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Walk out into Light

Darkness lies; snow melts in time

Spring must come at last

 

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Just your everyday self portrait...

 

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Aaaaand we're back!! Well, at least trying to get back. I took the month of January off, a break I usually find necessary after shooting steadily for a while. It helps me clear my mind and focus on other pursuits and interests.

 

Tonight is the first time I've done any focused personal work, and it's all thanks to the many friends I have who responded to my cry for help in encouraging me and inspiring.

 

Here's to the first of many in 2015!! And to the friends and family I can count on carrying me to the very end :)

 

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I never tire of Chicago. Well, maybe a bit when it's 10 degrees below with 40mph winds...but yea, in general, I never tire of Chicago. :P All the same, I've always wanted to visit other cities and other places and photograph them to my heart's content.

 

As it happens, I have some friends who have decided to travel all over the US shooting weddings anywhere and everywhere! Magnified Joy Photography is in the process of crowd-funding their spectacular new mobile home. Check it out!! --> kck.st/1tIpwK8

 

I don't typically put up requests for funding something, but I'm excited about the possibilities this home would bring for these two and the people whose memories they immortalize! Please donate what you can :)

 

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Yes, that is, in fact, a broom I am holding.

 

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Even in darkness

Illumination may glow

Clarity finds you

 

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Now I love a good sunrise or sunset, but It turns out my favourite time of day is those 30mins or so where the sky turns this deep, rich blue and all the world is filled with wonder! Chicago is an awesome place for this, because as the sky deepens, the city comes alive, twinkling like fireflies on the twilight canvas.

 

What fills you with a sense of wonder?

 

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If you had to write a short story on this picture, what would it be?

 

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Most of what I take pictures of are the bright, the happy, the beautiful. But every now and then the lens shows me something different, something not so glamorous.

 

Not very many people actually have the means to pursue the Golden Dream. Some of them may not have even had the dream at all, what with their living in perpetual nightmare.

 

To be human is to care; to reach beyond oneself, offering a hand to those struggling on life's journey. I'm still figuring out how to do this in my life. Please take time to consider how you might help as well.

 

And then do it. Thanks.

 

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Today in Chicago is rather warm, a welcome reprieve from the chilly winter we've had this year. I'm excited for the Spring! For the 5 or 6 weddings that I'll probably end up attending, and generally for warm weather. I can't wait to be filled.

 

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...inside the, er, sunrise?

 

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Aaaaaaand we're back!! I had gotten very lazy with taking pictures, honing my craft, chasing light, all the good stuff. So I decided it was time to throw myself into another long-term projects. So here we go - one picture, every day, for the next 365!

 

Since it can get tiring to shoot, edit, and post all in the same day (sometimes I take the pictures close to midnight), all of these images will be a week older than the day their posted. Be sure to check in for the daily posts! :)

 

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It's this beautiful lady's birthday today! She and I have done a few shoots together now, and she has such an amazing personality and an infectious laugh. This one's for you Iman! Looking forward to some more awesome sessions this summer :D

 

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A month ago I got completely turned around and slightly lost on my way to work because I wanted a vantage point for a picture of the Trump Tower. I eventually found my way under the bottom of Lower Wacker to get snow out of my shoes and stumbled upon these. Still have no idea what they were, but it reminded me of a hidden bunker or something.

 

Thoughts on what they could be?

 

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Whew! It’s been forever and a day since I’ve had a chance to just sit and look through some of my pictures. A lot has happened in the past few months, and I feel like I can take a step back and breathe a little now. Hopefully I can get back to both taking pictures and sharing them. It’s been too long.

 

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We interrupt our regular broadcasting to celebrate this young man's birth some 20-odd years ago (actual age cannot be disclosed). There is something special about those friendships which, once established, transcend distance and time. Life might hit the pause button as often as you like, but play always resumes right where it left off. So this is to the friend who agreed to meet me at 6am in Central Park in a suit and tie!

 

Happy Birthday!!

 

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All your dreams dried up

Life's a drip without a drop

To inspire the soul

 

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I got to spend a weekend in Madison this winter at a friend's, and this spontaneous shoot of this newly-engaged couple ensued! This is what happens when two fun lovebirds walk out into a foot of snow and a sunset to remember! :)

 

What is your favorite memory of this winter?!

 

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Now that it's raining relatively less than before and warming up a considerable amount, I'm finally enjoying the Spring weather. Everything looks that much brighter in the sun now.

 

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I noticed that my last 3 posts, and now this one, have all been pretty dark. I am really drawn to deep shadows, and the play of light and dark. Before I would try to balance darker posts or themes with lighter ones, or take lighter images after darker ones, but this time around I'm thinking I'll just ride the wave and see what happens. I'm not even in a dark place, so it's interesting to see what turning up.

 

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There is something magical about food. The way it brings people together, how it showcases different cultures and histories. So much can happen around food when sharing a meal with friends. Some of my fondest memories happened around food.

 

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Another shot from my mini-adventure last week. This was a few seconds before getting snow all up in my boots and finding myself underneath Wacker Drive to get out of the weather and get my bearings.

 

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There are some people you're just meant to meet in life. We grew up some 20mins apart but didn't meet until college. Even though we live in separate apartments now, I still sometimes call him "my roommate". In 15months or so, I'll have to change this caption to "Dr. Coo"

 

Ladies and gentlemen - Femi.

 

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I've gotten into the habit of just baking two dozen or so of these in a muffin tray and just having them for breakfast. Tastiest habit I've ever picked up from a friend :D

 

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Meet Jerrica and Danny, soon to be the newest couple on the block!! They invited me into their homes and their lives to catch a glimpse of the love they share. Here's the story that unfolded :)

 

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For the longest time I've thought of myself as a very technical person - and I am! But I'm realizing more and more that art has somehow smuggled itself back into my life. Every now and then it's work, but most often it's learning and playing, and sometimes even rest. With a tablet now, I often enjoy the process of taking the picture as much as kicking my feet up and working my images in my "light"room. Next step, printing!

 

What do you enjoy doing?!

 

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I heard the mother of the late Travyon Martin speak last Tuesday. "I was an average mom...we were an average family."

 

It could have been my mother up there...

 

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I don't always enjoy standing in front of the camera. In fact, I usually don't. But every now and then I feel like taking a picture and there's no one else around / I don't feel like asking anyone / I'm too lazy.

 

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Interestingly enough, I have yet to partake in any snowball fights this winter, despite the infinite snow and cold. Looks like I'll have till June though, so no worries.

 

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"What would you do if you weren't afraid?" It's often the case that after a creative shoot, I take one or two passes at the photos before giving up, mourning my lack of post-processing skill. Sometimes I'm content to not try at all. "If you don't try, you won't fail." That's the way my thinking goes.

 

Today I'm attempting to give up that fear. I don't know that it will be a drastically visible change, but it does mean that I'll be able to get to all those collaborative projects I worked on last year. After all, "walking is falling forward".

 

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My muse was to photograph her working through hers...

 

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I would just like to point out that the alternate caption was "Teach Me How To Doggy"...

 

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I've said it over and over that I have some great friends, and I love the opportunity to brag about them! So while I have a lot (no really, A LOT) of pictures of her being her excitable and often goofy self, this one's my favorite. I think it speaks more to that quiet intensity always bubbling underneath, bursting forth to challenge drunk 20-somethings harassing 16yr old girls on the train, or to defend the dignity of those marginalized in society. Here is aspiring lawyer, advocate of justice, unafraid to stand up for others.

 

Here is Sonja.

 

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It seems I’m on a B&W kick right now. Somehow the colors don’t do as much justice to the play of light and shadow here. *shrug*

 

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