"Up River Flashes" Back in 2023, I wanted to photograph the fireworks, but not from the normal location on Chicago Street. So I found this little hole in the trees along the river. I nearly dropped my tripod into the water because the hill was steep, but I really like the uniqueness of the photos.

"Second Chances" #photography #keithfrenchphotographyworkshops #mushroom #shawneenationalforest

In September, I captured photos of Kitchenware; now I'm following up with food. :) #photography #monochrome #kitchenseries

“Classic Coupe” – British Car Festival #photography #carshow #carphotography

“Turning Colors” I’ve taken many photos along this theme over the years – I absolutely love the strong silhouette border and pop of colors in the sunlight. #keithfrenchphotographyworkshops #photography #shawneenationalforest

“Lean Into the Morning Mist” Sarah and I have also talked about taking a vacation down to Southern Illinois to see the natural beauty for years. By the time the trip was complete, we had hundreds of fantastic images. #keithfrenchphotographyworkshops #photography #shawneenationalforest

"Spot of Color" ECC has many locations where plants have been integrated into the buildings; rooftop gardens, between buildings, and even small court yards. As I’ve walked around looking at the architecture, the spots of nature leap out with their beauty and color. #photography #nature #flower

"Passing By" One of my photographer friends has taken images that are similar to this concept; what happens if you photograph while the crossing guards close? But what if you merge traffic, train, casino boat, and crossing guard? #photography #lighttrails #metra #lights

"Evening Moonrise" #photography #elgin #ecc #moonrise

“Concrete Film Noise” #photography #monochrome #bahaihouseofworship #bahai

"Symbols of a City" #photography #mural #Chicago

"Neon Liquid" I want my next photo to be better than the last image; a better composition or representation, or maybe a different, unique view. So, what if I took my idea from holiday lights – spinning the camera during the photo – and tried it during a longer exposure of fireworks? #photography

"A New Day" At this particular corner at the southwest corner of Herrick Forest Preserve, there are two trees standing alone. They’re not full, in fact that they’re kinda odd, but they make fantastic silhouettes against the pre-dawn hues of the late summer. #photography #sunrise #silhouette

"Peeking Around" #photography #monochrome #bahaihouseofworship #bahai

“Sunrise Sparkle” There’s a bit of a story behind this photo: In late August and early September, the sun is at the exact correct spot for wonderful sunrise photos on my drive into work. A couple of days before this photo, the mixture of sunrise and fog was perfect. #photography #sunrise #story

“Monochrome Ornamentation” #photography #monochrome #bahaihouseofworship #bahai

"Blended With Nature" While the House of Worship is visible from a distance, the grounds are equally impressive, but really only visible when you are walking around the building. The immaculate gardens are gorgeous & incredible, an astounding ongoing task for the staff of the House of Worship.

"Redirected" & "Inside Out" #photography #abstract #navypier

"Nature's Airbrush" #photography #sunrise #orange #nature #fog

“Shadows, Lines, Reflections” This may be my favorite of the Lotus abstracts; I love the contrast between the shadows and glimmers of reflected sunlight. #photography #carshow #Lotus #yellow #auto

"Metal Band T-Shirt" #photography #fire #flames #orange

"Floral Sunlight" There is something mystical about the weather worn, end of season flowers lit by the rising sun, almost magical. #photography #nature #sunrise #flowers #sunlit

“Cars & Wires” – Blue Line Photo Walk, Trains #photography #monochrome #streetphotography #CTA #blueline

"Jungle Gym" #photography #abstract #navypier

"Original Roadster" #photography #carshow #lotus #yellow #britishcarfestival

"Muddled Moon" #photography #nightphoto #fire #flames #moon

“Ripply Towers & Reflection” I love photographic reflections because they lead the viewer to look more than once, hopefully to investigate what caused the distortion, the odd lines, or the extra shapes. This image makes me take second and third glances each time … and I took the photo! #photography

"Don't Fly Away" #photography #yellow #lotus #lotusesprit #esprit #carphoto #britishcarfestival

“Welcome to Chicago!” – Blue Line Photo Walk, Trains #photography #train #CTA #smile

"Windows Within Windows" #abstract #photography #architecture #chicago #sunlight

"Rolling Canvas" - Blue Line Photo Walk 10 minutes earlier, a bus passed by and I noticed the reflection of the brickwork and the trees. I understand why, but it kinda hurts my brain to realize that the bus has a bit of motion blur, but the reflection does not – a fantastic canvas. #photography

"Impressionist Reflection" I’ve taken this type of photo so many times – a building’s reflection distorted in the windows of another building. The rough idea of the reflection is visible, only at a conceptual level; almost like a 3rd grader tasked with cutting 50 straight lines as fast as they can.

“Aero Slick” – British Car Festival #photography #carshow #carphotography #red

“Minimalism” – British Car Festival #photography #carshow

“Modern American Reflection” – Blue Line Photo Walk I could see the corner of the McDonald’s sign reflected in the triangular building across the street. Moving to the left allowed the entire sign to be displayed in their windows; a great way to start a street photography photo walk. #photography

"Foggy Window" I pass by quite a few nature preserves and parks on my normal commute to work – or I can, if I drive a bit off of the beaten path. Last year, I discovered that there is a month or more than the fog hangs thick in the autumn mornings; it's a wonderful start to my day! #photography

"Portholes" Once you start looking around ECC, you’ll find many beautiful scenes to photograph, and since the campus has been built over decades, there are many different architectural styles to take advantage of. #photography #sunset #window #ECC #elgin #reflection

"On the Edge" Searching for abstract architecture photos is a little more conducive to conversation than many other types of walk-about photography. As we walked along, my daughter and I talked about talents, skills, careers, colleges, and life in general. #photography #architecture #abstract

"Grids & Angles" Oh my, and to look inside that mountain outcrop? What a wonderful spectacle of lines, shadows, and shapes! This is definitely some kind of 3D TicTacToe game that I’m not aware of! #photography #architecture #abstract #sunlight #lines #elgin

"Mountain Outcrop" I’ve always loved these architectural elements; the abstract corners jutting out from a building. ECC seems to have a few of these; staircases that aren't in the core of the building but the outside hanging onto the building & the blue pillar makes this even more impactful.

"Early Morning Prairie" #photography #nature #sunrise

"Film Strip Windows" #architecture #abstract #photography #elgin #elgincommunitycollege #ecc

"On a Slant" These were the stairs that first drew me in at ECC; they’re on the outside of Building J and perched precariously on the side of the brickwork. The angles, the straights, the bricks, the shadows all create great imagery. #photography #architecture #elgincommunitycollege #ecc

Kitchen Shadows #21 #monochrome #photography #art #lines #shadows #homestudio

"The Sunrise Brush" . I took quite a few photos of this sunrise before the sun peeked above the clouds, and they’re great photos, but they simply don’t hold a candle to the all encompassing orange as the light crested the foggy horizon. The scene was simply incredible. #sunrise #photography #nature

“Porous Symbolism” The Baháʼí House of Worship is one of the most beautiful buildings in the Chicagoland area. Since the exterior is almost entirely white, it's a great candidate for a monochrome series of images. #architecture #art #monochrome #photo #photography

Garfield Conservatory "Natural Chandelier" & "Topographical Map" #conservatory #photography #cactus

Peoria Civic Center Abstract #1

I walked past this plant while complaining that I hadn’t taken enough photos of blossoms. Sarah pointed out that the purple blossoms were almost radiant; I’d walked right past the plant because most of the blossoms were wilted and past their prime. “Yellow Alien Tusks” Garfield Conservatory

“Into the Unknown” Northwest Nature, image 1 The stream disappeared into the forest and fog and the small island added that extra touch of natural beauty. The stream’s soft green coloring and the damp air added to the mystical feelings that day. #northwest #fog #photography