Scoville Square - Day 82

Scoville Square, Oak Park Illinois one of the rare surviving examples of Prairie Style architecture applied to commercial buildings. Designed by E.E. Roberts the building has been the cornerstone of Oak Park’s Hemingway District Commercial Center for almost 100 years.

Tracks

- The tracks of the Chicago "L" looking west toward the late afternoon sun from the Oak Park station on the Green Line. Canon g11, 1/800 sec @ f/4.5, ISO 200.

Wrigley @ Night

- No it's not Wrigley Field but the Wrigley Building located on N. Michigan Avenue and the Chicago River at the foot of the "Magnificent Mile" in Chicago, Illinois. This picture was taken from behind the building from W. Wacker Drive. You can see the Tribune Tower just to the right of Wrigley's clock tower. Canon G11, 1/3 sec @ f/6.3, ISO 400, camera steadied against a light pole.

Oak Park

- This building is on N. Oak Park Avenue two blocks from the Oak Park Station on the CTA Green Line 'L'. The view through the portico just struck me as we walked by during our trip to Chicago last month. Just embracing the symmetry of it. Canon G11, 1/160 sec @ f/4.0, ISO 200.

The Chicago Hot Dog

- I had my first Chicago hot dog during our visit to Chicago's Bucktown neighborhood last month. We went to George's Hot Dogs a family owned business operating since 1948. So what makes a an official Chicago-style hot dog? First the Vienna Beef frankfurter, still made in Chicago and a steamed bun. The hot dog is topped with yellow mustard, chopped white onions, sweet pickle relish, a dill pickle spear, tomato slices, pickled sport peppers, and a dash of celery salt. The completed Chicago hot dog is said to be "dragged through the garden" because of the unique combination of toppings. Legend has it this unique set of seven toppings originated in the 1930's as street vendors starting adding toppings to one up their competitors. By the 1950's, the current recipe was tradition. Never ask a Chicago hot dog vendor for ketchup, that's sacrilege. Canon G11, 1/500 sec @ f/7.1, ISO 400.

Bridges Up

- During our recent trip to Chicago I got to see the draw bridges go up along the Chicago River. Each fall the Chicago Department of Transportation schedules bridge lifts so sailboats from Lake Michigan can return to storage. Bridge tenders raise each lift bridge for approximately 10 minutes at a time to allow the boats to pass. This photo was taken from the N. Dearborn Street bridge looking east towards the N. State Street bridge in the foreground and the N. Wabash Avenue bridge in the background. Canon G11, 1/160 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 200.

Dare to Stand Out!

- The Ledge is the latest Chicago attraction. Four all glass skyboxes extend out from 103 floor of the Willis Tower, formerly named the Sears Tower into the Chicago sky. You can walk out onto the ledge which is made up of three 1/2 inch glass panels laminated together leaving you standing 1,353 feet up from Wacker Drive directly below. You have to admit it is both scary and cool. This photo was taken from far below on the Chicago River. Canon 7D, 1/320 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 200.

Liquid Buildings

- The buildings reflected in this picture look almost liquid. From left to right, the Chicago Apparel Center, Riverbend Condos, and Left Bank at K Station all reflected in the great blue-green curve of glass that is the northwest wall of 333 Wacker Drive. The 333 building is one of my favorites in Chicago as it truly embraces the unique site where the Chicago River splits into its Northern and Southern Branches. Canon 7D, 1/100 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 200.

Long Shadow

This window cleaner casts a long shadow against the side of a Chicago skyscraper in the late morning sun. Canon 7D, 1/125 sec @ f/11.0, ISO 200, 200mm focal length.

Donald's Glow

- Two Chicago architectural landmarks, the London Guarantee Building, 360 North Michigan and the Mather Tower, 75 East Wacker are dappled in morning sunlight reflected by the new Trump Tower just across the river. The Beaux-Arts 360 North Michigan is topped with a small Greco-Roman temple, while the Neo-Gothic Mather Tower at only 65 feet wide is Chicago's thinest skyscraper. Canon 7D, 1/400 sec @ f/9.0, ISO 100, 28mm focal length.

Coyote Tower

The Northwest Tower, popularly known as the Coyote Building, is a 12-story art deco building in the Bucktown neighborhood in Chicago. It was completed 1929 and is considered the first art deco skyscraper in Chicago. In the 1980's it became home to the Tower Coyote Gallery, reportedly named because artists thought the building resembled a howling coyote. The picture was taken at the Damen stop on the Chicago 'L' Blue Line. Canon G11, 1/500 sec @ f/8.0, ISO 200.

Stuffed Pizza

Today we took the Near North Food Tour in Chicago. We visited the Gold Coast, Old Town and Lincoln Park neighborhoods and had a great time. This is Ariana our cultural tour guide from Chicago Food Planet dishing up a spinach and cheese stuffed pizza at out last stop, Bacino's Pizza on North Lincoln Ave. Check out more pictures from our great walking tour. Tomorrow, another food tour at Bucktown and Wicker Park - yum! Canon 7D, 1/60 sec @ f/4.0, ISO 400, pop-up flash used for fill.

Favrile Glass

This is a close up of the Favrile glass tiles in the ceiling of the old Marshall Fields department store, now Macy's, on State Street in Chicago. The store opened in September 1907, and included a Tiffany Ceiling that is both the first and largest ceiling ever built in favrile glass, containing over 1.6 million pieces. Favrile glass is a type of iridescent art glass designed by Louis Comfort Tiffany. The color is ingrained in the glass itself with distinctive coloring. Favrile glass was used in Tiffany's stained-glass windows. Here's another picture showing the whole ceiling six stories up. Canon G11, 1/20 sec @ f/6.3, ISO 400.

Navy Wheel

From Chicago

I made this picture on a trip to Chicago in September 2004. This is the Ferris wheel at the Navy Pier on Chicago's downtown waterfront at twilight. Pentax Optio S4, 1/80 sec @ f/2.6, ISO 100.