Chicago Skyline
Chicago Skyline from Whiting Park in Whiting,IN. It was raining for most of the day and then all the sudden it stopped and the skies started to open up. I went ...
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Chicago Skyline from Whiting Park in Whiting,IN. It was raining for most of the day and then all the sudden it stopped and the skies started to open up. I went to the park right away and captured this.
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Aug, 2016Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken from Whiting Lakefront Park in Whiting, IN where I lived for 16 years. It is approximately 18-22 miles to the Willis Tower (Tallest building in the left side of the frame). This spot has been one of my favorite places to go for almost 11 years now especially when I just want to relax,think, or make a big decision. I went away to college which is about two and half hours away and then I got a job near my college so I had to move away but every time I come back "home" I make sure to visit my spot.Time
The time of this picture was Saturday, August 13,2016 at 6:07 PM CT. My camera that I used had just came in the mail the day before so I was really anxious to try it out. Unfortunately when I woke up Saturday morning it was really cloudy and when I checked the weather on my phone it showed high percentages that would rain all day till it was dark out. I went about my day but then at around 5:30 ish it stopped raining and sun started to come out. I saw my chance and I took it. I grabbed my camera and headed for the park. I had a vision in mind of what I wanted and I walked around to try different angles to try to frame the picture the way I wanted. I ended up going to my spot and it was the exact shot that I wanted from.Lighting
I am a beginner photographer so I do all my shooting during daylight as I am still working on learning how to shoot properly with low lighting. I am also a big fan of clouds (I catch myself looking at them a lot more than a normal person should look at clouds) and love the effect of the sun shining through clouds. With the storms that had just passed and the skies not completely cleared that was so awesome clouds out and the sun was shining pretty bright. One cool effect was the mist and fog that could be seen rising from the city. I knew I had to make this more produced so thats when the idea of a black and white picture came to mind.Equipment
For this shot I used my Nikon D3200 and my 55.0-200.0 mm f/4.0-5.6 lens. No other equipment was used.Inspiration
Like Gaius Plinius Secundus, a Roman philosopher, said "Home is where the heart is." I consider myself to have several homes but two of those top 3 places I consider home are the beautiful city of Chicago and what I claim as my home town, Whiting, IN (population 5,000ish). This picture captures both of those homes. I moved to the United States of America in 2000 with my family from Mexico to seek a better living. My dad decided we would move to Whiting as he had a family in the area and got a job painting bridges. My first taste of America was flying in and seeing the city of Chicago from above. I instantly fell in love with the city and it just felt like I belonged there and I felt so comfortable in such a uncomfortable situation I was in, moving to new country where I didn't know the language as a 6 year old. We drove through the city to Whiting and once again it felt so right. Fast forward 16 years and my family moved down to Texas and I moved to Northeast Indiana for work. That picture was taken the second to last time I visited Whiting before we sold our house there. I wanted to get a photograph that reminded me of home and nothing does more than that view from my spot in Whiting.Editing
I did do some post-processing as I am a beginner photographer. I also did not use a tripod so I had to level the picture. I changed the contrast and messed with the highlights,shadows, whites and blacks to put emphasis on the clouds and the fog coming from the city and I dehazed a bit and finally changed it to black and white.In my camera bag
I am a beginner so I do not have much in my bag. I usually carry my Nikon D3200 with two lenses, a 15-55mm and 55-200mm. I also carry an extra batter and extra memory cards just in case. You never know. One of the coolest things I have is a Nikon wireless mobile adapter which comes in handy to take pcitures and have them on my phone right away so I can get a better look at them and if I want to share them I can right away. It also comes in handy when taking pcitures with tripod as I can snap photos without having to touch the camera.Feedback
Have an idea of what your goal is and do not be afraid to change it as you go and have patience. There were three things I wanted to happen in this picture, one I wanted to capture the skyline,two I wanted to capture some cool clouds, and three I wanted Lake Michigan to be visible. I had a place that I thought would be good but I ended up not liking the angle so I went to several spots and my last spot was the one I ended up getting exactly what I wanted. I also had to have the patience to thave the clouds the way I wanted them. I took a risk as I could not manipulate the clouds so I had to wait till I liked what I saw. Lastly, do not be afraid to edit and post process pictures. Photography to me is an art and the final product has to make me feel some type of way. Remember beauty is in the eye of the beholder so it meaning something to you means you did your part. If others share that same vision or makes them feel something than you did your part.
