A Chicago photographer finds his 'winter tradition' shooting CTA's holiday train

For many Chicagoans, the surest sign that the holidays have arrived isn’t the first snowfall, but the Chicago Transit Authority’s holiday train, decked out in twinkling bulbs and garland and dashing through the city’s neighborhoods.

That beloved CTA tradition for three decades is the subject of Chicago photographer Daniel Moreno’s new book, a collection of photos that captures the train over the years.

“Chicago, by the nature of how it works, there’s something specific to photograph each season,” Moreno said. “In December, that’s the holiday train.”

Moreno, who moved from Venezuela to Chicago eight years ago, said he first discovered his love for photography in college, when he took an introductory photojournalism course. Today, he splits his time between working as a producer at Univision and as a freelance photographer and videographer.

The idea of photographing the holiday train, he said, came naturally.

Moreno first encountered the holiday train in 2019. He took a few photos and realized he’d found something special. From that year on, he made a plan to photograph it annually, and it has become a “winter tradition” for him.

Moreno’s photos capture the holiday train from station platforms, streets below the elevated tracks, inside the train cars and from the sky — his favorite shots are to set the train against the city’s iconic skyline. He said he uses a mirror-less camera, combined with lenses of varying focal lengths, and a drone for those photos.

Over time, Moreno developed a detailed process for photographing the train. He said he keeps a spreadsheet of locations and scouts each spot before the holiday train season starts to test his compositions with regular CTA trains.

Photographing the holiday train also requires meticulous studying of its schedule — the train runs on specific lines once each day — waiting for it to arrive in freezing temperatures and, on occasion, a frantic chase.

“There’s a lot of expectation and planning and excitement, like I’m fighting against the clock sometimes,” he said.

As the project grew, so did his audience, even including one of the train’s most recognizable passengers. The holiday train’s Santa Claus, who usually rides on a flatbed car with his reindeer and sleigh, recently messaged Moreno on social media to compliment his work, he said.

This year, Moreno already has his plan mapped out. The CTA holiday train will begin its run in late-November and continue through late-December. Moreno intends to photograph it again, this time experimenting with video alongside his usual still shots.

Apart from the trains, he has also been building up a collection of photos of sunrises around Chicago, including some of “Chicagohenge,” when the sun perfectly aligns with the city’s east-west streets and creates a golden tunnel of light, a favorite subject for photographers. Perhaps there’s another book in those photos, Moreno said, chuckling.

Years of practice, Moreno said, have changed the way he shoots photos. Early on, he focused on taking as many pictures as possible, experimenting with every angle. Now, he says he approaches each shoot more thoughtfully and spends more time planning.

Still, his philosophy remains simple: the next great image is always somewhere outside, waiting.

“There’s always gonna be a shot out there, about to be found,” Moreno said.