Category: Uncategorized

I’m Back, Baby!

A few weeks ago I had the misfortune of working during a weekend that I was meant to be spending with my family following the death of my mom’s husband.  I was bitter and vowed (not for the first time and definitely not the last) that I was going to quit my job and more importantly, I was going to quit law all together.  For what it’s worth, that’s still the plan. However, I also have the misfortune of being a rather practical person.  As much as I would dearly love to quit, I can’t do so without another source of income.  I’m working on that.

In the weeks since that weekend, I’ve managed to find a silver lining or two (can there be two silver linings?).  First of all, I got my vacation days back.  I’ve added those days to my trip to England this summer.  I’m so excited to be going back to London that I could throw up.  But more importantly, I made some extra moolah working overtime.  That extra money bought me…….drumroll please…..A NEW CAMERA!

Meet Louise.  Isn’t she cute? She’s a Nikon Zfc.  I’ve spent the last year avoiding taking my current camera, a Nikon D750, anywhere with me.  It’s bulky, heavy and a pain in the you-know-what to travel with. What good is a nice camera if you’re not going to use it? I sorely miss my little entry level D3400.

I knew I didn’t want to take the D750 to England, but I also didn’t want to rely on my iPhone for pictures either.  Plus I miss taking my camera with me where ever I go.  I started researching lightweight cameras with interchangeable lens. I was curious about the mirrorless cameras because they are nearly silent (helpful in street photography).

Louis is small, extremely lightweight and silent. She’s not fancy, but she is super stylish. Her vintage look is based on Nikon’s old FE and FM film cameras. I’ve taken her out a few times already and had so much fun shooting. She’s just my speed.

I can’t wait to start sharing my photos with you again!

xoxo,

Bec

 

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!  What did everyone do for NYE?  I ordered pizza, drank a bottle of champagne and sat on the couch watching true crime documentaries with my cats.

I did take a few minutes while waiting for my pizza to be delivered to review my year and it turns out I accomplished more than I thought I did.  I spent nearly every Saturday morning for nine months in a virtual class learning how to edit photos in Lightroom.  I experimented with making some self-portraits, still lifes (lives?) and long exposures.  I figured out how to make a proper gallery on the blog (you can check-out the gallery from the Women’s March I attended back in October here). My photograph of the Fire Breather was used in a neighborhood newsletter. And last, but not least,  my Etsy store accidentally went live on NYE.  It was supposed to go live on January 1, but as per usual I don’t really understand the technical aspects of websites and I inadvertently launched it early.

In 2022, I’m gearing up to sharpen my skills in portraiture with my first in-person class since 2019!  I’m going to polish up the Etsy store and add more prints and products.  And finally get around to writing my About Me section for the blog (I’ve been putting it off for 4 years now) and Etsy store.

Do you make any resolutions or set any goals or intentions for the new year? I’d love know what they are!

Wishing you a happy, healthy and prosperous new year!

Cheers,
Bec

 

City Slicker Goes to the Country

I spent a couple of days in the country with my mom about a month ago. And by country, I mean there are no street lights, no sidewalks and no one to hear you scream if stumble upon ax murderer kind of country.

I’m a city slicker – the closest I get to nature are the three New Guinea impatiens and coleus plant I have on my deck.  The wildlife in the city includes pigeons, rats the size of cats, and the dudes preaching on the street corners.

Being in a new environment had me excited to take a photo walk in the early morning hours.  I envisioned a zen walk through the country taking pictures of rolling hills with cows, horses and sheep.  I didn’t see any cows or sheep, but I did see some horses on some rolling hills – so not a total bust.

Horses in Pasture, Iowa 2021

Herd of Horses, Iowa 2021

Of course, my walk was anything but zen.  I spent the entire time terrified that I’d run into a snake or worse, a crazed hill billy careening down the gravel road in his pick-up truck.  I’m fully aware that my fears are ridiculous.  If I had any sense, I’d be afraid to walk down dark alleys in a city that has over 400 homicides in 2021.  But alas, I find the country infinitely more terrifying than Chicago.

Dock, Iowa 2021

Ridiculous fears aside, I’m pleased with the way the photographs turned out. It’s hard to not like pictures of horses.

 

 

Rainy Days

There was a stretch of nearly two weeks in June where it rained EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. in Chicago.  I’m not talking a brief afternoon shower, but a steady rain that lasted most the day.  Enough rain that I didn’t have to walk the 4 four blocks to Lake Michigan to swim in a lake.  I could simply step outside of my condo building and take a dip in the lake that had formed at the end of my street.  After a silently cursing Mother Nature, I decided to flip the script and learn to shoot the rain.

Things didn’t quite go as expected.  To begin with, I didn’t have any rain gear (other than a janky umbrella) – for me or my camera.  I wrapped my camera in plastic grocery store bags and taped them up with painters tape (classy, right?).

99.99% of the photographs I took during those two weeks turned out blurry.  Out of the 100+ photos I took, the one below is the only one that didn’t make me want to hurl my camera into the lake at the end of my street.  Turns out it’s really hard to get the camera to focus on water droplets.  It was also dark and dreary so I really needed a tripod so I could shoot with a slower shutter speed, but of course Murphy’s law dictated that my tripod would break.

So I present to you……. (drumroll please)….

Rainwater on Leaf, Chicago 2021

The only photograph to make it out of my camera during Chicago’s brief monsoon season.

I have since bought little raincoats for my camera, a poncho for me and brand new tripod.  I’m looking forward to some more rainy days.

For the Birds

Joel Meyerowitz got the idea for his book Wild Flowers when going through his archive, he noticed that he had dozens of photographs about flowers.  Women carrying flowers, tables with floral centerpieces, gardens, people in gardens.  He has encouraged photographers to look through their own photographs to see if they can find any recurring themes.

My “archive” is quite small so it’s easy for me go through my photographs.  Though, I really didn’t need to do so to find a recurring motif in my work.  I’ve submitted at least four photographs of birds for my class assignments in the past three weeks.  I’ve never considered myself a bird person (it’s a well known fact that I am a cat lady).  I don’t go birding.  I don’t buy bird figurines or bird books or pictures of birds and yet I seem to like to photograph them.  Perhaps I should take up birding.  (My 20-something self is rolling her eyes so hard right now and getting ready to go day drink in an effort to make up for how lame her future self is turning out.)

The Birds, Chicago 2021

There’s corridor in the Loop where every single pigeon in the city of Chicago comes flying down at 5:00 pm.  It’s like they know it’s quittin’ time and are heading to their little pigeon happy hour to squawk about how hard their day of pigeoning was.

 

Pigeon, Chicago 2021

I watched his guy strut around the platform while I was waiting for the train.  He had such a confident little strut.  His colors were so beautiful to me on what was a pretty gray and rainy day.  The pigeons in Chicago are not afraid of humans so I was able to get pretty close to him to make a photograph before he strutted away.

 

Robin, Chicago 2021

I was working in my home office when I heard a bunch of scraping sounds on my deck and Gladys was chirping at the windows.  I peeked outside and saw this distinguished gentlemen sitting on my deck railing.  I was a bit surprised because I’ve never seen a bird on my deck and he was completely unfazed by the cat trying to get through the windows.  He hung out long enough for me to make a few photographs and taunt the cat.  Such arrogance!

 

Cardinal, Chicago 2020

During quarantine I would take walks around my neighborhood in the morning to stretch my legs and escape the prison my condo had become.  I was surprised the first time I saw a cardinal darting about.  I had only ever associated them with winter.  I started taking my camera on my morning walks in hopes of getting a picture.  Unlike the pigeons, they do not seem to like to pose for photographs.  I followed this bird from tree to tree and house to house before he stayed still enough for me make a photograph.

Sleeping Beauty

I saw this door out of the corner of my eye as I was speedwalking out of Rosehill Cemetery.   The gates to the cemetery close at 5:00 pm sharp and at 4:59 I was cutting it close.  I had spent too much time trying to get pictures of a herd of deer having a lovely stroll amongst the headstones.  As I rushed toward the front gate, I desperately hoped that my watch had the same time as the sexton’s.

Initially I walked past the door.  I really didn’t want to get locked in the cemetery.  It was a frigid February evening, I wouldn’t survive the night in cold and I wasn’t sure that I had the physical prowess to climb over the wall.  But I knew I would regret not taking the picture so I doubled back.  I figured if I got locked in, it would make a good story.

I love seeing vines on walls in the winter.  Without their leaves you can see the beautiful and intricate lines they create, as if someone took a giant marker and drew on the side of a building.  It’s not often I see them covering doors.  This door made me think of fairy tales and Disney movies.  I imagined the vines snaking their way over the stone wall and the door, trapping a princess inside as an evil witch laughs maniacally in the background.   Perhaps Sleeping Beauty is behind that door, snoozing away, waiting for Prince Charming to wake her.  For her sake, I hope not.  I’ve been dating in Chicago for 20+ years.  Prince Charming is not in the area.

Thankfully my story, like any good fairy tale, had a happy ending.  I got my, picture, escaped the cemetery and lived happily ever after.

The End.

Waiting

 

It feels like I’ve spent the past year waiting.  I’ve waited in the car countless times while one of my cats is at the vet.

I’ve waited for packages to be delivered and food and grocery deliveries.

I’ve waited for the doctor to call with test results, hoping for good news and fearing the worst.

I’ve waited to go urgent care after I fell down the stairs because I wasn’t sure if I could even be seen.

I waited for the election results to be called and then again for the inauguration.

Now I’m waiting for warmer weather and my turn to get the vaccine so I can stop waiting to see family and friends.

I’m waiting for this f#cking pandemic to end, for the freedom to start living a more normal life.

And right now, on a Tuesday morning before work, I’m waiting for the weekend.

What are you waiting for?

***

Making this photo was a lot of fun.  It took me back to my theatre days – sourcing props and costumes,  doing hair and make-up,  building a set and working with lighting.  Except this story is captured in a fraction of second (one-sixth of second to be precise) instead of in five acts.

Since it took so long to get everything set up, I thought I’d have some fun with the set before tearing it all down.  I think the photograph with the wine and my phone is a more accurate representation of my last year. 🙂

This is the meme from @attorneyproblems that inspired the photograph.

International Photography Academy

Just a quick note……

The International Photography Academy is offering its Six Level Virtual Class series at a 50% discount.  Pre-Covid days, when we could meet in the classroom, this was their Certificate Program.   It’s six levels consisting of four classes per level for $97.50.  You can sign-up here and since it’s all virtual, you don’t have to be in Chicago!

 

Live and Learn

Me too, Gladys. Me too.

 

How’s it going? It’s been awhile since I’ve posted. I’ve been battling a myriad of technical issues for the past 6 months that have prevented me from editing photos and posting. I won’t bore you with the details, but it turns out I needed a new computer with more memory and a faster processor.

My new laptop was delivered today and I was all set to start editing 6 months worth of photos I have sitting in my camera. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that it doesn’t have an SD card reader. You know what else it doesn’t have? USB ports. Awesome. What it does have are USB-C ports which means I now I need to find adapters to to hook up an external SD card reader and my external hard drives.

*sigh* Live and learn. How very 2020.