Insert evocative title here

Photo of the Week: P-I-C-A-S-S-O

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Fri, 10 May 2013 13:09:00 +0000

"P-I-C-A-S-S-O" Copyright Andy Marfia 2013 All Rights Reserved. Nikon D7100 w 16-85mm lens, 1/640sec at f8, ISO400.

I had some good choices for my "photo of the week" this week. Gapers Block featured one of my industrial shots on Wednesday, and this damaged pair of Chicago street signs made the rounds on flickr's Explore. But my favorite shot is this one of Daley Plaza, which over the last few months has included seven over-sized letters spelling out the name PICASSO-- part art installation in tribute to the statue behind it, and part advertisement for the Art Institute's Picasso show which ends this week.

I like how these letters add a bit of color to what is normally a pretty drab Daley Plaza, and it was fun to watch people interact with them. It does give off a bit of a Sesame Street vibe, but then, half of Chicago uses the Picasso statue as a slide, so perhaps that's fitting.

My goal with this shot was to include all the letters from P to O, while emphasizing the P, and also capturing the statue in the background. I had to sit on my butt to make this composition work, but I think it was worth it.

Photo of the Week: Be Smooth, Chicago

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Sat, 04 May 2013 14:59:00 +0000

"Be Smooth" Copyright Andy Marfia 2013 All Rights Reserved. Nikon D7000 w 16-85mm lens, 1/160sec at f4.5, ISO400.

The Wells Street Bridge is undergoing a complete reconstruction this spring. This photo is from mid April. The south side of the bridge was replaced in March (the gray section) with the north side (the red section) coming out this week. A brown line train is seen in this shot advising us to "Be Smooth", an advertisement for some sort of alcohol, I assume.

I processed this shot with Adobe Photoshop and the DXO Film Pack 3 plugin. I don't use the film pack very often, but sometimes I launch it just to try out different looks with an image. In this case, I used the Agfa Precisa 100 filter, which gave this photo a little more 'pop'.

The Chicago Tribune has more photos of the reconstruction.

Gapers Block turns 10. Only 11 years until it's old enough to drink!

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Thu, 02 May 2013 01:26:00 +0000

"Urgent" Copyright Andy Marfia 2008. Featured on Gapers Block 10/15/08

Gapers Block turned 10 years old this week, and I just wanted to give them a hearty blogging congratulations! I've been a contributor to their Rearview photo blog since 2005. I don't let many people use my photos for free, but Gapers Block is on that list because I like their Chicago focus, the exposure certainly doesn't hurt, and Andrew Huff and everyone whom I've met through that publication are all really nice people.

In fact, I partially credit Gapers Block for my resurgence as a photographer. I had been dabbling with film since the late 90s, but my interest in photography had mostly waned by the mid aughts. Two things happened around 2005: I bought my first DSLR, a Nikon D50, and an ex-girlfriend who-shall-not-be-named told me about this local blog I had never heard of, named after a traffic slow-down. They had published one of her photos, she bragged. Well, I thought, if her photograph could be featured, I wanted one too!

After a bit of research, I found out they were accepting submissions through flickr, another web site that was new to me. I promptly set up an account, and eight years later I still use flickr pretty religiously, and I still submit photos to the Gapers Block flickr pool. Sure, I've been published elsewhere, but Gapers Block was the first, and I'm grateful for that.

So to summarize, if you're looking to get back into photography, this is what worked for me:

1) Date the wrong girl, 2) get jealous over photo submission, 3) find Gapers Block, 4) find flickr, 5) obsess about photography forever.

Hey, whatever works, right?

You can find most of my Rearview photos here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/abmarfia/tags/gapersblock/.

"no entry to the golden city" Copyright Andy Marfia 2010. Featured on Gapers Block 07/26/10

Photo of the Week: Stop War!

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 20:40:00 +0000

As American's we're very eager to stop things. We're so eager to stop things, in fact, that we feel compelled to write about it on stop signs. Never mind that it's a misdemeanor and could result in a fine, or worse case scenario cause an accident, stop signs exist and therefore they must be defaced.

While not condoning such behavior, I certainly enjoy photographing it. I came across this anti-war message recently in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood:

Sony RX100, 1/1600sec at f4, ISO125. © Andy Marfia 2013 All Rights Reserved.

And on a less serious topic, here's one that I stumbled across in 2008:

Nikon D50 w 50mm f1.8 lens, 1/1250sec at f1.8, ISO200. © Andy Marfia 2008 All Rights Reserved.

Note: I reprocessed that second photo to bring it up to 2013 standards. That file was only uploaded at 800px and had tons of chromatic aberration-- something I just didn't pay as much attention to back then.

Photo of the Week: Barbed

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Sun, 21 Apr 2013 03:09:00 +0000

Nikon D7000 w 16-85mm lens, 1/1250sec at f8, ISO400. © Andy Marfia 2013 All Rights Reserved.

It's been quite a week, hasn't it? The Boston Marathon was bombed. A fertilizer plant blew up in Texas. There was an earthquake in China. Chicago got bombarded with rain which led to massive flooding in the area, and then IT SNOWED. In April. On a more personal note, one of my favorite musicians (Scott Miller of the under-appreciated bands The Loud Family and Game Theory) passed away.

So what does this week's photo, an abstract of a barbed wire fence, have to do with any of that? Well, nothing, really, but I'm not sure any single photo could sum all of that up. Life is full of barbs. Try to avoid them as best you can while you climb over to the next week.

The Loud Family - "Just Gone":

Photo of the Week: Misdirection

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Sat, 13 Apr 2013 00:29:00 +0000

Nikon D7000 w 16-85mm lens, 1/200sec at f4, ISO200. © Andy Marfia 2013 All Rights Reserved.

On a recent walk around Wrigley Field, I noticed this collection of traffic signs just inside the main entrance. This was the week before opening day. If you've ever tried to drive to the park to see a game, well, let's just say that you might want to consider mass transit next time.

This photo was also featured on Gapers Block today.

Classic: Roger Ebert, 1943-2013

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Sat, 06 Apr 2013 17:54:00 +0000

Nikon D7000 w/ 16-85mm lens, 1/125sec at f8, ISO200. © Andy Marfia 2013 All Rights Reserved.

Roger Ebert passed away on Thursday and the city of Chicago will never be quite the same. He was a Chicago legend, not just a movie critic, but simply a great writer. I’ve been reading his movie reviews, and more recently, his blog, for the better part of 20 years. I grew up with him and Gene Siskel arguing on my parent’s 19 inch Zenith television. Some of his reviews I remember more vividly than the movies themselves. For example, I don't think I’ve ever seen Godzilla or Armageddon in their entirety, yet I remember Roger Ebert eviscerating them. He often surprised me by liking a movie that I expected him to hate, and vice versa-- truly the sign of a good critic.

In the last few years, his openness and courage in the face of cancer was an inspiration. I also appreciated his critique of 3-D, something that rang true to me as a photographer.

I’ll save the long memorials for those who knew him personally, but I just wanted to say 'thanks'. You will be missed.

About the photo: this was taken on Friday, April 5, 2013, the day after he passed away. The only newspaper to not feature him on the cover was the Chicago Reader (yellow box) which comes out on Thursdays.

Photo of the Week: Time Dilation

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 19:13:00 +0000

Nikon D90 w/ 16-85mm w 35mm lens, 1/3200sec at f4.5, ISO200. © Andy Marfia 2013 All Rights Reserved.

I'm as tired of the winter as everyone else, so I pulled this week's photo out of my archives. This 30-foot sculpture by Tony Tasset stood at the corner of State and Van Buren during the summer of 2010. I remember not being all that impressed with it at the time, and in retrospect, I'm not really sure why. It's a giant eyeball! What's not to like.

For more information, check out this Chicago Tribune gallery.

FYI: in the background of this shot are the Old Colony and Fisher Buildings, both Chicago landmarks.

Photo of the Week: City on the Trash

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 15:49:00 +0000

Nikon D7000 w/ 70-300mm lens, 1/1000sec at f8, ISO400. © Andy Marfia 2013 All Rights Reserved.

I'd love to claim some deep reasoning behind this week's photo, which combines the Chicago skyline with a trash can along the city's lakefront. The truth is, I just thought it was funny to throw a trash can into an otherwise pretty skyline photo. I actually chuckled to myself as I was taking this one.

Of course, I could write something up:

"The elevation of the trash can into the cityscape realigns the viewers perspective, turning the mundane into the majestic and the majestic into the mundane."

The great thing about photography, and art in general, is-- if it's worth a damn-- it should be open to interpretation and extend beyond the simple click of the shutter. I'd like to think this photo falls into that category, so please, feel free to add your own caption.

Photo of the Week: the Crossing

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Sat, 09 Mar 2013 15:50:00 +0000

Sony RX100, 1/160sec at f4, ISO125. © Andy Marfia 2013 All Rights Reserved.

This week's photo was taken while crossing Sheridan Road in Evanston, IL. I walk this way at least 4 days a week, and I like how this snow storm takes this familiar scene and makes it seem new again. Also, this is another photo of someone using an umbrella in the winter. Why?

Photo(s) of the Week: Winter Canopies

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 04:35:00 +0000

Sony RX100, 1/320sec at f3.2, ISO125. © Andy Marfia 2013 All Rights Reserved.

Sony RX100, 1/125sec at f4.9, ISO125. © Andy Marfia 2013 All Rights Reserved.

I've never understood why people use umbrellas in the winter? An umbrella, to me, is a rain device, and doesn't work very well in a blizzard. At best it keeps your hair dry, but you're probably wearing a hat anyway, and at worst, it gets blown open or weighed down with snow. Using an umbrella in the winter is a sure fire way to say to the world "I'm from Houston", and why would you want to do that?

I'll admit they do add some color to a scene, so Chicagoans: if you're going to use umbrellas, please opt for bright pink ones! Your local photographer will thank you. (Actually, we'll stealthily take your photo and post it on the internet, but you get the point).

These shots were both taken on Northwestern University's Evanston campus, just north of Chicago.

Photo(s) of the Week: "Argyle Goes Boom!"

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 02:19:00 +0000

Nikon D7000 w/ 16-85mm lens, 1/1600sec at f8, ISO800. © Andy Marfia 2013 All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D7000 w/ 16-85mm lens, 1/1250sec at f8, ISO800. © Andy Marfia 2013 All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D7000 w/ 16-85mm lens, 1/800sec at f8, ISO800. © Andy Marfia 2013 All Rights Reserved.

These photos are from the Argyle Street Lunar New Year Celebration on February 16th. This event has been on my "to do" list for the last several years, but I kept forgetting about it in the middle of February. Two years ago, it took place the week after the Great Chicago Snowpocalypse of 2011 and I was still busy editing snowpocalypse photos!

If you're in the area, this is a fun local celebration that's pretty manageable in terms of crowds-- I can't imagine there were more than a few thousand people in attendance, and in fact, the firecrackers probably outnumbered the spectators. It also features traditional dancing lions as seen above, and then a small parade. And afterwards, there's no shortage of great Asian restaurants to have lunch at.

Photo(s) of the Week: Running Up That Hill

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 03:00:00 +0000

Nikon D7000 w/ 70-300mm lens, 1/1000sec at f8, ISO200. © Andy Marfia 2013 All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D7000 w/ 70-300mm lens, 1/1000sec at f8, ISO200. © Andy Marfia 2013 All Rights Reserved.

This week's photos are of Cricket Hill on a particularly bright and sunny winter afternoon. If you live in Chicago, you're probably familiar with this hill, which sits just east of Lake Shore Drive off of Montrose Ave, though you may not have known it has a name.

The genesis of these shots date back to last summer on a previous visit. At the time, I noticed how the John Hancock Center pokes above one side of the hill, but to capture that requires a fairly long focal length which I didn't have with me. Also, there was no one on the hill to provide context. Both of those problems are solved here. I shot these at 300mm (450mm equivalent), which visually compresses the space and makes the Hancock Center appear much closer than it is, and the sledders give a sense of scale.

After taking these photos, I walked to the top of the hill, where I captured this photo from the summit looking off towards the city.

UPDATE: the first photo was featured on Gapers Block on 02/13/13.

Photo of the Week: Hoop Dreams

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 06:02:00 +0000

Nikon D7000 w/ 16-85mm lens, 1/1600sec at f4.5, ISO200. © Andy Marfia 2013 All Rights Reserved.

I really enjoy photographing Chicago in the winter. The city just has a different feel when everything is covered in snow. A scene that you've seen a million times looks suddenly new and fresh, and color, whenever you can find color, it really stands out.

This week's photo was taken near Loyola Beach in the Rogers Park neighborhood. I took a similar photo a few years ago of a different basketball court. I like the shallow depth of field in that one, but I think this week's shot works better as a winter scene.

Best of 2012 in Andy Marfia Photography

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 22:08:00 +0000

2012 is done, and thus so is my Best of 2012 flickr set. Onward to 2013! These are my favorite photos uploaded in the past year-- most were taken in 2012, and all are in or around Chicago. Thanks to everyone who commented here, on flickr, or anywhere else. Your support is appreciated.

This was an interesting year for social media and myself. I had a brief, public tiff with flickr over their new design, but this ended positively. I signed up for a 500px account but have yet to use it. I tweeted a lot more, and even uploaded the occasional photo to Facebook. One of my photos was sucked into Pinterest even though my photos aren't supposed to be shareable via Pinterest-- this led to a sale, however, so I can't complain too much about that. I started using Instagram and then stopped using Instagram when it became Evilgram for a few days.

One thing that stayed the same: I posted 240 photos to flickr in 2012, which comes out to 4.6 per week, and tried to update this blog at least once a week. That's down a bit from 2011 but fairly consistent to year's past.

A few photos to call attention to...

I've never taken any photos of the Chicago Air and Water show that I cared for before this year, mainly because I've never wanted to deal with the crowds at North Ave Beach. This shot was taken north of the main event, near Montrose Ave:

Nikon D7000 w 70-300mm lens, 1/1250sec at f8, ISO200. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

2012 will always be remembered in my mind as a year of protest in Chicago, from the NATO protests dominating the spring, to the Chicago Teachers Strike in the fall. This shot was taken at a protest at Rahm Emanuel's house in Ravenswood:

Nikon D7000 w 16-85mm lens, 1/200sec at f8, ISO200. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

A healthy dose of abstraction still dominates many of my photographs. Some beach balls float through the air at the Pitchfork Music Festival:

Nikon D7000 w 105mm lens, 1/2500sec at f4, ISO160. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

While the east coast was dealing with Hurricane Sandy, we were lucky in Chicago and only had to contend with larger than normal waves. This guy decided to use it as a backdrop for a self portrait:

Nikon D7000 w 16-85mm lens, 1/1600sec at f8, ISO640. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Photo of the Week (News Years Edition): Daley Plaza

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Tue, 01 Jan 2013 20:22:00 +0000

Nikon D7000 w/ 50mm f1.8D lens, 1/60sec, f2.8 and ISO200. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

This week's photo is an abstract take on the Christmas Tree in Daley Plaza, and also the Daley Center, which is on the left. This shot is intentionally defocused. I always feel like I'm cheating when I create a photo like this, but every once in a while it makes for an interesting effect.

The seven sided polygons are caused by the aperture blades of the Nikon 50mm f/1.8D lens. At f1.8 these would have been circular, but with this lens you start to see the shape of the aperture blades as soon as you stop down even to f2.0. This is an older lens design-- newer Nikon models have rounded aperture blades which don't produce these sharp polygons. Most people think that's a good thing, but I rather like this look.

I hope everyone reading had a wonderful Christmas and New Years. I still have to post my Best of 2012 photos, and then onward to 2013!

Photo of the Week: It Begins... sort of

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 17:57:00 +0000

Sony RX100, 1/30sec at f1.8, ISO200. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Weather forecasting, I suspect, is sort of like an arms race. The more dire the predictions, the better the ratings, and as you get closer to a weather event everyone tries to out predict each other. That's what happened this week in Chicago, where I saw predictions of freezing rain turning into snow (it was really just rain) and anywhere from 3-6 inches of accumulation (we got none) depending on who you trusted (which at this point is no one!).

On the upside, we at least had enough snow for me to take this photo during my commute home on Thursday. It didn't last, but was sure pretty to look at for a few minutes. This is the intersection of Ridge, Broadway and Bryn Mawr.

Photo of the Week: Madison, Monroe, 2am

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Fri, 14 Dec 2012 16:52:00 +0000

Sony RX100, 1/400sec at f1.8, ISO400. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

I took some creative liberty with the title of this week's photo-- this was actually shot at 4pm, but I like how the emptiness of the scene makes it feel much later in the day. I've waited on some L platforms late at night, and it can be a lonely and sometimes creepy experience, especially underground.

This was processed using DXO FilmPack 3 (which I'm testing out this week and thus far really like). I used a Kodak Elite 100 Cross Process filter. I've never been a big filter and effects guy, but there's a time and place for everything and I think it works here.

Sony RX100 Distortion Correction

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 20:04:00 +0000

A not terribly well kept secret: most compact cameras (and many mirrorless cameras) do an enormous amount of image correction in camera after the image is taken. This is true of cheap compacts and the more expensive as well. Even cameras like the Canon S100 and Sony RX100 which support RAW are correcting for lens distortion, vignetting, and chromatic aberration in both JPEG and RAW files.

As an example, here's an image that I took recently with a Sony RX100 processed using Adobe Camera Raw and Photoshop CS6:

Sony RX100, 1/640sec at f2.2, ISO125. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

And here's the image as the camera lens captured it:

Sony RX100, 1/640sec at f2.2, ISO125. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Quite a difference, isn't it? To get this second image, I opened the RAW file in DXO Optics Pro instead of Photoshop and then turned off all distortion correction. DXO, as I understand it, removes Sony's correction and then applies its own, so by turning it off you can restore the photo to what the lens actually recorded. Adobe Camera Raw doesn't give you this option.

I find this interesting for a couple of reasons. For one, photographers used to believe that RAW files were, well, "raw", a more or less a direct capture of what the camera recorded. This is definitely less true than it used to be. Also, I suspect that most users of this camera will never know this correction is taking place, and probably never care. The combination of lens design and software in this case is quite effective, producing extremely straight, sharp images, and 99% of the time that works just fine. Sometimes though, I like an image that's a little less than perfect, and I'm glad that DXO gives me a way to revert back to that when needed.

Further Reading:

For more information on this trend towards in camera correction, I recommend this DPReview article from 2011: "A distorted view? In-camera distortion correction".
I also found this blog post by Gary Friedman which talks specifically about the Sony RX100. Here's his explanation:

"Like other late-generation Sony cameras, the RX-100 employs Lens Correction algorithms in its .jpg engine designed to correct for distortion, vignetting, and chromatic aberration in lenses whose optical blemishes were well-understood. In the past it was used to correct mild flaws in existing lenses, but this is the first time I've ever seen an optical team give themselves permission to make a sloppy design, knowing that it can be fixed in software later. They went this route because there was no other way to make a perfect conventional zoom lens with that much reach that could collapse so much."

Photo of the Week: Looming Large

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 19:42:00 +0000

Sony RX100, 1/1000sec at f5, ISO125. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

It's easy to pick a "photo of the week" when you've only posted one photo online the entire week. I've been busy with work the past few weeks, and more stressed than usual, which impacts my creativity. No matter, I really like this shot.

Are things "looming large" in your life? Or is it just an illusion of shadows? Sometimes it can be hard to tell.

Coca Cola Ghost Sign Reveals Andersonville's Past

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 05:37:00 +0000

Nikon D7000 w/ 16-85mm lens, 1/500sec at f8, ISO400. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

A recent building demolition on Clark Street in Chicago's Andersonville neighborhood has revealed this long hidden ghost sign advertising Coca Cola for 5 Cents. If you're wondering when Coke last cost 5 cents, NPR stepped in (entirely coincidentally) last week with a story explaining this exact question. That was really nice of them! It turns out it was about 70 years, from 1886 to 1959.

Nikon D7000 w/ 16-85mm lens, 1/800sec at f8, ISO400. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D7000 w/ 16-85mm lens, 1/1250sec at f8, ISO400. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Since taking these photos, this sign was featured on the Edgeville Buzz web site, and the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce posted a photo on their facebook page from the early 1900s. They claim this sign was "painted and visible for some period between 1913-1919". I love that it's been hidden all these years and likely no one even knew it was there, a piece of Andersonville history hiding behind a brick wall. The developer who owns this land intends to build a four story building here-- hopefully they leave this sign intact so it can be revealed again in another hundred years.

Nikon D7000 w/ 16-85mm lens, 1/800sec at f8, ISO400. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Photo(s) of the Week: Splish Splash

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Fri, 02 Nov 2012 16:59:00 +0000

While Hurricane Sandy was wreaking havoc on the east coast, its effects were felt in Chicago in the form of high winds and high waves on Lake Michigan. I stopped by Belmont Harbor on Tuesday (10/30/12) to capture the lake's fury. I was not alone with this idea:

Nikon D7000 w/ 16-85mm lens, 1/1600sec at f8, ISO640© Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D7000 w/ 16-85mm lens, 1/1600sec at f8, ISO640© Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

If it's not clear what this guy's doing, take a look at the zoomed shot below. Yes, he's shooting a self portrait with the wave behind him!

I bet that was a great insta-something! A commenter on flickr wondered about this guy's safety, and I can report that he was fine-- these waves were hitting the pier and basically bouncing straight up and down-- so they never reached him. That said, I can't vouch for the condition of his phone afterward or the quality of his self portrait.

It goes without saying that things on the east coast are much more serious than here in Chicago. If you haven't already given money to the Red Cross, I encourage everyone to do so.

Photo(s) of the Week: The Drive

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Fri, 26 Oct 2012 15:05:00 +0000

I've been finding myself on Lake Shore Drive a lot lately. Whenever that happens, assuming I'm in the passenger seat and not driving (I'm not that crazy), it's pretty much impossible for me not to pull out a camera. Below are a couple of abstract takes on Chicago's famous drive, photographed on two different days.

Sony RX100, 1/100sec at f1.8, ISO125. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Sony RX100, 1/400sec at f8, ISO125. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Bridgeview Bank Uptown - Open House Chicago

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Sat, 13 Oct 2012 14:55:00 +0000

Bridgeview Bank, formally Uptown Bank, and originally built as the Sheridan Trust and Savings Bank Building in 1924, has long been one of my favorite buildings in Chicago's Uptown neighborhood. I've captured it's exterior quite a few times, so I was excited when I learned that it was on the schedule for the Chicago Architecture Foundation's excellent Open House Chicago event. Below are a sampling of photos from the interior, the first floor of the grand banking hall:

Nikon D7000 w/ Sigma 10-20mm lens, f4 at 1/125sec, ISO800. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D7000 w/ Sigma 10-20mm lens, f4 at 1/160sec, ISO800. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D7000 w/ Sigma 10-20mm lens, f4.8 at 1/100sec, ISO800. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D7000 w/ Sigma 10-20mm lens, f5.6 at 1/60sec, ISO800. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

These last two photos are of the vault in the basement. Both the banking hall and the vault were featured in the movie "Public Enemies," starring Johnny Depp as John Dillinger. I never say it myself.

Nikon D7000 w/ Sigma 10-20mm lens, f4.5 at 1/160sec, ISO1600. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D7000 w/ 16-85mm lens, f4.5 at 1/25sec, ISO800. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

A programming note: I took a lot of photos at Open House Chicago (over 300 on Saturday alone), and I also have photos from last year that I simply never got around to processing. I think the sanest way to handle these is to deal with them one location at a time. So this week was the Uptown Bank... next week or the week after or whenever I have time, I'll tackle something else. Stay tuned.

2012 Chicago Marathon Photos

noreply@blogger.com (Andy Marfia) — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 22:18:00 +0000

I stopped by the Chicago Marathon again this year to take a few photos. Like my Pride Parade set from earlier in the year, I tried to focus on capturing interesting faces. Of course, I took at least one establishing shot:

Nikon D7000 w/ 70-300mm lens, 1/640sec at f8, ISO400. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

That's the Marathon heading west on Adams. I'm generally loathe to use selective color, but all rules are meant to be broken at least once, and I think it works well here.

Now, some people:

Nikon D7000 w/ 70-300mm lens, 1/1000sec at f5.6, ISO400. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D7000 w/ 70-300mm lens, 1/1600sec at f6.3, ISO200. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D7000 w/ 70-300mm lens, 1/800sec at f6.3, ISO200. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D7000 w/ 70-300mm lens, 1/800sec at f6.3, ISO200. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D7000 w/ 70-300mm lens, 1/800sec at f6.3, ISO200. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Nikon D7000 w/ 70-300mm lens, 1/500sec at f6.3, ISO200. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Last but not least, no marathon set is complete without at least one discarded cup abstract:

Nikon D7000 w/ 70-300mm lens, 1/800sec at f8, ISO400. © Andy Marfia 2012 All Rights Reserved.

Would you like to see more? You can find a few more photos in my flickr set, and I also had a set from the 2011 Marathon.

Note: All photos were taken as the Marathon heading west on Adams, or came east on Jackson, between Damen and Racine (approximately the 14-15 Mile point).