July — A Year in Photographs

The visual language of signs and symbols.

Dinkel's, Chicago, 7/12/2017

We walk by these items every day. Some may even determine how our day proceeds. Signs and Symbols are part a creation of humanity to communicate idea in a moment. Some are simple, some are obvious, while others are hidden or so obvious they hide in plain sight.

Bump, Chicago, 7/1/2017

July was an experiment to notice the everyday things. While I could have explored everyday items, the first day of July snuck up on me. June had suddenly disappeared and I was walking to work when it dawned on me, "Architecture is over… what is my theme for July?" As if the Universe sent me a sign, the the sun reflecting off a building showed me the way. Bump.

I decided in the moment to make this the theme. With little planning, I had to maintain an awareness of everything that I likely had laid my eyes on hundreds of times before. The challenge wasn’t finding subject matter but to find interesting ways of sharing the mundane things these signs and symbols are.

It sounded like a simple month because signs and symbols are everywhere but most are not terribly exciting. And even exciting signs or symbols are sometimes not photogenic. Though, I would argue that is the challenge for any photographic subject. A slice of pizza isn’t really photogenic but by the right and skilled hand of a photographer, it turns into a beautiful piece in food photography.

Any photographer worth is salt knows the power and importance of light. More specifically, controlling, adding, and manipulating light. Really this month has been less about the signs and symbols and more about light and composition.

Chicago is known for a variety of great things: food, architecture, museums… blustery politics. It is an incredible city. One thing few share is the lighting. Chicago is nearly 42°N and while the midday summer sun is hot and high in the sky, the light tends to be a little more forgiving than in some other cities in the United States and world. As the sun sets, light washes down the streets like a Hollywood film set. Manhattanhendge happens only for a few days throughout the year but in Chicago (Chicagohenge?), it happens nearly all summer. Golden Hour in Chicago is second to none.

Casting this light, Chicago delivered many beautiful days of sunlight but with a few nights and some summer thunderstorms, a few had a darker appeal. Signs and Symbols was an engaging exercise in photography.

As with June, July passed by very quickly and August is upon us so onward to the next theme.

Up next: August – Night

Signs and Symbols of July

“Coffin Cubicles” – Photos by Benny Lam

Photo credit Benny Lam

It appears I’m a bit late to the party... perhaps the funeral. Benny Lam, a photographer in Hong Kong, explores what the United Nations has condemned as “an insulult to human dignity,” according the The Sun.

So fascinated, and appalled, by these disturbing photographs, I researched more about this unfortunate development in human living circumstances. Sadly, there is little more about “coffin cubicles” on the internet. All searches seemed to lead me back to Benny Lam and his documentary photography. 

Hong Kong is no doubt an incredible city with a rare mix of landscape in the background and urban sprawl affront. However, rent and disparity has become such a problem that some people simply can not afford anything more than these illegal “apartments” no bigger than a bathroom.

i highly recommend viewing some of these photographs in National Geographic’s article Life Inside Hong Kong’s ‘Coffin Cubicles’.

June — A Year in Photographs

Light, shadow, lines, structure.

Arch, Chicago, 6/11/2017

Chicago is one of the architectural capitols of the world. With not only a long history but also famous architects like Frank Lloyd Wright, Chicago has a rich landscape of buildings both old and new. 

Architecture is by far one of my favorite subjects to photograph. I love symmetry, geometry, patterns, and the interplay between different materials. There is no shortage of buildings in Chicago.

While May was a challenging month from the standpoint of executing on a daily basis, I chose this month to focus on a strength.

Commonly, architecture photography is about an interior or entire exterior of a building. While I certainly have many photographs of entire buildings, I am very drawn to the details of the building. So much so that sometimes one may never know what building I photographed even if famous. 

Arch, for example, is a building that people come from miles around to visit. It is a famous building as part of the worldwide brand. Using my technique for photographing Geometry Series, Arch is much more minimal but one favorite from this month. 

Uptown, Chicago, 6/30/2017

Much Architecture was captured using my Olympus E-M5 with a 45mm (90mm on 35) lens allowing for me to focus on the details of buildings. The Olympus 45mm f1.8 is a favorite lens of mine. While some use wide angle or perspective control lenses for architectural photography, I lean toward longer focal lengths. Wide angle lenses are a favorite of mine but in Chicago, wide angle lenses rarely only give a field of view for one building. Chances are two or three will show up in the image. But, as with all tools, using it the right way, one will achieve the desired results.

The month itself wasn't a challenge as many in the past but I enjoyed it immensely. A Year in Photographs launched as an endeavor into uncharted photographic territory but entering into the half-way mark, I wanted to included one of my favorite subjects. 

July is upon us and with that I starts a new subject. As focusing on building details, I will be focusing on urban and cultural details. Some things are so common and seen so frequently, they are effectively rendered invisible.

I once argued that photographers are those who define objects that otherwise would not exist because language or commonality ignores said objects. These things are that which are completely obvious but ironically are not seen. The Blue of the Universe shares my theory of how one can define the ordinary making it extraordinary. July surely will be an exercise in photography's supernatural abilities. 

Up next: July – Signs and Symbols

Architecture in June