Pictures in Chicago with James!

So James is one of my friends from college, and he's been into photography for awhile now, but recently decided to upgrade his camera and take a class, which I think is awesome. He's from Chicago and his parents still live here, so he's around fairly often, this past weekend he made a special megabus trip up for an afternoon of hanging out and taking pictures with me! And it was so awesome!

You can check James blog out here--I don't think he's put his Chicago pictures up yet, but I'll try to let you know when he does. I think it's so beneficial for photographers to shoot together, because you can learn so much from each other and because it's really interesting to see how different two people's pictures of the same things can be.

So, here's a picture looking down the subway (that's the Red Line, for you locals). I love the perspective and shadows, but I think I might like to shoot this again. I can't wait for you to see James'--he was looking the other way, and caught a great one of the train coming around the bend in the tunnel.

We started out in Chinatown, both for pictures and for lunch, and this hilarious sign was on the door and begging for its picture to be taken. The sweat drops and the crazy mouth really complete the effect for me. If anyone is curious, we ate at The Three Happiness, which was really good and reasonably priced. Although James did get something with potatoes in it, and we're pretty sure those potatoes were frozen crinkle-cut french fries. Funny, but still tasty. :)

James actually caught this and commented that it would be a cool picture, but I think he was a little shy about taking pics of strangers. I was like, "I'll do it!" I think he did end up taking a couple too--this was the only one I shot, but I love it. I feel like I need more of this.

Just a little snapshot of a butcher shop--these drawings of animals are cuter than what was hanging in the windows, I can tell you that! (Just to avoid confusion, I'm a total meat-eater and in no way a vegetarian, but I do prefer to just see it when it's cooked ... and headless.)

A bike ... I'm not sure how much I'm loving this, but I do like bikes (especially my own, a bad ass '73 Schwinn Breeze, green) so I think I'm going to have to keep exploring the possibilities. Also, I did a lot of black and whites in this shoot, which reminds me of being in school. Fun!

WHAT?!?! I LOVE this sign. It's so 70's. The only thing that could make it better is if the lights were on, but I still love it like this. :)

Oh, and speaking of signs--I love old, rusted out, turned off neon signs. This was actually a really tough picture to take--the angle was odd, it was a long sign (it actually said "Overseas Art & Travel", but since I like art and travel both so much, I decided that I could take one of just those two words), there was no good way to get into the street to take it ... but I think it turned out pretty well in spite of the challenges.

This is the Winter Garden in that big fancy library downtown (I totally forget the name of it--help?). James set off an alarm by walking down a hallway, which made me laugh because I am ALWAYS setting off alarms and getting my own private security guards in places like that. But we could take pictures in the main room, and I loved the shadows.

This was on a bridge ... I think on Roosevelt? We were around Roosevelt and Congress. I remember looking down over train tracks when we were in the (miles long) line to get into the Obama election-night rally in Grant Park, and I was glad to see them again and get a shot. I think I'd like to get one going the other way at some point, but this was the best view from this bridge.

This is down by the lake, which is where we were heading when we were on Roosevelt. No significance to the 58, it just happened to catch my eye and I liked the cracks.

We found this SWEET little row of boats ... I know nothing about boats, actually, so I have no idea what kind these are, but I am SO excited for it to get warmer and to see all the boats out on Lake Michigan (and take pictures of them!). Having a giant lake here is almost as good as an ocean and it makes me happy every time I see it.

You could definitely see the storm clouds rolling in, and I loved the one lone boat.

And a similar shot in color.

This one was my favorite, though, with the little boats in the foreground. I'm in major love.

It was starting to sprinkle by this point and most people were clearing out, but I had to stop and take this picture of the two couples walking there. And I love how the people in the shot totally put the whole thing into perspective, because without them, you'd have no sense of scale whatsoever. Also, I really enjoy cropping with the 1 to 2 ratio and think I might have to do that more often.

James and I ended up hanging out under this bridge outside the Field Museum (it's just a pedestrian walkway, not a road or anything), and obviously plenty of other people had the same idea. And I loved the silhouettes of people trying to wait out the rain.

And this is the same thing on the other side of the bridge. I like the bike there, but really my favorite part of this picture is the misty museum in the background. I thought both these pictures were really fun.

I had THE best time with James on Saturday! And he's going to come back so we can do the architectural tour with Amy and Billy, which James will kick butt at (since he's awesome at the architecture pics ... I try to keep up). And we always have a good time together!

I've been enjoying my camera so much lately, especially as it gets nicer out.

Still waiting for some sunshine to get the cattails, but hopefully it won't be long!

My cute little pets!

So, some photographers post pictures of their kids but I don't have kids, so pets it is! I love them so much, and I may be biased but I think they're the best models in the whole entire world. :)



This is sweet little Ricker laying on Billy's homework.



We left for a little while to run errands and when we came back, she had eaten the corner off of it. And in true cat form, she didn't even pretend to be sorry.



And this is my cute little Flash! We were on a walk and I asked Billy to run around with him, so he did, and look how happy Flashy looks! That dog looooooves running. :)



And here's his cute little face from the front! He's loving spring--sometimes we'll be moving around or getting ready to take him out and he'll just sit there and smile at us.

Yay for spring, and yay for me having such cute animals! Woo!

J4F

J4F totally means nothing to anyone unfamiliar with Plainfield, but it stands for Just4Fun, which is the go-kart and putt-putt place where my good friend Maggs worked through high school, and I also took these pictures just for fun. So there you go.

Anyway, I made an effort not to take any pictures in focus the other night--a few snuck in, but mostly not, and it was really fun.

This is the creek that runs through my apartment complex, and I like how it looks like a painting. Also, Billy has been taking me around and doing vision experiments on me for school (nothing major, just like ... can you read this sign from here) and a couple nights ago I had to walk around without my glasses on, which was kind of bizarre, actually. I realized that I recognize a lot of things I can't actually see, which is cool, and it's totally weird when I suddenly realize there's someone coming toward me. But anyway, the point of all this is just to say that I think this picture is not entirely unlike how I see without my glasses or contacts.

Some school buses! This is actually one I'd like to try to reshoot, or some variation of it. The flare is a LITTLE fun, but I don't love the blown out sky, and I think I might want a smaller aperture. You don't think aperture is going to matter much when you're shooting out of focus, but you can start to see where it makes a subtle difference.

It's Flash! My little golden sunshine puppy! This isn't actually my favorite picture ever of him, because he usually looks happier and more thrilled about life, but he was just NOT in the mood to model for me and this was about as good as it got with the sitting still. But he's still the cutest puppy in the universe, so he can be on my blog.

This is where the sun started going down behind the trees behind my apartment, and I liked it. I'm going to REALLY like it when those trees grow some leaves. Any day now.

Blurry lights at Chili's! Yeah, I totally took my camera in. I had been having a mad craving for this fried tilapia that I'd had there a few weeks ago, but they didn't have it and in hindsight, they probably were only serving it for Lent. So I went for a blackened tilapia instead, and seriously, if you are trying to watch your calories (as I am, and I've lost six pounds, so yay for me!), that is the thing to eat. It was so spicy that I didn't even finish it, nor did I eat probably more than a cup or so of the rice that came with it, and I was STUFFED. I had leftover calories galore that day. And now I'm getting hungry again. I always start talking about food right before lunch, and I've gotta stop doing that.

This is Portillo's, which, if you don't live up here in the Chicago area, is a hot dog place. This one also has pasta, which I'm into. But it's so funny and kind of amazing--until we moved up here, me and Billy had never really seen just a free-standing hot dog restaurant. But anyway, I love this pic and I took it from the car, and that's another I might like to revisit sometime. The colors are so fun, and again, it's not unlike my uncorrected vision. In fact, I can look at this and see blobs of light and be pretty sure which one is a streetlamp, which I think is kind of weird.

This is also Portillo's, just with a different split tone on it. I thought some of the nerds out there might be interested in seeing how different split tones change a picture, and as for me, I just liked them both and I'm the boss of this blog.

That's me! I don't make appearances in my own blog much, but I figured while I was taking blurry pictures, I might as well take one of myself in the mirror too, right?

This one, obviously, is more or less in focus. I can't decide if I like it or not. This tree is outside my apartment complex and there's a light that shines on it and it's like entirely yellow against a black sky, and it's really stunning. But in the picture, the yellow was like ... blowing out. So I adjusted the color temp in RAW (just space out if this is all jibberish to you, I'm sorry), but in hindsight, I maybe should've just adjusted the saturation. Maybe I'll try that tonight.

Anyway, I totally took this picture squatting down, with Flash's leash around my bicep while he tried to yank me over in hopes of getting a closer whiff of goose poop, or whatever it is that he does. So it's a miracle that I got such a clear shot, under the crazy conditions.

And finally, this is one I took of the lights reflecting off the creek, and it's one I'm kind of interested in trying out again with a different lens. But I LOVE the colors, the blues and golds, and I'd like to give it another shot. And that was the really fun thing about the shoot--I felt like I got in some good experimenting I had a lot of fun doing it, and it made me want to take more pictures. Yay!

Blue Heron

So Billy told me a couple days ago that he had seen a heron down by the creek that runs through our apartment complex, and I was so sorry that I'd missed it. We were out again yesterday and he spotted it (I swear, I am so unobservant), so I ran up to get my camera and I ended up following this bird around like a crazy person, just snapping away. In fact, I am probably going to go on to bore you with how many blue heron pictures you're about to see, but totally whatever, I'd doing it anyway.

So I know that some of the people who read my blog know that a couple years ago, I lost my friend Ginny Buehler to breast cancer. She was one of the most beautiful and special people I have ever known, and I still miss her like crazy. She loved blue herons and just thought they were the prettiest things around, and especially after she died, they became kind of a symbol for her to the people who knew her. Her team for Race for the Cure is called Team Blue Heron, and while I'm sad that I won't be there in her memory this year, it was still really special for me to get to see the heron and think of her and feel connected to her in a small way.

Fun Day in Chicago!

You guys, something is happening that I swear, I never thought I'd be able to say again. I am almost entirely caught up on everything, AND I've started updating my website, which I should be done with by the end of the week. Amazing!

I've had a little bit of time for fun pictures, both taking them and editing them (the trick is always to be able to do both), and I think I may actually try to open an etsy shop for photography prints (and, let's get serious, other little arts and crafts) in the next few weeks. I'll keep you posted on how that goes!

In the meantime, here are some fun shots from a day I spent in Chicago a few weeks ago (the day I did Kristin's headshots ... I got in a few sweet ones of Lake Michigan while I was with her also).

I hadn't really thought about such a huge lake freezing, but that wood is most definitely where water should be. And all that white stuff on the horizon? Ice. You know how I hate winter but it was all just so PRETTY! So I briefly forgive you, winter.

Loved this one even more. Love the colors, love the ice chunks, love those two gulls that almost blend into the background.

I am really into blurred out pictures of lights right now. I love how moody and abstract they get. This particular one was taken at the Chicago Brauhaus in Lincoln Square, which, as far as I can tell, is one of the most awesome restaurants in town. We actually went on St. Patty's Day weekend, but this place was so, SO German. Our waitress was an older German lady, the band was German (with sparkly vests!), people were coming in wearing lederhosen ... THE WORKS.

Basically, Billy put it best with the observation that it was like we were in an episode of the Simpsons. People were drinking out of boots, and I don't mean the cute little Texas Roadhouse-sized ones, I mean like Das Boot from the movie Beerfest. Some Irish dancers came in and did some clogging, they were playing the Chicken Dance (which Amy and I did in the waiting area), there were some kids dressed like Hummel figurines, and seriously, we looked over at one point and there was someone dressed as A SEA CAPTAIN. It was magnificent. And the crowd was so funny, too--there were a lot of people our age, but also a lot of super old people. The hit of the dance floor was an old dude that looked just like Mickey Rooney. I declare this place glorious and can't wait to go back.

And speaking of Billy, this is my cute boyfriend! He NEVER agrees to let me post pictures of him but he agreed to this one, and I'm glad because he looks awesome. We were on the train and he let me take his picture (he also never lets me take pictures of him in public--he's such a tyrant!), and I loooove how it turned out. Something about pictures on public transportation just works for me.

Anyway, I'll keep you all posted on the status of the website update, and if we can get a weekend out with rain, I'll keep the pictures coming! :)

Future Superstar Kristin's Headshots!

You guys, Kristin is like ... the coolest. Ever. And we met in the most entirely ridiculous way.

I subscribe to a couple of feeds on Craigslist that post creative jobs, so that I know when someone is looking for a photographer and I can get in touch with them. People on Craigslist can be kind of touchy if they feel like people aren't paying what the job is worth, and I totally get that, but I also try to keep in mind that different people have different needs and different budgets, and in general, I'm not one of those "reply posters".

Except for this one day.

Someone had posted some really rude post about how he needed headshots but how headshot photographers were too expensive, but he would buy someone lunch to do it. WHAT?!?! And the whole thing was just so snotty and rude that I couldn't handle it. So I uncharacteristically made a reply post and it's possible that I called him a turd. And by possible, I mean ... I totally did.

So anyway, Kristin sees this and sends me an e-mail and is like, "Yes, I totally agree, and I need some headshots, so what do you say?" And naturally, I was all over it. I told her later how amused I was that she responded to me in smackdown mode, and after I called some kid a turd, and she said that she could just tell that I meant business. Ha! I love this girl!

Plus, she's totally gorgeous and photogenic!

I was letting her flip through the pictures on my camera when we were in the car, and she stopped on this and was like, "THIS IS MY HEADSHOT." I was so excited! I love it when people are happy with their pictures and get something they're truly in loooove with.

I just think this is too cute and I love the headband. We went out to the beach near Rogers Park, and it was still cold so it was fairly deserted, which was awesome. The ice and snow on the lake just made a perfect backdrop. I was BEYOND thrilled to get to shoot at the lake, because I consider a nearby beach one of the great perks of moving here. :)

And a smiling shot! I can't remember if this one was taken at the beach or if we were at the Baha'i temple in Evanston, which has some cool gardens but is really just an amazingly impressive building. I had no idea that something like that existed, so in addition to a photoshoot, I felt like I got a little field trip too!

For these last two, we were in Kristin's apartment, which was like ready-made for some pictures. She had bright paint on the walls (which perfectly coordinated with the outfit, I thought) and north-facing windows. And the camera just loves her.

And finally, this one! Great angle, great light, great model! Kristin was telling me about the kinds of acting opportunities there are in Chicago ... there's theatre, of course, and also a good amount of film, but something I didn't know was that a lot of commercials are shot here. So I'm hoping I get to see her in a national commercial soon! Plus, I graciously offered to let her buy me a car when she hits it big. :)

Thanks again, Kristin, for being so much fun and for finding me in the most unconventional way!

Faith & Corey's Wedding

First wedding of the year, friends! And it's of friends! Oh, it all works out. :)

This is the first wedding I've shot for friends since my very first one (shout out to Matt & Kim!), and I was SO excited. I was also so nervous, but I really shouldn't have been. I had such a good time and the pictures came out so pretty, which of course always happens when you have good looking and/or fun people to shoot. (Faith and Corey were, of course, both.)

I love these guys so much and I can and probably will write a novel about it. We all went to high school together, although their relationship is a fairly recent development (in terms of when we all were in high school--ten year reunion on the horizon, baby!). Faith was like my long-lost soulmate. We went to school together for like a zillion years but only discovered each other pretty late in high school, maybe our junior or senior year? I feel like it was some combination of English and journalism classes that brought us together, but the details are fuzzy. We lost touch after high school but were reunited a year or so ago through the magic of Facebook, when we discovered that we were, at the time, working across the street from each other. Can you believe that? Life is so funny that way. So we got together and had a delicious lunch at Rock Bottom, which I am in love with.

Corey, on the other hand, was the drummer in my high school boyfriend's band. Even in hindsight, they were surprisingly awesome for a high school band, playing a lot of rock covers at high profile venues such as the homecoming dance, After Prom, and Mongan's (which means nothing to you if you're not from Plainfield). I spent my entire junior year in Corey's basement, and it was probably one of the greatest years of my entire life.


And with that, let's jump in, shall we?

This is the gorgeous Faith right after she'd gotten into her dress. I believe she was smiling at her daughter. And seriously, I love that moment when a bride gets into their dress and they feel all pretty and bridal. AND don't you love this dress? I thought it was so unusual--I hadn't seen anything like it and it's so pretty.

Everyone knows how I love the mascara pics.

How cute is this? That's Mackenzie (fingers crossed on the spelling/capitalization of that!), Faith's daughter and bridesmaid extraordinaire. I love this shot of them getting ready together. :)

And speaking of getting ready, here's the Mother of the Bride, fancying up the flower girl! (Fancying up: totally a legitimate phrase.)

These shoes are amazing! Faith loved them and went with purple shoes for her wedding, a decision that I am all for. And if you can't tell here, they have an ankle strap. Love!

Oh, just a beautiful bridal portrait for your viewing pleasure. We got lucky because Indianapolis actually doesn't get that much snow (ESPECIALLY when you talk to the girl who's been living in Chicago-ish all winter), and it snowed for their wedding! So it was all snow and trees and a little winter wonderland backdrop for their wedding. Someone commented that all we needed out there was a baby deer and it would be complete. Word!

Oh good lord, this is going down in history as probably my all-time favorite flower girl/ring bearer shot. The combined cuteness here is just STAGGERING.

Jeff! Jeff was the bassist in said high school band. He and Corey have been friends since they were small children and it was so fun to hang out with him and his family at the wedding. Here, I snuck into the men's restroom (don't worry, I called out first) and made Jeff give me his best James Bond impression. Not bad, I say!

The groom! He's pretty important, I'd say, and I bet you were itching to get a good look at him, right? Here he is getting his flower pinned on and listening to one of the kiddos. Me and Faith's sister (and bridesmaid extraordinaire) were looking through the pics before the wedding and not letting Faith see (because we're mean), and we were ooohing and aaahing over this one.

I admit that I put this picture in for purely sentimental reasons, but seriously, I love it when friendships can last throughout the years, and Jeff and Corey both look so happy here, and I'm excited that I'm on the other side of the camera. It's like we're having a happy, old friends moment, and it's like ... if growing up I'd pictured how Corey's wedding day would be, I think this would've been it. Happy.

Mackenzie is totally an up and coming photographer--she was snapping away all evening!

OMG, that is the best face ever as he sees her coming down the aisle. I love it! And also, that's Chad, Corey's brother and best man. He was a senior when I was a freshman, so he was like cool and scary, and by the time I was at their house all the time, Chad was off at college. So we weren't as tight, but we also have become friends through the magic of facebook, and here's what I know--he's very nice, very funny, and loves some soccer. Also, funny sidenote, Chad and Corey's dad is some sort of real estate developer (I can never keep it all straight) and my parents actually live on Chad Ct., named after this guy right here. Corey Ln. is just around the corner. Pretty awesome, huh?

I think I'm going to have to declare this one my favorite. It's perfect.

And look at this! I love the cute scrunching of Faith's shoulders, and how Corey has an extra hand holding her arm because just holding hands wasn't enough. Seriously, these two are making me die of cuteness right now. I am SO excited that they found each other.

Can't you just feel the happiness radiating out of this photo?

All I'm saying is, THANK GOD this thing was not an actual part of the wedding. It was just a doll or something (I can't imagine that it has any real use, although I also can't imagine why anyone would want something this horrifying sitting around for show) that sat on a shelf in the pro shop. It is SO CREEPY. I swear, it looks like a real life nightmare. So, of course, I took a picture of it to share with all of you fine folks. I think for me, possibly the creepiest thing about it is its uncanny resemblance to Dustin Hoffman.

Cute cute cute cute cute! (By the way, I know I use that word a lot but I feel like there's no reasonable substitute for it. So if I want to communicate cuteness, I have one option and one option only.)

Alright, so I know the focus is soft here but who cares? It's such a great entrance. Seriously, the joy at this wedding was just so present it was almost physical. I want to go back and do this wedding again because it was just so happy. And because I got two pieces of cake. (I almost never get cake at weddings, one of the job hazards.)

This was taken during Chad's toast, which was probably one of the best Best Man toasts I've heard.

The first dance ... I believe they were trying to convince Mackenzie to come and join them, but she wasn't having it.

I don't usually love pictures of backs, but this one, I totally do. I think it says it all.

The father of the bride dance ... I was really into the composition of this one.

And finally ... a double fisting pic! New year, same love for people with two drinks at a time. :)


And there you have it! That was so fun, such a good wedding and fun to go back through and look at again. :) The gallery is up on my Instaproofs site. Congratulations, lovebirds!