Category Archives: Travel Photography

Photo of the Day: GAR Rotunda

The Chicago Cultural Center (previously the main branch of the Chicago Public Library) houses two eye-popping domes.  This one is the GAR (Grand Army of the Republic) Rotunda, and the other was designed by Louis Tiffany.  This room is a memorial to the Union soldiers who gave their lives in the Civil War; it’s one of the most beautiful and peaceful rooms in Chicago.

 

Photo of the Day: Art Institute Modern Wing

The Modern Wing of the venerable Art Institute of Chicago opened three years ago and has been an unqualified hit among art lovers and tourists alike–not that these two groups are mutually exclusive, but…   This museum is home to 20th and 21th-century art plus the world-renowned collections of modern European painting and sculpture, contemporary art, architecture and design, and photography.  In this photo we see the museum’s popular “Yoga and Picasso” class held on Tuesday mornings. Most people are not aware that Pablo was a yoga enthusiast, often cited as the inspiration for his Blue Period. Next month the museum will feature “Cooking with Matisse”–sure to be a big hit.

 

Photo of the Day: Midway Plaisance in Hyde Park

The Midway Plaisance is a mile-long green belt bisecting the University of Chicago campus. This area was adjacent to the World’s Colombian Exposition of 1893–if you read “Devil in the White City” you know all about this area. The original Ferris Wheel might have been located exactly where this photo was taken.  Today, this is the world’s best place for people watching of Nobel Prize winners. Hyde Park is the part of Chicago where I live as well as my friend Barack Obama.

 

Photo of the Day: Special Effects

This is a test photo for a client, they needed something different and creative. The end product would be a print in a hotel.  So many possibilities with Photoshop–maybe I got a little carried away, but it was fun.

 

Photo of the Day: Crown Fountain

Crown Fountain is a fun place to hang out. Where else can you be drenched by a powerful stream of water bursting from a giant pair of video lips while admiring the stunning architecture along south Michigan Avenue? These teens weren’t admiring the historic architecture, they were just chillin (literally) on a hot summer day.  Now we know where all the students were during the recent public school strike.

 

Photo of the Day: Painting a Mural

When does graffiti become a mural or a work of art? I came upon this artist one morning in Rogers Park, on the far north side. I’m really not sure if his work was sanctioned or condoned by the local authorities, or perhaps they just didn’t see him because of the camouflage jacket he was wearing.  And I guess I will never know.

 

Photo of the Day: Wicker Park

Wicker Park on the northwest side is one Chicago’s most colorful neighborhoods.  Teeming with artists, students, hipsters, hippies, and members of the 47% that Romney says are sponging off the government, the area surrounding Six Corners (Damen/Milwaukee/North) has more tattoos per capita than anyplace in the known world.  Funky shops, funky restaurants, funky bars, and funky bookstores–this area can only be described as funky.

 

Photo of the Day: North Avenue Bridge

My so-called “photo of the day” has proven to be inaccurate: it didn’t even take one week and already I forgot to post a photo to my blog.  I will rectify that oversight by posting two photos today.  This is a night view of the North Avenue Bridge over Lake Shore Drive.  It was taken a month ago on a very warm summer night; we won’t be having too many of those again for a long long time.

Bridge over Lake Shore Drive at North Avenue

 

Photo of the Day: Greek Fest

Mid-August means Greek Fest, and this year was the 63rd annual festival of feta, olive oil, spanikopita, and Greek dancing.  To the uninitiated, the dancing looks like a Greek version of the hora: people dancing in a circle, people pretending to know what they are doing but really just faking it, and people dancing after eating too much food and trying not to be sick.  If you like to eat delicious Greek food with 50,000 good friends, this is the place to be.

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Photo of the Day: Winnetka cafe

I was recently hired by a local bank to capture some artistic photos of the sedate leafy suburb of Winnetka. There were lots of photos of quaint shops, half-timber ersatz English facades, and assorted architectural details, but this photo of a cafe window was my favorite.  I like the colors, the many depths of activity, and the cacophony of shapes.

Cafe window in Winnetka