Month: October 2023

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Beach – Untitled #25

This is a picture of Mount Baldy, a well-known, popular sand dune west of my hometown. On June 2, 2008, I took my camera to see what I might find at the dunes and along the shores of Lake Michigan which lie adjacent to the dunes.

It had rained the night before and what was left of that storm system is evidenced in the clouds in the picture. I was walking along the crest of the dune and then planned to walk the gentle slope toward the lake. The sand, which usually had multitudes of footprints from the visitors that frequented the dune, was a golden brown because of the abundant rain that had soaked it the night before and into the morning. If you look carefully you can see my footprints in the wet sand.

As I was heading toward the beach I turned and saw what you now see. That place, near where I grew up, has been one of the most cherished parts of my memories as a child, and as an adult, and the subject of so many of my pictures.

On that particular day I also shot pictures at Hudson Lake, Indiana nearly 20 miles away. You can find another part of this story on this website under Beach – Untitled #24 and the pictures of both in our Etsy Shop.

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Beach – Untitled #24

This is a picture taken on June 2, 2008. I shot 53 pictures that day two of which are in our Esty Shop, AbbasImages.

The day began west of my hometown where you can get a bit more description at the post, Beach – Untitled #25. After taking a few pictures there I drove about 20 miles where I shot this image as it was nearing sunset.

This is Hudson Lake, or as it appeared all those years ago. I’m standing on a dock near a tiny beach and enjoying the sights, sounds and serenity of this lovely area. After the passing of time, I still remember well the peace that accompanied my time there. I hope that feeling passes on to you as you consider this picture.

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Abstract – Untitled #23

abstract image of reflection on water

It’s February 2009. I am walking on the south side of the East Riverwalk in Chicago, making my way to the Chicago Lakefront Trail to a destination north and east, along Lake Michigan, from my present location. Did you get all that? I suppose you have to have been there.

Looking to my immediate left, at the Chicago River, I see this colorful, imaginative reflection in the water of the river. This is an image that has evoked so much interesting speculation as to what it actually is. What do you think? I’ve already given away the fact that it is a reflection. In fact, it is the reflection of the Riverview Condominiums that stand on the north side of the river.

As a note, something that is so interesting to me about these colors is that the vast majority of the buildings, at that time in 2009, along the Riverwalk, cast greys or blacks or silvers from the types of building materials used for their constructions. But the Riverview Condominiums, with their unique color and trim schemes, give a rather unique southwestern theme with their oranges and greens.

Another, personal note, is how easily one can get lost in the patterns of the reflection.

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Abstract – Untitled #22

In September 2022, I was sitting at my workstation . . . working. I face a sliding glass door that leads to the deck and upon looking up and out at the deck I noticed this very distinct spectrum. The deck, on the third floor, opens into space beyond the railing. Just beyond is a tree whose branches are just beyond reach. There is nothing that could have cast this image, or so it seemed.

My curiosity definitely got the best of me and I had to find the cause of these beautiful colors. As it happens, my bicycle was just outside, lying on the deck, and the reflector on the rear wheel, acting as a prism, catching the sunlight at just the right moment, just the right angle, broke the rays into this beautiful solar spectrum image. In less than a couple minutes, had I not noticed, with the movement of the sun, it would be gone. No picture; no story, but for that moment in time when I looked up.

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Trees – Untitled #21

I love the way leaves cast shadows upon each other, as they do in this picture.

I captured this red-leaf-shadow moment in May of 2017. We were at Wilson Beach, just north of Montrose Beach, in Chicago, flying kites with some friends. This tree, near the beach, with its colors, shadows, and textures, caught my eye. This color and shape, contrasted against a cloudy blue sky, is the result. Enjoy!

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Flowers – Untitled #19

This is a picture of a variety of Mountain Hydrangea, taken with a macro lens for detail. We took a trip to the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois on the 16th of July 2023. During our time there I took about 60 pictures. This picture, in particular, is a beautiful representation of the images on display that day.

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Flowers – Untitled #18

In July of 2023 we were driving to visit some friends for a few days. During the trip it had been raining and it was time to pull into a rest stop along the interstate. As is so often the case, we found the grounds well-kept and several gardens and planters on the grounds.

I took 25 pictures of various flowers at that rest stop and we chose this picture of a daisy, still wet from the rain, to put into our Etsy Shop, “AbbasImages.”

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Chicago – Untitled #17

This is a picture of “Cloud Gate” also known as the “Bean.” It is located in Millennium Park in downtown Chicago.

At the time this picture was taken, in April of 2009, I was working for a commuter railroad that brought passengers into Chicago from northwest Indiana. Because of the nature of my job, I had a great deal of free time between assignments and I was able to take photographs during some of that time. On this particular morning, after my train arrived in Chicago and a change of clothes out of my uniform, I took my camera to Millennium Park, which was very near our terminal, and specifically to the Bean.

I couldn’t even venture a guess as to how many times a picture of the Bean, or including the Bean, have been taken. What is so striking about this picture is that it is void of people. That is, there are no tourists, locals, sightseers, no one, which, for someone who has been to the Bean so many times, like me, is a rare oddity that is beyond noteworthy.

Another note about this picture. You may notice the fog, a cold front, that is moving in from the west, beginning to envelop the buildings just west of the Bean.

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Chicago – Untitled #16

This is a February, 2009 picture of buildings, near the intersection of Randolph and Michigan in downtown Chicago, either reflected in or behind the iconic Chicago landmark titled “Cloud Gate,” otherwise known as “The Bean.”

Visible in the reflection is the Chicago Cultural Center and The Crain Communications Building, known as the Smurfit-Stone Building when this picture was taken.

Buildings behind the Bean include One Prudential Plaza (The Prudential Building), Two Prudential Plaza, and the Aon Building.

This is one of 104 pictures taken that day, two of which are in our Etsy Shop, “AbbasImages.” Another image from that day is Abstract – Untitled #23.

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Landscape – Untitled #15

Every time we would drive to see family, we would pass this barn. We have passed it dozens and dozens of times over the years, nestled, just off the highway, in that corn field each summer.

It presents an interesting contrast, not only in color, texture, and form, but as the crops are planted, grow, are harvested, and then disappear for the winter, the barn remained constant, never changing, almost sentinel-like.

This picture was taken in June of 2017. Within 4 years, age and the elements had their way and one of the sides gave way. The barn is still there, leaning as if to fall yet more, in time . . . but still remains though broken.

Update, January, 2024. We were sad to see that the barn had been removed. While it is no longer physically there, the sweet memories of seeing it, knowing we were minutes away from family, will linger forever.