Full Disclosure: I've been guilty of it. I've conducted a couple of portrait sessions over the years on rarely used tracks. But that's no excuse. Doing so is illegal and it is never safe.
As the Today Show demonstrates, trains are much quieter than most people realize. And if distracted and looking the other way, a train could easily be on top of you before you realize it. So please, let's all stop doing portrait sessions on or near train tracks. If you want to photograph a train from a safe distance, that's one thing. But putting people's lives in danger – including your own – is simply unncessary. [Sean]