fourpointedstar

When I first saw this hood ornament, I immediately was taken with how fragile and sharp the front piece was. I was then taken with the luster of the copper color of the animal (perhaps a pegasus?). The copper color and the animal’s shape reminded me of the decorations on the Ishtar Gate, and placing that hood ornament with the rich blue backdrop really completed the enchantment.

As I walked north through the Concours, I passed by the painter; so I made a point to stop by and say hi on the way back south. John Paul is from California and was just in Illinois for an art collaboration, and chose to come to the Concours to paint a car or two. Also, the blue Cadillac in the painting was detailed by a friend’s dad’s friend; life really is only 6 degrees of separation from painter to the artist who created the subject of the painting.

If you take a beginners’ photography class, your instructor is likely to bring up leading lines, rule of thirds, and removing items that aren’t needed as some of the keys to a great photo. I’d like to think that those are the reasons that I love this photo, but it’s probably only because I love the color red combined with the yellow hints in the center-line trim work.

I have mentioned more than a few times that the Geneva Concours can be crowded and those crowds limit the photos that you can capture. In addition to the crowds though is the venue; the somewhat narrow street and shops and businesses also often provide a very cluttered backdrop for photos and the Concours. Which is why I’m thrilled with the simple nature of this photos; the red really brings out the shine of the chrome.

If you’ve known me or followed my photography for a while, you’ll know that I love photographing waterfalls. I’ve lived in the Chicago area for the past 15+ years, and I assumed that I knew about all of the naturally occurring waterfalls in Northern Illinois. But…one of my friends visited Sagawau Canyon Nature Preserve; well that sounds cool – a “canyon” in the Chicago area! And when I looked up the location, I found a random photo on Flickr that indicated that there was a waterfall in that canyon!

So, the next free day, I drove down to see the canyon and waterfall. Well, both the canyon and waterfall within are protected areas due to rare and endangered species of plants, and that is why there are very few photos of either. However, if you stand at the right spot on the walking trail’s bridge, you can see the waterfall … in all of its mid-summer trickle! Needless to say, I’ll be back to photograph this location when the stream has more volume.

I alway enjoy finding new locations to photograph light trails, and I found this particular spot about 2 years before I finally got down to photograph it. Grand Avenue crosses I-90/94 with a perfect view of the Willis Tower, but there’s also a Metra track there too!
However, that Metra line is not used that often on the weekends, so I will have to go back to capture a better photo with the train light trails too. (Oh, and LED billboards are terrible…)

…view older images with the thumbnails below…

…view older images with the thumbnails below…

Most folks from the Chicago area will recognize that darker building, but why is the light blue building taller? I didn’t notice this trick of angles and perspective when I photographed this scene, but now I love the photo even more.

…view older images with the thumbnails below…

…view older images with the thumbnails below…

The concrete and glass exterior of the building on the south side of Wells becomes the perfect canvas for abstract architecture presented by the stepped exterior of the top of the building on the north side of Wells.

…view older images with the thumbnails below…