The Couple At The Next Table

The scene: Longman & Eagle, a very hip bar and restaurant with a mini hotel upstairs (where I was staying) in Logan Square, Chicago. My son and I were at dinner. A couple sat down next to us who were, let's say, attention getting.

Now, I can talk to just about anyone who is receptive. I made a comment about how cool the man's tattoo was. (Actually, I hate tattoos but that attitude wouldn't open any doors.) He was friendly and open to having me take some pictures of his hand. I offered to send him photos and gave him my card. (That's another pick-up line for photographers. Almost no one gets back to you.) Then there was his date, who must have had modeling experience. She sure knew how to pose.                   

A Reminder

Logan Square, Chicago. Read it as you wish. 

A Day In Chicago

So, we gotta start with an Audrey pic just to get everyone's attention. Son Andy keeps a paddleboard at the Montrose Avenue boat harbor. This was the day to take it home for the season. People have some fancy water hot rods there to run on Lake Michigan. Back to Andy and Claire's neighborhood, Logan Square, for a quick trip to the farmer's market looking for dinner ingredients. Mrs. C likes baby tootsie pictures, which makes for a good conclusion.

 

 

Portal

Free to pass this way, $2.25 to get back in. A few cities have no barriers on the transit system but passengers are subject to spot checks of their tickets. St. Louis and Berlin are examples. Most, however, are not so trusting, as shown here in Chicago.

Still scraping for material and probably won't get out to shoot new stuff until Saturday. I think this one is okay, though. It's got some urban rhythm.                                        

Red And Gold Underground

Colors aglow beneath the streets of Chicago at the Logan Square station. Not at all emblematic of the Blue Line but still vibrant.

Scraping the hard drive for material. Gotta get back out on the streets this weekend.                   

I Now Pronounce You

Some shots of the wedding ceremony itself, out on the lawn in Logan Square. The second picture is Emily's.

Andy and Claire called me yesterday from Amsterdam via Skype. Hanging out in Vondelpark, cycling along canals outside of town. It sounds idyllic.

I'll spare you the family shots after the wedding, then perhaps end with pictures from the reception.             

Getting Ready - The Bride, Part 2

The bride has to look good, right? It's fortunate that there are no digital pictures of Carolyn and my wedding and the snapshots (we couldn't come close to affording a photographer) are buried in a box in the basement. Carolyn looked great but I looked like a complete dork - overweight, long scraggly hair and wearing an absurd yellow tuxedo jacket. Sort of a hippie bumblebee. 

My son and daughter-in-law both looked gorgeous. In the last picture they are all put together, standing on their front porch about to walk a couple of blocks to the ceremony in Logan Square.

The first and last pictures are Emily's. The middle two are mine.                 

Getting Ready - The Bride, Part 1

These photos were all taken by my daughter, Emily, who was the other photographer at the wedding. Excellent work. This is Part 1 of the bride's preparation because it's all I had time to edit yesterday. Emily and Madeleine came over to dinner last night so you can imagine where my attention was.

Claire has the most beautiful eyes. She can levitate the entire world. And she takes makeup direction well.

By the time this post goes up they will be about to land in Amsterdam.                         

                                

Party On

Saturday weddings are most common in the US. There is usually a rehearsal for the ceremony on Friday with the wedding party, followed by a rehearsal dinner sponsored by the groom's parents. Andy and Claire weren't having any of this. There wasn't much to rehearse. The party was Popeye's Fried Chicken, salads and beer in the couple's back yard.

Above, Carolyn's brother Mel, one of the all-around nicest people I know. Down the page:

- Claire and her brother Lou, who I think bears an uncanny resemblance to the young David Byrne. Claire's father, Mike, is behind.

- my brother, John, his daughter Stephanie and my brother-in-law Mel Mark.

- Claire with her cousin Carrie on the left and her mother Ramona on the right. I do not know the woman on the far right. I'm just the photographer.

- second cousins Olivia Kruse and Madeleine face off in baby wrestling. Madeleine, having the weight advantage, goes for the rip-yer-bib-off hold.

This could go on for a while.                          

Love, Chicago Style

Today is the big day. Yesterday afternoon, Andy, Claire and I walked from their home to the Logan Square Comfort Station to check out the space, light and angles (the weather is absolutely perfect). We hadn't even gotten off their front porch before this stuff started. It's okay. I think it's a really good match.

Wedding ceremony today at five, party at seven. Transportation between the two, including the bride and groom, is on the CTA Blue Line. What a photo op.

                   

          

Truer Words Were Never Spoken

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Some last images about urban ups and downs from the weekend in Chicago. Above, a middle-aged apartment building in Hyde Park gets rehabbed and searches for new tenants. Below, this store in the Logan Square neighborhood remains open although the sign has fallen on hard times.

Fun thing to do today: two noted photographers and teachers, David Hobby, author of The Strobist lighting blog, and Joe McNally (check his blog, too), are in St. Louis for the last stop on the Flashbus tour. It's a day of education on the use of small flashes (sometimes several of them at once) in photography. Images tomorrow.

Open something but not sesame on Downtown St. Louis 365.