During the  last year I have enjoyed exploring different photography genres. In March I loved time in the Scottish Highlands learning about landscape photography and before that I exhausted myself doing a Chicago Abstract Architecture Photography workshop. 

Exhausted because we walked 20,000 steps a day holding and using camera equipment.  It was incredibly stimulating.   

The Chicago workshop was fantastic. I love Chicago and found that looking at the city through a long lens was total engaging. I do understand that you don’t need a lot of fancy equipment.  

The workshop has prompted me to look at things differently while having the opportunity to learn about the major buildings in the Chicago area. 

Eight of us spent three solid days walking around Chicago last October led by Angie McMonigal, a marvelous energetic architectural photographer based in Chicago.  

It wasn’t random. The  routes were very carefully planned to hit the major and interesting buildings in a city known for its architecture.  

But before I take you on a mini version of our tour, let’s define “Abstract.  In her ebook on Architectural Abstracts, Angie shares to the Tate Museum’s definition. It is “Art that does not attempt to represent an accurate depiction of a visual reality but instead uses shapes, colors, forms and gestural marks to achieve its effect.”  

She says, the viewer should wonder, “What am I looking at?” 

At each location, Angie pulled out her iPad and to show us interesting ideas for capturing the building. We weren’t trying to copy, but rather  be inspired. I’ve been to Chicago a lot over the years, but there were locations I would never have discovered on my own.  

For example, we walked around the Frank Gehry installation at Millennium Park, but who would think of going under the bridge for some interesting patterns.  

The Lincoln Park Pavilion is an obvious venue. It’s great for wedding and baby shots. We  looked at it for shape and pattern. I couldn’t help but photograph a young woman being photographed by a friend.  

Sculptures were on the list of venues to visit. The Calder in the Loop and Constellation on the River offered both color and opportunities for interesting effects.   Atmospheric Wave Wall  at the Sears Tower kept us snapping away for a while.

Creating shapes out of the many glass buildings captivated me. We learned that triangles often make the most dynamic pictures. We explored other shapes as well.  

We had plenty of opportunities for reflections. Probably my favorite was the Burberry building right on North Michigan Avenue.  

Another building that created interesting opportunities for us included Aqua  designed by Jeanne Gang of Studio Gang Architects.

Sometimes we went into buildings to photograph especially interesting staircases including the Palmer House Hotel,  the Museum of Contemporary Art and my favorite, The Rookery. They aren’t truly abstracts, but intriguing locations for exercising our creative muscles. 

Some of us tried ICM or Intentional Camera Movement. That’s really hard to do but I gave it a shot.   I have a long ways to go on this technique.  Maybe there’s a workshop in my future.  

    While not a building, the Buckingham Fountain provided an opportunity to be abstract.

And sometimes I couldn’t help myself, I had to capture the folks we saw out and about that day.   

Angie offers workshops in other cities—LA, Miami and New York.  I’m looking forward to signing up and participating in some of them.  She has a particularly useful and interesting web site.   http://angiemcmonigal.com   You can learn about her trips and workshops and along with her portfolio.   It includes a free ebook about Abstract Photography that is especially helpful.  

For more about Scotland Workshop:  

Ah, the Bonnie Bogs of Scotland

The silence of the Highlands