We have not had accumulated snowfall for the months of January and February in Chicago. This has not happened in nearly 150 years. So I was glad that I went out on a heavy snowfall day back in December. The snow was wet and the flakes were big. I took advantage of the weather-sealed camera and lens combination of the Fujifilm X-Pro2 and the Fujinon XF35mmF2. I wore a good water repellent coat and a great pair of boots, but my pants were soaked in some spots so I was not completely comfortable. The camera and lens though? They performed phenomenally.

I wanted to show park spaces in downtown Chicago devoid of human presence. These spaces are often populated when it is warm so my goal was to show the exact opposite. It was a gray day and I decided to present the images in gray scale. Fujifilm's Acros film simulation is beautiful. Despite the highly-touted quality of the jpegs I used and worked with the RAW files.

This group of 106 head- and armless bodies is called Agora. They are iron sculptures crafted by Polish artist Magdalena Abakanowicz. They wander in every direction just off the intersection of Roosevelt Road and Michigan Avenue.

This scene has become one of my personal favorite images. I was not particularly a fan of this park space at all, but it just looked so beautiful at the moment I walked by. I liked the symmetry of some of the scene. I actually got this one in one take. As you may know, we're not always so lucky with our shooting. Sometimes I take frame after frame and get nothing and move on. This was one of those happy moments I have as a photographer, knowing that I got the shot right away.

I made one decision to disturb the continuity of the series. The red and yellow sculptures in this park added a pop of color to an otherwise gray day and environment.

Click on images to view on black.

Chicago was enveloped in fog for a few days last week. I ventured out to the Museum Campus area by the lake, first not knowing what I would capture. When I saw that visibility over the water wasn't very far I knew I wanted to show that in a minimalist shot like this in a square format.

The thickness of the fog made it difficult to see the museums from afar. I thought I would use some humor with this caption because the Adler Planetarium is supposed to be at the end of this embankment. I originally wanted to make monochrome images because of the gray day. But I decided to stay with color and gave them a bit of tone, blue for the images above and below this one because of the water, and just a hint of green for this image because trees are an element.

The building in the foreground is the John G Shedd Aquarium. Normally in the background would be the great Chicago skyline. It could not be seen on this day until I got to the other side of the aquarium where the fog wasn't as dense as it is here.

Two men enjoying the beautiful Chicago skyline

Click images to view on black.

Snowy Day in Chicago

Chicago in a fog