Gallery
Mother and Daughter

This is a mother and daughter that I photographed in my studio for a pamphlet on nursing.
bobcat snowplows - payoff (5 photos)
I wonder if they lost the keys. It was snowing pretty hard and the parking lot was almost impassable.
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bobcat snowplows - anticipation (7 photos)
Forecast calls for 5-8 inches of snow tomorrow. These bobcat snowplows are pre-positioned in this parking lot ready to do their duty.
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Beach Walk (29 photos)
Recently, three of my coworkers went on a walk to the beach to take a break from work and I joined them and took some photos.
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THE YEAR IN PHOTOS - 2011 (188 photos)
In 2011, I shot more than 20,000 photos, keeping around 17,000 of them, at 343 photo shoots (not including physician headshots). Someone in my office suggested that I do a, "Photos of the Year," but narrowing down 17,000+ photos to 24 or so that are the best is maybe too difficult for me to accomplish in one or two afternoons.
So, I've narrowed it down to just under 200 picks. Where I can, I've added captions to explain what's going on in the photo. For now, enjoy this group of my favorites from this year.
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Psychiatry Update 2011 (16 photos)
The psychiatry section of NorthShore.org needed to be updated in late 2011 with all new photos. These are some of the photos from those various shoots.
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Jade's Smile (14 photos)
Young woman patient Jade Bergeron suffered from facial paralysis. Her talented doctors Mark Sisco and Jeremy Warner transplanted muscle from leg to cheek to allow her to smile. The procedure went well and the young woman says she’s experienced a noticeable, positive change.
For this shoot for the Winter 2011-2012 issue of Connections Magazine, I took Jade to the Skokie Lagoons north and west of Chicago. Luckily we had some great sunlight and the temperature wasn't too cold for November.
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Plastic Surgeon - Jeremy Warner (9 photos)
For the Winter 2011-2012 issue of Connections Magazine, I was asked to photograph plastic surgeon Dr. Jeremy Warner with a patient of his.
For this shot, I previsualized a shot of the two surgeons (one of them got stuck in surgery and couldn't make it to the shoot) looking over the profile of the patient. I wanted to use as long of a lens as possible to compress the frame and get the patient's profile right in line with the expressions of the two collaborating physicians.
Since one of the docs wasn't there, I had to instead make it look more like a caring/nurturing shot, but I still wanted to the pool of light.
In the second shot, I tried to add in some fill light into the shadow to make the shore more "acceptable" to the establishment, but I hated it. So I went back to my original vision of the pool of light surrounded by darkness.
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Kellogg Reunion 2011 - Wagner Farm (25 photos)
This past Fall, I was asked to photograph a reunion of cancer patients and their families at Historic Wagner Farm. It was a fun event with face painting, hay rides, art exhibits and bags.
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MG State of the Union (15 photos)
On 10/28/2011, Dr. Joe Golbus gave a State of the Union to gathered members of the Medical Group of NorthShore University HealthSystem. The meeting was held at the Sunset Ridge Country Club.
This was the first official shoot with a new camera, the Nikon D3S. All of these shots were taken with available light, though I still kept the SB-800 on fill for actual award photos to help "clean up" some of the muddy lighting across the stage.
Everything else was shot at ISO values previously impossible with the DX sensored D2X. I'm very happy with the new camera!
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Key to the Cure 2011 (36 photos)
Every year, the Highland Park Auxiliary of NorthShore University HealthSystem gets together to help raise money for a worthy cause. The event is held at Saks 5th Avenue in Highland Park and is a lot of fun.
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Evanston Hospital Interiors (12 photos)
Recently I was asked to photograph various angles of Evanston Hospital for use as backdrops in interviews shot against a greenscreen. Along the way around the hospital, I shot some various areas just for fun. Here are some of the fun shots.
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Under the Harvest Moon - Park West Arena (97 photos)
Under the Harvest Moon was held at the Park West Arena on Oct. 15th, 2011, my birthday.
This was a charity fundraiser put on by the Associate Board of NorthShore University HealthSystem to help raise money for the Infant Special Care Unit at NorthShore Evanston Hospital. With this event, they met their goal of raising $500,000.
It was a great night with an amazing performance by Dot Dot Dot.
Also, at one point when I was on stage, the crowd sang "Happy Birthday" to me. It was EPIC!
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Docs Playing Golf - White Deer Run (35 photos)
Every year, the cardiology group at NorthShore University HealthSystem gets together for a relaxing day of golf at a beautiful course. This year, the event was held at the White Deer Run Golf Course in Vernon Hills, IL.
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National Hellenic Museum (24 photos)
I was asked to cover an event put on by the Auxiliary of NorthShore University HealthSystem. This event took place at the National Hellenic Museum, an impressive space which was still slightly under construction when I took these photos.
You can find more info at their website, www.333southhalsted.org.
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WRX on the North Shore (16 photos)
Installed the GTWORX/Bilstein Impreza Cup Sport Kit. Decided to go for a drive and take some photos on the north shore of Chicago.
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WRX at the lake (19 photos)
Work photography hasn't been that exciting lately. So I decided to take some photos of my new car while on my way home. Scouted out some great locations to return to when there's better light.
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ISCU - Infant Special Care Unit (12 photos)
In 2008, I was asked to get some photos of a baby and her parents in the Infant Special Care Unit of Evanston Hospital for a publication we were working on.
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Heart Walk 2011 (31 photos)
American Heart Association holds a Heart Walk every year. For the last few years, NorthShore University HealthSystem has been a major sponsor. They asked me to attend and get some shots of people in NorthShore gear.
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Quince at the Homestead (20 photos)
For this year's meeting of the 1891 Society, the luncheon was held at the Quince at the Homestead, Evanston, IL, which is a nice gathering place attached to a hotel. The food looked nicely prepared and there was nice sunlight coming into the room. I didn't get to eat this time, but it was a nice place to take photographs.
The 1891 Society is a group of planned givers who donate and raise money for NorthShore University HealthSystem.
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2010 Residency Brochure (13 photos)
2010 Department of Medicine Residency Programs.
This is a brochure for which I supplied all of the photos. The brochure was for NorthShore University HealthSystem put together by the talented people at 7th Wave.
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American Craft Expo 2011 (9 photos)
Every year, the American Craft Expo is put on by the Foundation of NorthShore University HealthSystem on the campus of Northwestern University. Many talented artists are invited to show and sell their works at this event and a lot of money is raised for NorthShore.
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Rapid Recovery - William Blair gardening (9 photos)
For the Summer 2011 issue of Connections, I was asked to photograph avid cyclist and restaurant owner William Blair gardening outside of his eatery, Hackney on Harms, in Skokie, IL. Mr. Blair was a great sport and we got some great shots during this beautiful summer day.
Connections Magazine is a publication of NorthShore University HealthSystem.
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Production Vehicle - 2011 WRX (4 photos)
Picked up a new production vehicle for hauling equipment to shoots. I blew the engine on my 2004 WRX, which I miss, and was kind of forced into the blue color due to the conditions in Japan. But it's growing on me.
I haven't done too many mods yet. Shift knob made a huge different in the shift feel. I have an axle back on order from Nameless Performance. I also ordered the STI side mirror turn signals and JDM rear fog light.
I have 18" OZ Superleggeras which look OK on the car. But they are trashed and need to be repaired. I could just paint them black though, but I hate painting as much as I hate doing laundry. And with the 18's on, I need new summer tires. Then I'll need new winter tires for the 17s, and, well, it starts to get expensive. So I'm living with the stock rims for now.
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Connections Magazine - 2011 - Summer (11 photos)
This is the layout for the 2011 Summer issue of Connections Magazine
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Schubas - Associate Board Kickoff Event (21 photos)
The Associate Board, a group of young professionals who raise money by throwing cool fun hip events, had a kickoff event at Schubas in Chicago. There were two bands and lots of fun.
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Librarian Liberated (5 photos)
For the Community Benefits Report, I was asked to photograph a librarian at Glenbrook South High School in Glenview, IL. She was a nice lady who was helped by the expert physicians and staff at NorthShore University HealthSystem.
At the end of the shoot, she said, "Tell everyone I said thanks for saving my life!"
For this shoot, I lit it in an "outdoor studio" style that is very popular right now. Basically, you try to replicate studio lighting quality and direction regardless of the ambient lighting in the background. So I used three speedlights, one master on the camera, and two slaves with umbrellas on each side of the subject.
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Family Medicine Graduation (22 photos)
I liked some of the photos I shot at the Family Medicine Resident Graduation ceremony so I'm posting them here.
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ISCU Picnic 2011 (51 photos)
Each year, NorthShore University HealthSystem has a reunion for children and parents who spent time in the Infant Special Care Unit. This year was sunny and beautiful and everyone had a great time.
If you attended this event and want copies of the photos taken, I've uploaded them to snapfish here:
SNAPFISH ALBUM (you have to sign up for an account to access them, but it's free)
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A Mothers Survival (17 photos)
Megan Behnke was diagnozed with stage four skin cancer. She beat it. Here she is playing with her beautiful children. This is the cover story for the Summer 2011 issue of Connections Magazine.
Connections Magazine is a publication of NorthShore University HealthSystem
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Blessed Return to an Active Life (5 photos)
Following advanced surgery at NorthShore Neurological Institute, Sr. Leanne Hartmann is now back to writing and working on her computer, including staying in touch with her physicians through NorthShoreConnect.
For this photo which will appear in the Summer 2011 issue of Connections Magazine, I went to Felician Sisters Convent in Chicago. Inside, they have this beautiful chapel which worked well as a dramatic backdrop.
In terms of lighting, I wanted to create a sense of available light. The windows in the upper balcony were made of stained glass, so there wasn't a lot of light coming through them. Shooting at around 1/20th of a second, I was struggling to get enough exposure while keeping the ISO at a point where the image wouldn't be noisy (looking forward to that full frame camera some day so I won't have to worry about this anymore).
Sr. Leanne was a good sport and I think she was more comfortable with me when I recognized the stations of the cross on one of the walls. :)
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Teen Counseling (17 photos)
For the Summer 2011 issue of Connections Magazine, I was asked to create a photo for a "teen counseling" story. I was given free rein and just a few suggestions. So I decided to start out by asking if anyone had access to a teenager that we could photograph.
NorthShore University HealthSystem (NorthShore) has relationships with local high schools that they supply healthcare to, but in this case, the model was the daughter of one of the NorthShore employees. I explained to her and her mother the subject of the photos and what they were going to be used for and they were all for it.
We ended up traveling to Lighthouse Park in Evanston where there are lots of different-looking wooded areas. I had considered shooting on the beach next to the park, but the permissions involved were a little too restrictive, so we just shot in the park.
Jessica, the model, was a great sport. She seems like a young girl who is happy and full of life, so it was interesting to see her transform herself into a more solumn version of herself for the shots. I gave her some specific directions about where to look and whether I wanted more or less in her facial expressions.
All shots were taken with natural light.
Connections Magazine is a quarterly publication of NorthShore University HealthSystem.
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Bike Riding in the Chicago Botanic Garden (24 photos)
For the Summer 2011 issue of Connections Magazine, I was asked to photograph Ed Phillips, a patient who had, as part of his treatment, started to ride his bike from his home up to the Chicago Botanic Garden.
I used an app called ShadowFacts which is available in the Android Market for free. Ed and I scouted a few different locations and decided where we wanted to do the shoots. Then I used the app to determine when the sun would be in the best position in the sky. The app made it easy to drag the sun and determine the time of day. Then we just waited for the weather to cooperate.
Connections Magazine is a publication of NorthShore University HealthSystem.
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Gala 2011 (43 photos)
Every year, the Auxiliary of NorthShore University HealthSystem throws a huge gala to raise money for the organization. This year, it was held at Navy Pier in downtown Chicago.
The event was black tie and I was a lot of fun. Check out some of the photos for details on how I took some of the photos.
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Endovascular OR Suite and docs (6 photos)
This shoot was in one of the recently completed operating rooms at Evanston Hospital. It is a room with a giant arm (see the other OR shoot posted just before this one for more pics) used to see inside of patients while they are being operated on.
The original intention of this photo shoot was for a physician portal and I figured the image might be small. So I wanted to make something that would pop with color and maybe have a little wide angle distortion, which seems to grab people's eyes.
For the wide angle, I used Nikon's 12-24mm lens and stayed at the wide end, making sure to keep my subjects closer to the middle to avoid overly distorting their faces/heads.
For the color, I used three strobes. The first strobe was tungsten gelled and bounced off of a white and silver umbrella back toward the subjects. The silver portion of the reflector seems to add some sharpness to portraits I've found by making the highlights just a little crisper. The opposite side of the umbrella is black as I didn't want this tungsten light bouncing all over the room (the room is white).
For the background, I first set up a yellow-gelled strobe camera right and shot it at the back wall. I then placed a blue-gelled strobe camera left and shot it in almost the opposite direction. The blue color is kind of overwhelming, so I toned it down by a half stop or more so it wouldn't overwhelm the yellow. The yellow color, of course, went green because yellow and blue make green but also because I balanced for tungsten which turned the yellow toward the green end of the spectrum.
During the shoot, I played with different focal lengths making it more and less distorted. I also played with the strobes a little taking away some of the yellow light to make the image more contrasty.
The room lights were left on, but not all of them and the strobes I was using pretty much overwhelmed them anyway.
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Operating Rooms - Evanston Hospital (13 photos)
Evanston Hospital recently completed a major reconstruction of their operating rooms. I've seen lots of operating rooms over the years and these are incredible. The rooms are gigantic and the equipment in them is all state of the art. It's easy to be jaded when constantly surrounded by millions of dollars worth of medical equipment, but this stuff was very impressive.
There's a giant robotic arm in OR room 15 which allows for realtime xrays to be taken. The arm can be moved to any part of the table to focus in on any part of the patient. Seeing that in action was cool, bordering on intimidating.
Special thanks to the two nurses Gina and Jenny who kept me in stitches during this fun shoot.
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Festival of Cultures - Skokie (17 photos)
Very overcast day, but I was able to squeeze out some shots that I am happy with.
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Vocera in Action (17 photos)
I was asked to photograph a new technology that our hospitals are using called Vocera. It's a communication device that uses voice recognition to call anyone on the system anywhere they might be in the hospital. If you have ever seen Star Trek: The Next Generation, it's close to what they had with their emblem-based communication devices.
I didn't have much time to do these shoots, so I decided to capture people in the best possible natural light and use a shallow depth of field on a 50mm to isolate them from their backgrounds. I think the results turned out well and it was a fun set of shoots.
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Underground - Associate Board Fundraiser (45 photos)
This event was so much fun and the people were so cool and attractive, I can't wait for the next one!
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Fashion Show Fundraiser (48 photos)
Every year, I am asked to photograph a fundraiser for the Auxiliary of Evanston and Glenbrook Hospitals at Neiman Marcus in Northbrook Court. This particular fundraiser is a breakfast and fashion show. The fashion designer talks about her designs as well as other designs available in the store for purchase. All of the models are professional and do a great job of showing off these interesting dresses that can be worn for many different occasions.
The waiter standing behind me as I was photographing these stunning women said, "You have the best job!"
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Cancer Care Physicians (25 photos)
On the website, www.northshore.org, I was asked to photograph five of the main physicians involved with cancer care at the main hospitals in the NorthShore University HealthSystem system.
The look we wanted to go for wasn't laid out very clearly ahead of time but I knew from experience that I wanted to get a set of photos which would convey both caring as well as listening. I also didn't want the photos to appear scary or intimidating in case a prospective patient was nervous about their new situation and were exploring the website for the first time.
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United Center Visit (21 photos)
Since the company I work for is a corporate sponsor of the Chicago Blackhawks, the Hawks marketing team invited our marketing team to the stadium to talk about strategy, behind the scenes details, etc. They also gave us a tour of the Blackhawks locker room and stadium.
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Evanston Art Center (25 photos)
Recently, the Auxiliary of Evanston and Glenbrook Hospitals had an event at the Evanston Art Center. While I was there, I decided to photograph the art as well as the event. These photos are mostly of the art.
Evanston Hospital and Glenbrook Hospital are a part of the NorthShore University HealthSystem.
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Photography Workflow (1 photos)
This is a diagram I made of the workflow of my photography from start to finish.
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Prayer Shawl Ministry (2 photos)
For the next issue of Inside NorthShore, I was asked to take a portrait of Chaplain Belinda Chaplin and volunteer Juliann Parker, part of the Prayer Shawl Ministry at Skokie Hospital. Together, they crochet shawls for people who are in the hospital.
This shot, I completely previsualized in my mind because I've shot in these small chapels before. I knew I was going to place the chaplin more toward the foreground with the volunteer in the back, and I wanted that wide angle look for the shot, so after taking everything off of the table, I placed an umbrella reflector on the left which is white on the inside and black on the back to reduce the bounce throughout the room, I placed my DIY grid on an SB-800 speedlight hitting the framed picture behind them. I balanced the camera and strobes for daylight to bring more color out of the stained glass window. Juliann (left) blinked in 16 out of 18 shots. So I photoshopped her open eyes into all of the other photos. The only problem I had was that I didn't want to shoot higher than ISO 400 but my shutter speed was already down to 1/30 of a second handheld. And I needed a little more depth of field when I framed Belinda closer to the camera.
Overall, the shots turned out how I wanted. I could have bumped up the ISO to 500 and gotten a little more depth of field, but with this final framing, it's a non-issue.
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Red Kite Roundup (30 photos)
The performers from the Chicago Children's Theatre came to Evanston Hospital to put on a show called the Red Kite Roundup. It's a cowboy and cowgirl-themed adventure for kids with autism where the imagination is taken on a ride through the forest, across the water and safely to a campground. The kids loved it as did I.
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Physician Leadership - Ilham Algayed (10 photos)
For the cover of a physician recruitment guide, I was asked to take photos of pediatrician Dr. Ilham Algayed. This particular recruitment guide is focused on Physician Leadership, so my intention was to have Dr. Algayed in a conference room giving a lecture to other physicians. But when I arrived at the facility, they didn't have anything that would work for that particular idea.
So we chose to shoot at a nursing station and by using a lower angle, I tried to visually emphasize Dr. Algayed's commanding intelligence. I put another physician in the foreground to be the "student" and the shots turned out nicely.
For these types of shoots, there's always a compromise between smiling and looking like you are discussing something serious. Sometimes the serious shots look too serious or like no one is having fun. Letting subjects talk to each other about something serious while I shoot sometimes works, but often the mouth positions aren't usable. So for these, I had Dr. Algayed say letters A, B, C, D and E slowly enough so that I could get a different levels of smile on different letter sounds. It's a nice trick I picked up from another photographer which works about half of the time.
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Researcher - Eli Ehrenpreis (8 photos)
To promote a grant to the Center for the Study of Complex Diseases, I was asked to get a photo of the main physician who would be running the center, Dr. Eli Ehrenpreis. Originally, I was asked to photograph him in the lab. But as many lab professionals tell me these days, they don't sit in a lab, they just sit in front of computers. Not very exciting. So I asked Dr. Ehrenpreis to get a slide together which showed off some of what he talked about in meetings.
The shoot had a few problems. One of the SB-800 speedlights stopped receiving commands while in slave mode, so after a few minutes of battery changes and thinking, I just reversed the roles of the strobe from Master to Slave and vice versa and everything started working again. Shot this with a single SB-800 with a white umbrella bouncing the light back toward the subject. I shot this relatively slow in order to capture the dim light from the projector. All of the room lights had to be off though in order to get the projector bright enough while keeping the shadows on the doc dark like I wanted. It was a compromise. Dr. E. was very cooperative and friendly considering that there were no modeling lamps on and the room was going from complete darkness to full light every time I took a photo and popped the strobes. He was a real pro, smiled and looked right into the camera each time despite the fact that he could barely see me from across the room. All shots taken with a Nikon D2Xs and 70-200 f/2.8 VR.
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Cancer Survivor (5 photos)
Back in 2006, I was asked to shoot some, "during treatment" photos of a cancer patient for the Living in the Future (LIFE) program at NorthShore University HealthSystem.
We discussed the look we wanted for the photos and decided that black and white, cold, foreboding, scary were all impressions we wanted to convey. These were to be the "before" pictures, if you will.
Five years later, I'm happy to report that the patient is a thriving survivor, fitness instructor and personal trainer.
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Thoracic Oncology Team (7 photos)
Here are some photos I was asked to shoot to replicate images in the TV ad campaign of a client. Nikon 70-200 f/2.8 VR lens make quick work of the shoot. I just laid out what I wanted the doctors to do, then I laid on the floor and shot it. No lights necessary.
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Bowling Night Fundraiser - Seven Ten Lounge (35 photos)
The Associate Board of NorthShore University HealthSystem is a group of young professionals who raise money for worth causes, in this case, the Infant Special Care Unit at Evanston Hospital.
For this event, I was asked to photograph a fundraiser at the Seven Ten Lounge in Lincoln Park, Chicago.
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Chicago Auto Show 2011 (78 photos)
I was asked to photograph a check presentation from Toyota to a woman who was the 3 millionth customer of their certified pre-owned car program. I only had about 45 minutes before the presentation started, so not much time to cover the whole show, but enough to cover the cars I found interesting in 45 minues.
It's so nice to be at a car show on Media Day. No crowds, no strollers, no elbows, plenty of room to shoot. I had fun.
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Fitness Class - Be Well Lake County (33 photos)
I was asked to photograph a fitness class for a healthcare initiative called Be Well Lake County. Part of that initiative is that people involved with the program get access to fitness facilities including classes on not just exercise, but the proper mindset to have when redefining your life toward a more healthy way of living.
For this shoot, I was asked to focus more on Rogelio, the instructor in the black shirt. He's dedicated a lot of time and energy to this program and you can see it in the way he instructs.
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Special Dessert (10 photos)
Executive Chef Chris Martin makes a special dessert for someone at Evanston Hospital.
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Granville, New York (25 photos)
Went to Upstate NY with my mom to visit where she grew up.
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Jo Kim - portraits (12 photos)
After a standard portrait session for the website, I asked Jo if she wouldn't mind staying a little extra to shoot some photos with different lighting ideas I wanted to try out. She was game and ended up having a great time. Some people are just photogenic and Jo is one of those people.
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Al Maddox - portraits (12 photos)
For Connections Magazine, I photographed Mr. Maddox who was retiring from nursing after four decades. Three years later, this is one of my favorite portrait sessions. Out of fifteen or so photos, almost all are keepers.
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Human Resources - portraits (10 photos)
The corporate portrait definitely exists at my company. For most purposes, that works fine. But when HR came to me asking to shoot portraits of their people, I asked if it would be OK to break with convention and shoot something more interesting. They were all for it.
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Tabletop Misc (31 photos)
When I first started out as a photographer's assistant at Silver Lining and Ambrosi, I did a lot of tabletop photography setup. Of course, at that point, I considered myself a cinematographer, so the photo asst. job was just something to give me money until I could move on. But I liked doing it.
In my current job as staff photographer for a major healthcare company, I have had several opportunities to do tabletop photography. I always find it to be a fun challenge and somewhat nostalgic to those early days in my career.
Here are some misc shots from the last few years. A lot of awards, but some other things for the websites, raffles, etc.
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Melissa Pearson - portraits (3 photos)
Tried out the Silver Effects Pro plugin from Nik Color Effects tonight. It's not a non-destructive editing environment, but the effects are great. It offers quite a few more black and white options than Lightroom does on its own.
Model is Melissa Pearson.
Lighting is a softbox key just to the left of the camera, with a reflector umbrella as the rim light behind and above Melissa.
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Self Portraits - Pose Tests (17 photos)
It's easy to feel like a total weirdo doing these self portrait poses. Actually it's pretty difficult to sit in the same place and in focus. Mostly, I was playing with this fun dramatic lighting setup. But I also wanted to see what sorts of poses looked cool and which looked lame or just boring.
Toward the end, you can see that I was getting close to the shot I wanted. Close, miss, miss, and the last shot is what I wanted. Some in the middle look cool with the right editing and use of shadows. However, it's easy to get bogged down in your own flaws rather than edit the photos as they should be edited.
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Shannon Stumm - portraits (6 photos)
Shannon used to work in the same department as me at the company I still work at. I was asked to take photos of her and a few of the other new hires. So instead of boring old corporate headshots, I decided to do something different. For these shots, I placed myself on a ladder looking down on the subjects. There is an umbrella right next to the two of us, which was something I had to be cognizant of in order to avoid a glare across the face of the lens causing a fogging of the image. I asked each of the people being photographed to wear black as I knew the shots would be black and white with their bodies below them.
I'm pretty happy with the way these shots turned out. I particularly like Shannon's expressions as with very little direction, she seemed to offer a lot of different subtle expressions.
My old boss always used to accuse me of taking twenty identical photos and wasting space on the hard drives. But if you look at each of these shots, you can see the subtle effect and mood that Shannon conveys. In the first shot, a small tilt of her head just off of vertical makes her look innocent. In the last shot, her head is square up with the edges of the frame and she looks mischievous. I think the fourth shot looks intense, while the fifth looks happy and welcoming.
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Amy Ferguson - portraits (4 photos)
Amy Ferguson works for the same company that I do in the Corporate Communications Department. She is now the head of Public Relations. When she first started, I was asked to take her photo along with some of the other new Corporate Communcations hires. So instead of boring old corporate headshots, I decided to take some nice customized photos.
This particular angle was a little bit of a challenge for the subjects as I'm basically on a ladder looking almost straight down on them, just a few inches away from their faces with a large umbrella right next to the both of us. So I had to make sure that they picked their chins up or the lens would artifically distort their foreheads. But I didn't want them to look too squarely into the camera or they'd look mean. So we struck a balance.
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Laura Nozicka - portraits (6 photos)
Laura was the AVP of Advertising at my company and now owns her own Healthcare advertising consulting company. When she first worked with me, I was asked to photograph her and a few of the other new Corporate Communications professionals who had just joined the staff. I know my boss was just looking for simple corporate headshots, but I decided to go all 40's Hollywood on 'em and take some interesting angles with some attractive light.
This lighting setup was actually a little difficult to work with. It was flattering and cradled the face nicely, but the shadows were pretty dark and highlighted every curve of the face. So small wrinkles appeared larger because of the light. A few minutes in Photoshop helped de-emphasize that lighting flaw and the portraits came out better than I had hoped.
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Self Portraits - Fake Ringlight (3 photos)
I don't have a ringlight. So I faked the effect a little bit by putting a large piece of black foil over the middle of one of my medium sized softboxes. I think I look like an alien. So I messed with the colors and managed to turn the red bloodshot parts of my eyes teal. Cool!
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Chris Hayes - portraits (6 photos)
Chris is a former model and actor (and a great photographer in his own right) who I worked with for a few years. One day, some visiting photographer or video crew left a Calumet diffusion panel in one of the rooms. Someone found it and asked me if it was mine. So I held on to it until the photographer returned (they never did). So these photos were the first test that Chris and I did with the panel.
I'm glad we found it because the diffusion panel has really helped out my photography. It's a very simple and compact tool, great for studio or location shooting, can be used to diffuse light or bounce it, can be used as a flag to block light or as a light sink to remove reflections, etc.
Thank you mystery photographer.
By the way, these shots were taken in a darkened studio which is how we got Chris's pupils so enlarged. People say the enlarged pupils convey a sense of trust and friendliness.
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Shannon Beckering - portraits (5 photos)
Shannon Beckering is a great guy and husband of one of my favorite people and good friends, Kate. She runs events for the fundraising arm of the giant corporation we both work for. And even though we are are both in the same company, I consider her a client since she always has events she needs me to photograph.
These shots were for the website of the Real Estate company that Shannon works for. After taking the initial boring corporate shots, we went to this setup with the wide angle lens (12-24mm) and I changed up the lighting so it was a little more interesting.
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Sara Patterson - portraits (4 photos)
My good friend and former boss Sara asked me to take some photos of her for LinkedIn a while back. Sara was the senior editor at my company and was in charge of writing, proofing and choosing photos for many of the publications I've supplied photos to. So every time I write in my blog, I think of her and make sure things are spelled correctly.
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Joe Messina - portraits (9 photos)
My friend Joe Messina asked me to take some quick headshots of him for some acting gigs he was interested in trying out for. Joe is a talented actor and director which you can see in the later shots when I asked him to give me a full range of emotions.
The lighting in all of these shots is rather simple with a Balcar Classic 1500 shooting through an umbrella, speedlight hitting the backdrop in the first few shots. Then I think I just moved that setup over toward the window to change backgrounds. In the fourth shot, you can see one of my signature canted angle shots. Love em.
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Andrea Mitchell - portraits (8 photos)
Took these for fun with my friend Andrea to test out some lighting ideas I wanted to try with an umbrella I found in a pile of old equipment. It's a reflector umbrella with white and silver panels. The light was soft but it tended to yield sharp highlights in the eyes; soft shadows with a quick transition to light.
The umbrella was basically pointing straight down, positioned slightly behind Andrea. A speedlight was hitting the black paper backdrop.
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Medical Advertising (28 photos)
For the past few weeks, I've been working on capturing some physicians in the workplace for several different publications. Photography is often the study of knowing where to stand, and these photos help illustrate that challenge.
All photos were taken for NorthShore University HealthSystem. Publications include a physician recruitment brochure and a publication on the flexibility of the Electronic Medical Record system (the laptop shots).
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Kellogg Reunion - Wagner Farm (28 photos)
This past Fall, I was asked to photograph a reunion of cancer patients and their families at Historic Wagner Farm. It was a fun event with face painting, hay rides, art exhibits and bags.
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Hospital Attractions (20 photos)
I recently acquired a new lens that I took around the hospital for some test shots. The Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G VRII is an amazing piece of technology. It steadies the shots so you can take a photo, handheld, at 200mm at a shutter speed of around 1/80th or even slower, and you can get acceptably sharp images. Of course, it's only as good as you are and will only compensate for a certain amount of hand shake. But overall, the technology is great and so is the sharpness. The images are much sharper than any other lens I've used except for possibly the 105mm Macro. But the 70-200mm is usable in more situations since it's a zoom.
All photos shot at Evanston Hospital, Evanston, IL.
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Plant-based Diet Lecture - Whole Foods (5 photos)
Dr. Geeta Maker-Clark gave a lecture at Whole Foods South in Evanston, IL on the benefits and drawbacks of a plant-based diet. I shot these photos for NorthShore University HealthSystem. Special thanks to Whole Foods for hosting the event and allowing me to shoot the photos.
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Lincolnwood Turkey Trot (10 photos)
Lincolnwood held a Thanksgiving themed series of runs for kids known as the Drumstick Dash, or Turkey Trot. I was there taking photos for NorthShore University HealthSystem which was a sponsor of the event.
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SAD (4 photos)
For the next issue of Connections Magazine, we profiled a psychiatrist named Joanne Parks who spoke about Seasonal Affective Disorder. Since we couldn't let the doc look depressed, but since we also wanted to get kind of a moody look, I decided to photograph her in the shadowy blue twilight on the roof of our concrete parking garage. Unfortunately, it was the end of a gorgeous day. So I decided to go the other way with the shoot. I asked her to wear her outdoor jacket. Luckily she had the red scarf. So I asked her to wrap it on the outside of the jacket which reminded me of a wardrobe style I'd seen at the end of the movie Contact. To me it speaks confidence. Then we used the falling sunlight to light her exclusively without any fill light. I think the results turned out well and they still convey a feeling or mood that applies to SAD discussions.
Connections Magazine is a publication of NorthShore University HealthSystem. www.northshore.org
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Andrea's Donation (6 photos)
My friend Andrea Mitchell donated her hair to Locks Of Love www.locksoflove.org. I was there to capture the moment for Inside NorthShore, a publication of NorthShore University HealthSystem.
Special thanks to Sine Qua Non, www.sinequanonsalon.com/, the salon that was cool enough to let me photograph as much as I wanted.
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Power Walker (7 photos)
Georgann Morrissey powerwalked for my camera in Park Ridge for Connections Magazine, a publication of NorthShore University HealthSystem. Most of these shots were taken with the Nikkor 105mm Micro and 12-24mm DX wide zoom. The final shot I obtained by using an on-camera SB-800 which I turned away from her and directed to bounce off of my hand.
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Back from College (16 photos)
For the winter issue of Connections Magazine, I was asked to photograph Cathryn Collopy who had received a medical treatment which allowed her to hear in her right ear (she's been deaf in her right ear since birth). She came back from college for a day and we were lucky to get a few close friends from her high school swim team to do the photo shoot with us.
The location was Sunset Park in Highland Park. There were two other photographers there photographing children, so we were all competing for the playground equipment and space.
In case anyone is interested, I took 197 shots, I kept 133 of them and settled on these 16 for Flickr. One idea I had, the main girl swinging upside down on a swingset with the camera inverted, didn't really work so I deleted those 20 or so shots.
Connections Magazine is a thrice yearly publication of NorthShore University HealthSystem
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Bears Signed Helmet and Ball (22 photos)
To help raise money for a non-profit organization, I was asked to photograph some signed bears items which will be raffled off.
The first was a signed helmet. The second was a signed ball. The helmet was difficult to shoot because it was so shiney. Every piece of dust, every hair, every item in the room touched by light was perfectly reflected in the mirror-like finish. I included a shot of my lighting setup.
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Key to the Cure 2010 (12 photos)
Every year, the Highland Park Auxiliary of the NorthShore University HealthSystem has a fundraiser at the Saks Fifth Avenue in Highland Park. The event raises money for the hospital and is well attended with many sponsors.
Good food, silent auctions, dance lessons, it was a fun evening of elbow rubbing with the north shore elite.
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Heart Walk 2010 (21 photos)
For the past two years, the American Heart Association and NorthShore University HealthSystem have sponsored a Heart Walk to help raise money for heart disease research. The event is very well attended with hundreds of people walking for a loved one touched by heart disease.
The clouds swooped in toward the middle of the shoot which were very dark and covered the crowd completely. So early on, we had great horizontal sunlight backlighting people. But later in the day, the lighting was very overcast and dark. Overall though, there were a lot of great shot opportunities with cute kids and dogs. People had a lot of fun with the music too.
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Hall of Honor (18 photos)
Recently, five of my photos were put on permanent display in Skokie Hospital. The photos are part of a "Pictorial Retrospective" from 1955-2009 showing shots of the hospital from it's first early days through today.
I photographed the event which included the dedication of a wall of names commerating donors and other contributors to the success of the hospital through the years.
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Janet Buckley - Portrait (4 photos)
I was asked to shoot a portrait of this VP of Nursing, Janet Buckley. Unfortunately, because I had recently reconfigured my light kit and because the items I needed weren't in the bag when I arrived at the shoot, I had to use an on-camera strobe. So I bounced the head toward the wall and was able to get the shots I wanted.
This series is interesting in terms of where I've placed her in relation to the camera and background. I try to place subjects at the apex of perspective or the origin of the lines of the photo. That way, the lines of the photo point to the subject's face. Check out the last two photos specifically for how they come across differently depending on whether she is to the right of or in the center of the perspective lines' intersection.
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NU Law School Reunion (40 photos)
Evanston Photographic asked me to assist them with shooting the Northwestern University School of Law class reunion. It was an epic affair with around 8 or 9 different classes all coming together for a weekend of activities, food and catching up.
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The Stained Glass (10 photos)
I was asked to photograph a fundraising lunch recently at a restaurant in downtown Evanston, IL called The Stained Glass. Luckily, the organizers insisted that I eat with them because the food was amazing. I had what I estimate to be the best salad of my life there.
A former coworker of mine said, "If you want to marry a girl, take her to The Stained Glass. The place is that good." Happily, it lived up to the hype.
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American Craft Expo 2010 (58 photos)
Every year, the American Craft Expo is put on by the Foundation of NorthShore University HealthSystem on the campus of Northwestern University. Many talented artists are invited to show and sell their works at this event and a lot of money is raised for NorthShore.
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Varian Trilogy Linear Accelerator (10 photos)
I photographed a device known as a Varian Trilogy Linear Accelerator which is used in the treatment of cancer. For as large and intimidating as the machine initially appeared, it was actually quite a pleasant room. A long mural is on one wall of what looks like a Japanese pond and garden. The lighting is soft and serene and there's sunlight coming in to a small alcove near the foot of the machine before you enter the room. The staff was funny and eager to show off some of the features of the device. It can rotate in many different directions and treat any part of the body. This particular device is in the Radiology department of Evanston Hospital.
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Community Garden (27 photos)
Some towns reside in what is referred to as a "food desert" which is a place without access to fresh produce. Usually residents of these areas buy their food at 7-11 or simply eat fast food. This can lead to all sorts of health problems.
In Lake County, IL, they've started a Community Garden, part of the City Produce Project which helps teach people how to grow vegetables and teach them how to eat properly, cook healthy meals and reduce diabetes and other food-related diseases.
I took these photos an early Saturday morning after a heavy rain.
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Residency Program (24 photos)
These photos were taken for a Resident Recruitment brochure.
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Grand Prix of Cycling 2010 - Evanston (29 photos)
In Evanston, IL, there's an annual International Bike Race called the NorthShore University HealthSystem Grand Prix of Cycling.
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Suite - Associate Board Kickoff Party (20 photos)
These are photos I took for a group of young urban professionals known as the Associate Board. Every year, they throw fundraisers with raffles to help raise money for hospitals and their departments. Some of the attendees at this kickoff event were people who would be recipients of this funding and it was nice to see everyone having fun together.
I've shared thoughts within the photo comments about camera settings or how I developed the photos. Hopefully they are useful.
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Bathroom Perspective (15 photos)
Various shots of my bathroom testing out the shallow focus capabilities of an old 35mm Nikkor AIS lens.
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Mother and Daughter (7 photos)
Mother and daughter I photographed for a nursing pamphlet.
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Apophysis Backgrounds (10 photos)
Once you get a decent computer, the first thing you should do is download a free program called Apophysis. It's often used to test how fast your video card and processor can render these complex images created through math equations.
The program is extremely simple to use but you can make it as complicated as you like creating your own formulas and modifying them for specific purposes. Many people seek to create images of flowers and scenes of everyday life. I just like the pretty amorphic imagery.
Here are a few desktop backgrounds I've created for myself. All of my Apophysis backgrounds are in 1920 x 1200 pixel resolution which is large enough for most widescreeen monitors.
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ISCU Picnic 2010 (23 photos)
Took these photos during a reunion of kids who were born premature or who had some other birth problem which required them to spend their first waking moments of life in the Infant Special Care Unit.
This was a very rainy day which turned hot and humid. Everyone was a trooper who was there. Photos were taken for NorthShore University HealthSystem.
If you attended this event and want copies of the photos taken, I've uploaded them to snapfish here:
SNAPFISH ALBUM (you have to sign up for an account to access them, but it's free)
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Lake Forest Park (18 photos)
I photographed this beach on the northshore of Chicago as part of a larger project promoting Lake Forest and the surrounding area.
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Lake Forest (21 photos)
These are photos I took of downtown Lake Forest as part of a larger campaign to promote the northshore area in IL.
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Radiology MRI (6 photos)
The MRI area can be a scary place for patients. But I've found over the years that the people working in there are not only extremely smart, they also possess a calming and friendly nature. These are MRI experts at work in Evanston Hospital.
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Woman with Bearded Dragon (15 photos)
This was a portrait session I had with a woman who was a former patient at a hospital I was shooting for. As we talked during the shoot, she mentioned her pet Tang, a Bearded Dragon. So we brought him into the photo shoot and I think it added something.
It's interesting to note the different feel the images have when I changed from a fast normal to a wide angle lens. The fast normal certainly yields beauty, but the wide angle lens makes me feel like I'm more involved with what the subject is doing.
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Blackhawks Signed Jersey (6 photos)
Played with different downloadable presets for Adobe Photoshop Lightroom. Check the keywords for the names of the presets. This is a signed jersey that the Blackhawks donated to Evanston Hospital.
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Smashing Pumpkins Concert (33 photos)
At the LaSalle Power Company in Chicago, this charity concert featured Billy Corgan of Smashing Pumpkins fame. He played the night for free as did the band. The security company also donated all of their time to the good cause of raising money for the Integrative Medicine Program at NorthShore University HealthSystem.
Very challenging lighting situation, but a lot of fun as well.
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Porsche and Portrait (7 photos)
Lighting cars and lighting people I have found are two very competitive pursuits when the tools you have are blunt instruments. Like, you know how in movies, there's that scene where the criminal stands behind the hostage holding a gun to the hostage's head, and the cop is standing there getting ready to shoot the bad guy in the forehead, just missing the right ear of the hostage and saving the day? OK, now instead of a pistol place a sledgehammer in the hands of the cop and see if he's able to save the day.
This photo shoot was meant to be the cover of Connections Magazine. So I had to make sure that I got a good result. But without a grid or flags or any real light control, every time I tried to light the person, the car would end up looking terrible. And with a white painted garage, the light was bouncing all over the place filling in every shadow. Every time I tried to get some cool shadows on the car or bikes, the person would look terrible. I ended up placing the car inbetween the person and my camera and that seemed to make a big difference. It also hid the normal garage detritis.
The owner of the Porsche was a great sport the whole time. We were able to move the car easily into different angles because it was up on wheel dollies. Overall, the shoot took about two hours to complete but the final setup took about 7 minutes. It was getting the concept right that took all the time. In post production, I tried to emphasize the portrait with vignetting and I tried to emphasize the curves of the car with some black clipping (without adding wrinkles to the man's face).
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Self Portraits - umbrella top lighting (7 photos)
I was playing around with some top lighting with a half-silver reflector umbrella getting some very direct, yet very soft light.
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Auditorium Seats - YMCA (26 photos)
Oh what drama the auditorium seats have seen. So passive in their demeanour, yet always watching with a soulless intensity eclipsed only by their occasional occupants.
I took these shots at the Evanston YMCA's ancient auditorium.
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Vernon Hills (9 photos)
Architecture photography is one of my favorite types of photography to take part in. To me, it's like shooting free throws in basketball. There's just you and your objective.
Today I was asked to shoot on a specific day and time by the ad agency, so I wasn't dealing with the best light situation and I only had 30 minutes to get "something really cool". Anyway, it was a building with lots of angles.
Location is 225 Milwaukee, Vernon Hills.
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Labs Equal Microscopes (10 photos)
Anyone who has been asked to photograph a person in a lab knows that labs a lot of times don't use microscopes. Of course, that's what the editors want because that is what readers associate with labs. And a shot of a person in front of a computer is kind of boring and doesn't scream "research". So I always look for other equipment that might look cool or interesting with lasers and moving arms and minature assembly lines and tracks of blood samples. But this lab didn't have anything visual like that. So we defaulted to the microscope.
This is Dr. Gary Kaufman who was photographed for the "Ask a Doc" section of Connections Magazine, Summer 2010. Connections Magazine is a publication put out four times a year by NorthShore University HealthSystem. It highlights doctor and patient stories and how NorthShore is helping in the community. More information and a copy of the magazine in PDF format is available on NorthShore.org.
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Patient Artist (13 photos)
Irmgard Ziss is an artist and patient at NorthShore University HealthSystem who was recently the subject of a story in Connections Magazine which NorthShore asked me to photograph. The room we decided to shoot in was a challenge. I definitely wanted to show off her art and her working on her art in her studio. But with the long table and main light source being where it was, I had a hard time getting an angle I was comfortable with. I wanted to show her face, her hands and her artwork in the natural light, and have it make logical sense in the frame. Luckily, Irmgard was very patient with me and allowed me to shoot lots of photos and set up various strobes. I tried some alternative photo processing afterwards just for fun and to reflect the fact that she's an artist (sketch, painter and sculptor). She had quite a few paintings I would have loved to incorporate into the shoot. In the end, she was one of my favorite people to welcome me into her home.
Connections Magazine is a publication put out four times a year by NorthShore University HealthSystem. It highlights doctor and patient stories and how NorthShore is helping in the community. More information and a copy of the magazine in PDF format is available on NorthShore.org.
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A New Hope in a New Facility (5 photos)
For this story in the Summer 2010 issue of Connections Magazine, I was asked to take a photo of Dr. Nina Paleologos and patient Martin Dugan for Connections Magazine. Since we have shot many previous doctor/patient visits in exam rooms, I decided to try and showcase the beauty of the new facility recently completed at Evanston Hospital known as the Kellogg Cancer Center (KCC). The main highlight of the lobby is the grand staircase, so it was a natural fit for this story, where Mr. Dugan was now able to continue his doctor visits.
Hospitals can be scary places, but not this place.
Connections Magazine is a publication put out four times a year by NorthShore University HealthSystem. It highlights doctor and patient stories and how NorthShore is helping in the community. More information and a copy of the magazine in PDF format is available on NorthShore.org.
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Flaming Bananas! (8 photos)
For the Summer 2010 issue of Connections Magazine, I took some photos of Frederick Fuschetto, chef and waiter at one of the Lettuce Entertain You restaurants. We were going to do the shoot in the kitchen of the restarant, but due to restrictive legal regulations we decided to have the shoot in a private home. This was an interesting shoot because I had never photographed fire in a bright environment before. The dark cabinets helped separate the fire from the background, but really fire seems to be so hit or miss that we ended up pouring in more and more liquor and setting the bananas on fire three times. Frederick was fearless and later served the 100 proof bananas to me which were like doing shots. Thanks Frederick! :)
Connections Magazine is a publication put out four times a year by NorthShore University HealthSystem. It highlights doctor and patient stories and how NorthShore is helping in the community. More information and a copy of the magazine in PDF format is available on NorthShore.org.
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Docs and Triathletes (20 photos)
For the Summer 2010 issue of Connections Magazine, we did a story on Rachael Mueller, a triathlete who was treated for a rare life-threatening condition by Drs. Noxon and Alleva. Afterward, we took some photos of Rachael exercising on the grounds of Glenbrook Hospital.
Connections Magazine is a publication put out four times a year by NorthShore University HealthSystem. It highlights doctor and patient stories and how NorthShore is helping in the community. More information and a copy of the magazine in PDF format is available on NorthShore.org.
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Cardiac Cath E-Valves (6 photos)
Sometimes it's not the technology, it's the caring face behind the technology that is the real story. This was a photo I made of Dr. Ted Feldman, a Cardiac Cath surgeon and a patient of his with the E-Valve, an experimental artificial heart valve. The shoot was only supposed to include the doc and patient, but as shoots go, people get pulled in and taken out on the insistance of the subjects involved. Happily we were able to get some nice shots of all of them interacting. Toward the end of the shoot, Dr. Feldman mentioned that he had a copy of the e-valve in a block of lucite. So we incorporated it into the shoot.
Connections Magazine is a publication put out four times a year by NorthShore University HealthSystem. It highlights doctor and patient stories and how NorthShore is helping in the community. More information and a copy of the magazine in PDF format is available on NorthShore.org.
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Vintage Prints and Healthy People (27 photos)
For the cover and inside story pages of the Summer 2010 issue of Connections Magazine, I met patient Lynne Kimura at Vintage Pine in Barclay Square in Chicago where she has a vintage print restoration business. Great place. Lots of interesting backgrounds to choose from.
Connections Magazine is a publication put out four times a year by NorthShore University HealthSystem. It highlights doctor and patient stories and how NorthShore is helping in the community. More information and a copy of the magazine in PDF format is available on NorthShore.org.
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Giordano's in Chicago - Associate Board Meeting (25 photos)
These are photos of an Associate Board meeting that took place at the Giordano's on Jackson in downtown Chicago. This was a meeting to help recruitment and plan out the responsibilites of the big fundraising party coming up in a few months.
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Charity Tennis Clinic (59 photos)
The Swinging For a Cure Chairty Tennis Clinic is an annual clinic held at the Midtown Tennis Club in downtown Chicago. People pay to be taught by a huge number of professional tennis instructors and competitive players and all of the proceeds to go worthy causes. I donated my Saturday to NorthShore University HealthSystem to help promote this event through photos.
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MRW Luncheon (5 photos)
These are just a few of the hundreds of photos I shot recently for the annual Myra Rubinstein Weiss Foundation Luncheon that raises money and awareness for cancer research.
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Auxiliary Annual Meeting (21 photos)
This is an annual meeting I was asked to cover for the Auxiliary of Evanston, NorthShore University HealthSystem
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Botanic Abstracts (21 photos)
Just a series of abstract images I shot while waiting for the next speaker at an convention I was covering. This is my favorite kind of shooting, hiding the key-offs to what you are looking at; hoping to find something that looks cool in two dimensions.
All photos taken at the Chicago Botanic Gardens.
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Evanston Hospital architectural interiors (7 photos)
These are some shots of the interior of Evanston Hospital.
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Self Portraits - grid and snoot (8 photos)
Playing with a home made cereal box grid and snoot on two speedlights, I decided to shoot some different styles with the setup.
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Evolution: Rose in Glass (11 photos)
The evolution of a shot from start to finish. In this case, a rose in ice cream in a wine glass.
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Water Strobe Experiment (4 photos)
Experiments with strobes firing at different cycles at water.
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custom camera sling (32 photos)
This is a DIY sling I made for around $20 USD.
I obtained all materials from REI, a camping outfitter.
I was tired of my neck taking the weight of the camera, speedlight, and flash bracket. Since most higher end military soldiers use single point slings instead of dual point slings (depending on mission), I figured I'd try out my own single point sling based on one by a popular military and law enforcement supplier's designs.
I used tubular mil-spec webbing because I wanted something ribbed and soft. The single wall nylon is too stiff and scratchy for me.
I used a rapelling ring as the main central connection. I could have used a smaller triangle of plastic, but I couldn't find one off the shelf.
I used a swiveling clip and a key ring to attach to the left side of the camera.
PROS: The right side of the camera strap doesn't get in my way anymore. The weight is distributed across my shoulder and back rather than around my neck. Cool factor.
CONS: Takes a few seconds longer to put on and hook up to the camera. But it's not really a con. Takes a little getting used to. My left shoulder is already overdeveloped from the camera bag. And this may contribute to that (I just need to work out more).
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LowePro Deluxe Belt and Vest (9 photos)
Lowepro Street & Field: Vest Harness - for SlipLock Accessories (Black and Gray)
Here are my photos of my newest addition to my camera equipment.
The vest is a bit tactical in look, and should be very useful for long term shooting, but I'm not sure it will work for a formal event. It's a bit too "special forces" looking for events where people are wearing suits.
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Road America AMA Superbike Race 2009 (31 photos)
These are some shots I took at an AMA Superbike race at Road America. It was my first in-person bike race and I was amazed at the terrifying speeds these guys would reach on the main straight. These guys seriously knew their limits.
I shot all of these photos with my Google G1 phone. The quality is better than typical, but still suffers from typical camera phone sensor problems such as dirt, purple vignetting in bright sunlight, etc.
Overall, I was pretty impressed though with the quality in the right conditions. Move over Nikon D3X! Just kidding.
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San Diego Air Races (collages) - 2009 (3 photos)
© 2009 Jon Hillenbrand
www.jonhillenbrand.com
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cars (75 photos)
I love cars and I always dreamt of taking photos of beautiful cars for a living. But so far, my career has directed me toward portraits and architecture which is just as rewarding. But I still love cars.
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Arma2:OA - Refugees (5 photos)
Screenshots from Armed Assault: Operation Arrowhead
This set was shot in Takistan (can't remember where) with the Tier One Operators Addon.
Edited in Lightroom.
System Specs:
-Intel Core i7 960 3.2 GHz
-6GB Corsair Dominator DDR3 1600 MHz
-PNY GTX 480 video card
-Asus P6X58D Premium
-Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty
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Arma2:OA - Mk14 (5 photos)
Screenshots from Armed Assault: Operation Arrowhead
This set was shot in Takistan (can't remember where) using RobertHammer's MK18 addon. The rifle is actually the Mk14.
Edited in Lightroom.
System Specs:
-Intel Core i7 960 3.2 GHz
-6GB Corsair Dominator DDR3 1600 MHz
-PNY GTX 480 video card
-Asus P6X58D Premium
-Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty
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Arma2:OA - Spotter (5 photos)
Screenshots from Armed Assault: Operation Arrowhead
This set was shot in Takistan with the character US Special Forces Operator (Assault) using the L115A3 by P:UKF Team, designed by OOPz.
Edited in Lightroom.
System Specs:
-Intel Core i7 960 3.2 GHz
-6GB Corsair Dominator DDR3 1600 MHz
-PNY GTX 480 video card
-Asus P6X58D Premium
-Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty
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Arma2:OA - F16 (6 photos)
Screenshots from Armed Assault: Operation Arrowhead
This set was shot in Takistan near the military airport. The airplane is Footmunch's F16.
Edited in Lightroom.
System Specs:
-Intel Core i7 960 3.2 GHz
-6GB Corsair Dominator DDR3 1600 MHz
-PNY GTX 480 video card
-Asus P6X58D Premium
-Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty
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Arma2:OA - Hiding (7 photos)
Screenshots from Armed Assault: Operation Arrowhead
This set was shot in Takistan (can't remember where) with the character Graves (light) using RobertHammer's MK18 addon. The rifle is actually the Mk14.
Most shots were taken at 200% resolution and edited in Lightroom.
System Specs:
-Intel Core i7 960 3.2 GHz
-6GB Corsair Dominator DDR3 1600 MHz
-PNY GTX 480 video card
-Asus P6X58D Premium
-Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty
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Arma2:OA - Sniper (13 photos)
Screenshots from Armed Assault: Operation Arrowhead
This set was shot in Takistan near the Par-e Siah Oilfields with the character US Special Forces Operator (Assault) using the L115A3 by P:UKF Team, designed by OOPz.
Most shots were taken at 200% resolution and edited in Lightroom.
System Specs:
-Intel Core i7 960 3.2 GHz
-6GB Corsair Dominator DDR3 1600 MHz
-PNY GTX 480 video card
-Asus P6X58D Premium
-Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty
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Arma2:OA - Combat Freefall (13 photos)
Screenshots from Armed Assault: Operation Arrowhead
This set was shot in Takistan near the Loy Manara airfield with the character US Special Forces Operator (Assault) in stock BIS configuration (no addons).
Most shots were taken at 200% resolution and edited in Lightroom.
System Specs:
-Intel Core i7 960 3.2 GHz
-6GB Corsair Dominator DDR3 1600 MHz
-PNY GTX 480 video card
-Asus P6X58D Premium
-Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty
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Arma2:OA - Binoculars (8 photos)
Screenshots from Armed Assault: Operation Arrowhead
This set was shot in Takistan near the Par-e Siah Oilfields with the character US Special Forces Operator (Assault) using RobertHammer's MK18 addon. The rifle is actually the Mk18.
Most shots were taken at 200% resolution and edited in Lightroom.
System Specs:
-Intel Core i7 960 3.2 GHz
-6GB Corsair Dominator DDR3 1600 MHz
-PNY GTX 480 video card
-Asus P6X58D Premium
-Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty
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This is a collection of all of the photo sets I have on Flickr.
This is a collection of publications I have had photos in. FYI, I've only included a few publications but I've been published in many more than what appears here.
Other areas my work has appeared in include TV advertising, online videos, newspaper inserts, brochures, pamphlets and many websites.
These are all the sets of events I have photographed and uploaded to Flickr
This is a collection of all of my self-portrait sets. FYI, I do self-portraits to test out new lighting ideas and camera angles. I'm not in love with the way I look or anything. :)
This collection contains all self-portrait sets
This collection contains all sets of graphic illustrations I've drawn over the years by hand or in Photoshop.
This collection contains all sets of screenshots I've taken in computer games and simulations, edited in Photoshop or Lightroom and posted onto Flickr and forums.
This collection contains photos of equipment, workflow and other behind the scenes action.








































































































































































































































































