good friends, ate a lot of good food, and photographed most of their railroads entire rostersgaint several different times and in several different paint schemes.

At home, I have photographed just about every Class 1, regional, shortline, and many of the industrial railroads in the United States. Over the years, I have been selected by railroads and leasing companies to photograph their locomotives for annual reports, brochures, and calendars. I have had many one-day flights to photograph these locomotives all over the US. I have to admit I gloat a little when some asks, "where were you yesterday, John?" and I am able to tell them that I was in a place like Shreveport, LA doing a photo shoot of the Panama Railroad F40s.  Since 1976 I have shot over 2,000,000 slides and the number keeps climbing.   

A good friend of mine said "The next time youe in the store, or in the barber shop, or in a BBQ joint in Kansas City, or in a flashy LA nightclub, or in the port of Anchorage, or at a Zona Rosa in Guadalajara, or in French Speaking Quebec, or during a visit to the Great Wall of China, or in the outback of Australia, or front row at a Coldplay Concert and you hear a story about some guy from Cleveland, Ohio that was trying to board a plane with 1,000 rolls of film, you can bet it was no other than "Mr. Slides."

NO NEGATIVE FEEDBACK----100%  and over 25,000 positive feedbacks received  in only 3 + years on Ebay!  However, my reputation for fast and courteous service stretches back over 35 years in the railfan and railroad community.   In that time period I have had thousands of my images used by railroads, magazines, books, calendars, annual reports and  articles. 

If you are looking for railroad subjects from not just the U.S.--but from all over the world let me know and I will be more than happy to put them up on EBAY.   Remember, no waiting weeks or months for your slides as my goal is fast and courteous service.