My understanding in a nutshell is that the photon travels so fast that it moves at the relative speed of time itself. This causes the Photon to not experience the passage of time, as demonstrated by the Lorentz equation saying when Velocity is the Speed of Light, Duration or Time = 0. Using the Train analogy, the Photon and Time are each trains moving at equal speeds, so relative to the Photon, Time seems to be standing still. In the local, special relativity sense, Time is the other frame of reference moving at the Speed of Light. The Photon is created, already existing at all points of its existence simultaneously, but for no amount or passing or length of time to any "observer" except time itself. Meanwhile, since the Photon travels with time, it measures itself in length, since it does not experience change relative to Time. To observe or measure a Photon, first you would need to stop time at the exact moment when the Photon was created and destroyed, and if you were able to discern it from all other light created at that moment, and if you were able to somehow focus on it, it would appear as a solid line touching all points of its path including its origin and destination. The Photon does not have a "speed" because it does not experience the passage of time for its locations to be compared against each other from one moment to the next, its locations could only be compared from one moment to the same moment, because the Photon only gets the one moment to exist. And actually "moment" even implies the passing of time so it's more like the Photon gets 0 moment to exist, whether it travels across a room or across all of existence it only takes, literally, no time at all. The Photon is the particle of light, and is distinct from the electromagnetic wave of light, which is caused by the Photon disrupting either space from time, or time from itself. So as an analogy, the Photon is lightning and the electromagnetic wave, "light", is thunder, a direct but delayed result of the Photon's passing. Or the Photon is a boat and "light" is the wake of the boat as it passes through water. Since the Photon is instantaneous, it can't be the Photon that takes 8 observable human minutes to travel from the Sun to the Earth. 8 minutes is longer than instantaneous. Instead, the Photon travels this distance at its own unknown pace while everything else existing appears to be paused, and after the Photon is absorbed, Time continues rattling on and the electromagnetic wave follows the path of the already extinct Photon through space and time; where as the Photon only traveled "through" space, and in relationship to time, it traveled "with". And also, theoretically it isn't necessary to "accelerate a particle" to the speed of light, theoretically you could "reduce a particle's mass to 0".