fourpointedstar

I enjoy the rotating art displays in the courtyard between the Tribune Tower and the Apple Store on Michigan Avenue. Seeing “hope” in such a central point of the city is a wonderful reminder of something that we have to work at, to hope for a better future.
And of course, I had to shoot some light trails on any walk through Chicago!

The day was rainy, but the soldiers still stood guard. With the rainy concrete and the interior lights providing a warm glow, the entrance to The Wrigley Building looked perfectly festive and the marble facade added to the grandeur.

There’s something magical about the hustle and bustle of early December. The busyness but excitement for the celebrations to come; spending time with family, fewer work obligations, and parties. Watching the joy of the people skating in Millennium Park still brings a smile over a month later.

This might be my most serendipitous shot from our Seattle trip in October. Sarah and I were walking back to our VRBO that evening; Sarah wanted to look at a chocolate shop, but as we passed Union Street, the moon caught my eye. My feet were tired and I didn’t have my tripod with me, so this was taken with my Sony propped on top of a circular railing over the 3 story drop onto Post Alley. I probably took more than a dozen photos in my attempt to capture the scene; the ferris wheel would stop rotating, someone else would bump the railing, or I wasn’t standing perfectly still … but in the end I captured this 4 second exposure and only later discovered that it included Venus!

…view older images with the thumbnails below…

The first week of October last year, I took an epic trip to visit waterfalls in Northern Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan; over the course of the week, I visited and photographed around 60 waterfalls (depending on how you segment certain falls). I’ve wanted to make it up there for years but had never taken the time to plan that trip; then Rich from Chicago Streets and Beyond photography group announced that he would be hosting a waterfall trip over the first week of October which coincides with my birthday … what a perfect birthday present to me!

Over the next 4 months, I’ll be posting a photo from each waterfall in the order that I visited them as well as a video of the falls, and I hope you enjoy taking the trip with me.

For this abstracted image, I tried a new technique. In the past, I have used a 50mm lens and swung my camera around, or I have adjusted the zoom or focus while the shutter was open. But I had the idea to hold the lens still using the zoom ring, and then rotate the camera body. I tried this a few times with an all white lights Christmas display, and then a few days later I found this solitary Christmas Tree to photograph. This technique has the potential to be one of my favorite abstract processes.

I remember the first time I heard “My Hero”. I was already a Nirvana fan, and I remember the radio DJ explaining that this song was written by the Nirvana drummer about Kurt.

I’ve been a Foo Fighters fan ever since, and Sarah’s level of love for the Foo Fighters eclipses mine. So, to attend Taylor’s tribute was a simple way to say thank you for 25 years of amazing music.

I figured that Dave (and the rest of the Foo) would play My Hero, and that I would cry. But instead, Taylor’s 16 year old son, Shane, played drums for My Hero. And honestly, Shane killed it: to hear thousands of people sing with Dave while Shane crushed the drums – it was a feeling of pure joy.

And then Dave sang “Everlong” alone. And I cried.
Thanks Taylor for 25 and many more years of great music.

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