Chicago: My New Hometown

The very first day of my very successful conference was blue blue blue and burning outside. I couldn't wait to get outside and geek out with my camera, and I did... in wedges, no less (my feet despised me for the remainder of the trip). My original goal was to climb to the top of one of the rooftops I was lusting after while watching the view from my window pulse and sway; instead I was greeted by concierge after concierge keeping their tenants safe from the scary photographer as if I was a pit bull after a mouse. These are the best of what I managed:

That was near the beginning. At the end of the trip, I took couple of extra days to wander the city and visit friends. I'm not sure if I forced Nick to come along to the Chicago Architecture Foundation River Cruise with me or if he came willingly; I'm fairly certain I'll never learn. Still, on the way from my hotel to the tour, we enjoyed a large and witty piece of our home away from home - or establishing my new one?

We sipped our Starbucks and bit our biscotti as we eased into the beginning of the tour, compliments of Chicago's Little Lady:

Now, I realize I should be naming these buildings we passed by and were surely told the name and history of, and in fact I'm pretty sure we even received a map... but what struck me was the way the clouds reflected in this building, making it seem almost transparent.

Our fellow tour-goers on the upper deck:

I found, both while shooting and then again after, when sorting, that I am possibly obsessed with the juxtaposition of gleam and grime in a big city. This is the photo that says it all:

You'll see my eye is much more either/or in the rest.

I'm just happy with the crazy clouds in this pic. A wide angle-lens was a nice topper for the whole of the peir, though.

This next one I love. It is my perpetual internal battle of city girl versus country gal, right here in plain sight. I did saturate the colors a bit more than their actual hues, however. I don't usually mess with color much unless it makes it more like the real thing, but I think this post-processing managed to help the feel of the picture come out.

I continue my affair with reflections in photos... it just gives a picture so much more depth... espcially when a subject is inanimate!

This one feels so powerful:

I seem to remember waving at tourists as they passed by when I lived in Virginia. It is so charming...

Another famous building willing to blend in with the sky...

My companion for the trip. I don't know why I like this shot so much... he really is a handsome fellow.

After the tour we ate at my new favorite restaurant, Pierrot Gourmet. It was leisurely and lovely, from the menu to the open walls to the people we sat next to. In fact, I was so satisfied that I didn't get any pictures of the place...

I headed to Andersonville to visit one of my best friends after leaving (everything's great when you're) downtown. He took me on a walk to the beach and waited patiently as my feet stuttered the whole way there.

At one point I saw these skater kids flipping their boards and exuding cool better than I've ever been capable of doing. I wandered over to the area they were skating in hopes of taking a sly shot here or there. Instead, I caught them taking pictures of me, and the bolder of the two then asked that I take their picture. I obliged, and then asked if I could take the same pic with my camera.

Then he wondered if I could catch a photo of him mid-air. Brilliant.

Walking home I kept taking pictures of things Daniel didn't understand why I liked - a broken bench, an almost-ugly house with a teal trim, our reflection in the warped window. But when I stopped speaking midsentence to gaze at this through my lens, he said, "I knew you'd like that one."

Quick Like Bunnies

***The following moments were captured while working as the second photographer for Cathy Kovach (www.cathykovach.com)***

Kim and J.V. are a couple that must have been together forever. They are not only long-term members of the exclusive language club, but they are happy in an easygoing way. They laughed with each other throughout the whole Big Day. There wedding took place in the local outdoor theatre reserved for annual Shakespeare Festivals, and the bride even thanked her friends and family during her vows for withstanding the 95* weather with 100% humidity to see them wed.



Kim's bridesmaids were dressed in the sweetest color combination I've seen yet; a billowy, sugary combination of pool water blue and buttercup yellow. She later told me that she let the girls pick out the dress among themselves.



She was an outgoing bride; we discussed the popular television show depicting Bridezillas and her promise to herself to not approach that level of worry or micromanagement. She was, in fact, only gracious and happy-go-lucky, urging her party to be "quick like bunnies!" in gathering and posing for group pictures in the heavy heat.

Still, I managed to capture her pensive side in one swift, unsuspecting moment. This may be my favorite shot of the entire day:

She and J.V. were cooperative and having fun. They sent their party to the air conditioned (and I heard on the DL, fully stocked) bus every moment it was feasible. This made all of us happy, as their absence resulted in more private moments such as this:

...and silly moments like these:

Such was their coalesced temper. Kim was constantly asking, "Can we do this?" before striking a giddy pose such as overenthusiastic kissy faces to mischievous pinkie-to-lip poses. J.V. was, appropriately, the only one who could keep up.