Kevin's Instant Vacation!

I'm back with your weekly INSTANT VACATION! I know you guys couldn't wait.... ;)  This week, I am photographing a friend of mine from work. Well, we used to work at the same place, but then he found a better fit for himself.  Meet Kevin Taylor.

Kevin was born and raised in southside Chicago. He has been living in the  Roseland neighborhood with his mom and his brother since 2006. Roseland? You might ask. Isn't that a "bad" neighborhood? Well apparently Superman think so....

I asked Kevin about that though, and he says that it's not as "bad" as people make it out to be. It also has gotten better over the years. That being said, I traveled down to the southside to do my photography homework, and see what my friend Kevin's instant vacation feels like :) Before we get to that though, here's a little bit about Kevin:

Kevin works for the Chicago Police Department and loves his job.  He loves the atmosphere at the police department, and loves helping people in need. It's a very rewarding and humbling experience for him. On his days off, he likes to go to dinners, the movies, and once in a while to the bars and clubs. He also loves traveling to the West Coast, especially LA,  and is hoping to move there one day. I hope you make it there my friend. I feel you on that. A LOT of us are California Dreaming:) 

Lets go on Kevin's Instant Vacation!

  "Lounging on the BEACH and soaking up the sun."

"Chicago's 39th Street Beach is one of my Fav's"

They have some cool rocks there too that you can just chill on and relax without getting sand in your pants!

Why are you so serious all the time Kevin? Smile! You're at the BEACH baby!! 

That's better:)

"Enjoying a nice glass of Wine!" (My kind of man...he must be God sent ;)

Or a bottle for that matter! (Makes the vacation last that much longer)

Since we are on the topic of wine and GOD. Kevin also takes his faith very seriously. He is a believer of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and has the symbol of the Holy Cross permanently engraved on him. 

"Stopping at the Barbershop for a fresh hair cut"

"Driving around Chicago, enjoying my city, and shopping on Michigan Avenue."

And finally....... 

"Just sitting on my porch carefree, smoking my Newport. I can do that every day." 

 Puff puff

ahhhh....

Much better now :)

I AM NOT ADVOCATING SMOKING! This is just what Kevin likes :)

Well that was FUN! Thank you Kevin for all your help on my assignment this week. 

"Maria, before you go....how bout a little game of baseball?"

Kevin, do you even like baseball?

"Ummmm......"

"NO" (LOL)

THAT'S what I thought. Bye Kevin!!! I appreciate you so much though, and I will be sending you the rest of the pictures through email. There are so many good ones. I hope you like them. Thanks again!

One more thing before I go. Kevin warned me about the huge pothole in the middle of the street by his house. What's up with ALL these potholes in Chicago? Come on....fix them already!

 At least the southsiders warn you about them though. See, they're watching your back! ;) THANK YOU KEVIN! You saved me from a whole lot of stress if I ever were to run into that thing. You gave me an instant vacation just thinking about it:) 

With that, assignment number 2 is DONE! I can't wait to go and print some of these and show my classmates for critique. This week, we also have to print them out on three different types of papers; Matte, Lustre, and Glossy, and see which one we like best.  Let's see. I will let you guys know which one I like next time! :) Till then....xoxoxo

Go on an Instant Vacation with Cecilia and Alyssa!

 Hello everyone, I'm back! It's been a while huh? Sorry about that. Life happens and I got busy with other things, that the blog had to take a bag seat. I LOVE blogging though, so I've decided to make my next blogs shorter and easier, so they can get done faster. Ok, forget faster....just get DONE. :)

This is where I am at now. I have finished Photo I and Photo II, and now I am continuing on at Richard Stromberg's Photography Classes with Photo III. I couldn't be more excited this time abound....wanna know why???

Well, for the next seven weeks, WE get to pick our OWN "theme" for our photos! After thinking about it for a little while, I've decided to do:

AN INSTANT VACATION!

I thought about photographing trees, nature, graffiti, or other things....but then I thought to myself... NO! I love people! I LOVE capturing people's candid moments ESPECIALLY laughter and happiness. I feel that these types of pictures are uplifting, positive, and they just put a smile on everyone's face.  Since I love this type of photography, I decided to photograph people when they go on what I call an "Instant vacation." By that, I DON'T mean to a far away and exotic place. I mean right here, close to their home. Because after all, you do NOT need to go far away at all to FEEL like you are on a vacation. Think about all the times that you felt joy. Whether it's sharing stories and laughing with your friends, drinking wine, or singing your favorite song in the shower, ALL these moments make you feel HAPPY. They make you feel like you are on VACATION! 

During the next seven weeks, I will photograph different people and ask them about what their instant vacation feels like....THEN I will blog about it :)  These blogs will be MUCH shorter like I said before, filled with pictures and comments from the people themselves. 

So if you like, you can follow along during the next seven weeks. Who knows? Maybe you find out that it's easier to go an a vacation than you think! ;)  (Ok Maria, enough with the word Vacation already...we get it... ;). 

Here we go! Today we talk with two teachers from Youngstown, Ohio, Cecilia Velazquez and Alyssa Paidas. Cecilia used to live in Chicago and moved back home to teach Kindergarten. She has a passion for teaching and helping kids in this very  important chapter of their school lives. Alyssa also teaches, but her focus is on children with special needs. How awesome is that!? Here we go! These two young ladies are about to tell us what takes them on an....OK...I won't say it...... you already know;)
                                                                             

CECILIA VELAZQUEZ 

"No Alarm Clock"

"Not being responsible for anyone but myself. ESP no one over the age of 6:) Although I miss my kids.

It's a similar feeling to a woman not having to carry her purse somewhere.....like AHHH I'm free."

"Lots of food that cannot be had locally."

"Mmmm......"

ALYSSA PAIDAS

"Belly Laughs"

"Unexpected cancellation in a normal activity(a snow day for example) and driving with music loud and sun shining:)"

"Exciting activity that you plan that you normally don't do"

"Having ah hah moments where you escape from the world and think who gives a crap what anyone thinks...happens in Yoga a lot:)"

 This was so much FUN! Thank you for helping me with my assignment for this week ladies.  You are both so bright and beautiful! Keep teaching our children and making a better future for all of us. 

                                                         

You are an INSPIRATION.

See, I told you guys these would be a lot shorter ;) I hope you enjoyed it! Till next time...:)

Portraits and how to make one feel comfortable in front of the camera. :)

Hi everyone, and welcome back! Today we talk about one of my favorite types of photography...PORTRAIT! Most of you know what portrait photography is. I am sure you've done it as least once in your life. Examples are: your school photos when you were growing up, your wedding photos, your kid's photos, or even your family portraits. These all fall under the "portrait" category. You can say that it captures a person's mood, character or personality. I happen to love capturing people's expressions, and this is why I am such a fan of it. So if you were to ask me, what I think is a key factor in portrait photography; I'd have to say, it's building a...

RELATIONSHIP

Vavoom Pinup Photography Chicago

You must make LOVE to the camera and kiss it and caress....lol...I'm kidding! Of course, the proper lighting and camera settings are important too, BUT I feel like the subject, which happens to be a human being in this case, has to feel COMFORTABLE with you in order for the pictures to come out good. So, you need to build a good RELATIONSHIP. You need to make them feel cool and confident, so their TRUE self comes out. In the picture above, it took me a while before I could get THIS comfortable with the camera, and then......it happened. (A little too comfortable if you ask me ;)

Anyway, how many times has someone put a camera in front of your face and you were like this...

 Ten years later and you're still........

Now in High School and STILL......

Kinda funny huh? But the truth is, it happens to almost ALL of us. We weren't ready, and even if we felt like we were, we were ACTUALLY anxious or nervous about the whole thing. Capturing nervousness is totally fine if THAT is the look you are going for. For example, a nervous bride before her wedding? Totally OK to look anxious, and for GOOD reason...

I feel ya girl...it is the REST of your life! YIKES! For the most part though, you want the subject to feel relaxed and comfortable for their portraits. You want to catch their TRUE personality, therefore, make them feel good...got it? Ok, good. I feel like I am rambling on and on about the same thing here. Get to the assignment already MARIA!

So in the homework assignment this week, we are paired  up with two different classmates. One classmate takes your photos for one hour, and then you take your other classmates photos for one hour. It's NOT a back and forth partnership however, remember this is two DIFFERENT classmates. After that, we have to choose three photos to print out, and bring to class for discussion. First, the one we think is MOST like the subject's personality. Second, the one that is LEAST like the person's personality. Lastly, the subject's FAVORITE. I got paired up with two lovely ladies, Jennifer and Aubrey. I have to photo-shoot Jennifer, and Aubrey has to photo-shoot me. I think the teacher here wants us all to become FRIENDS....just like the....

GOLDEN GIRLS!!! Awwwwww....Don't you just love them? They were my favorite back in the day. Sorry off the subject...lets start!

I first start planning with Aubrey on where we were going to meet to take my photos. Most of the classmates were planning on meeting at the school since it's familiar and convenient to everyone. Me, on the other hand, have something different in mind. Since Aubrey lives all the way in Schamburg and has to drive to the city anyway, why don't we meet at my place and shoot there. It's totally more CHILL than the school. I told her we can have some wine, smoke some hookah, and do our homework in a relaxed environment. (A relaxed environment for ME hint hint.) Aubrey is totally cool with the whole thing and says, "Let's do it!"

On a side note: Don't YOU wish your homework involved smoking hookah and drinking wine??? I bet ;) Another reason I happen to LOVE photography. :)

So Thursday comes and Audrey comes over. By the way, isn't she gorgeous?

                                                                       Aubrey

I order us some Chinese food from Chinatown and we sit, eat, and relax for a while. We start talking, and we find out all types of things about each other. We talk about why we are both taking photography, what our hobbies are, what we do for a living, all kinds of stuff. By the end of our meal, we are totally cool with each other. I am ready, she is ready, and we just start shooting. Throughout the entire photo-shoot, Aubrey is talking to me, making me feel comfortable. She often conducts me on how to stand or sit. She also compliments me, which helps out alot. (Always compliment your subject, it raises their self-confidence, and they become more comfortable in front of the camera) Aubrey is also showing me the photos that she's been taking throughout the photo-shoot, which also ENCOURAGES me to keep on shooting and come up with different ones.

So you see, it's easy! (For the most part ;) In portrait photography you must remember the fours C's...

CONDUCT, CONVERSATE, COMPLIMENT and NEVER CONCEAL. Show them the pictures! Get them excited:)

Here are the photos!

Aubrey says that I am a VERY JOYOUS person and this one shows exactly that.

                                         

 This one she says is kind of sad, which is not normally like me. This is why she picked it. I think that we all get into those moods sometimes, and she happened to catch me in one. I happen to really like the "melancholy" feel of this picture. To me, it's telling a story of a girl with a broken heart that is writing a song, or thinking about a sad moment in her life. That's the beauty behind photography. There's a story behind each photo, and everyone has their own.

                                         

In the last one, it's just me being my normal HOOKAH HEAD. I think it's cute and funny and this is why I picked it as my favorite.

                                         

So up next, it's my turn to photo-shoot Jennifer! It was a little hard planning around both of our schedules because they are both so complicated. Finally, we decided....MY PLACE AGAIN!!! Yayyyyyy...for me! lol AND Jennifer, I mean. In all honesty, I live like ten minutes away from her. Ok people? Besides, according to her, my place has way more light than her. Ok?  Ok, good. I don't want you guys to think that I am monopolizing this studio space here. It sure does look like it though.

So Jennifer comes over around lunch time, and I bring out the Vietnamese chicken wraps and tabbouleh salad that I bought from Trader Joes. I think a little lunch and chat will "melt the ice." We start chatting, and I find out that Jennifer is a chef! She loves cooking food, eating food, and taking PHOTOS of food!  THIS is why she got into photography, so she can become a food photographer! How fascinating is that?! So I say, lets skip the nonsense, and shoot Jennifer right now while she is EATING her food! If this doesn't capture her true personality, I don't know what will.........;)

My favorite one of Jennifer is the one of her chowing down the food above, AND also this one:

I found out that Jennifer is a very FUNNY gal.  She loves cracking jokes and making people laugh. I think this picture captures her comical side.

The one I think looks least  like Jennifer is the one below. I feel like she is forcing a smile and not being natural. Although, some may like the photo because she's making fun of herself in a way. She may be imitating someone who is saying "CHEEEEEEEEESE," How often have we heard that word in photography? ;)  Either way, like I said before, there is a story behind EVERY photo.

Lastly, the one Jennifer thinks looks most like herself is this one. She says that she always has that "lost"  and "confused" look on her face. She's so cute either way!

We are done! So what did we learn about portraits? I think the easiest thing is to remember the four C's: Conduct, Conversate, Compliment and never Conceal. 

So go out there and take portraits of your friends and family! Let them be themselves, make them LAUGH, make them feel BEAUTIFUL. You will discover how much joy and happiness it can bring to someone to see their own portraits. They will be amazed at how well you captured their unique, beautiful, and true self. Good luck!

Until next time! xoxoxo

Maria

Beautiful sculptures in Logan Square and 90 miles Cuban Cafe!

OK guys I'm back, but I can't seem to get myself out of bed this morning. :( Me and my girl Cassie happened to go out last night and let's just say we had a little too much fun.  

You have a photography assignment to do Maria! Stop fooling around, and GET UP!  

All right...I'm up. Let's do this! I am going to bring my girl Cassie with me today. She is gorgeous, hilarious, and simply brightens my day whenever I'm with her. Sorry, she will not allow me to take her picture at the moment. You saw a quick glimpse of her in the video, and you will see her again in a few. :) She is the one with the quote on her wall from my first blog remember?  

"The Real Voyage of Discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes." -Marcel Proust  

I think this quote will be helpful today due to the nature of my assignment. So this week we have to go outside and take 36 pictures of different sculptures. All the pictures have to be taken from DIFFERENT angles. You have to come close, go far, go up, go down, and all around, and see what happens when you change your position. My teacher says wait and see what happens. Hmm, I wonder what that means...sounds easy enough though, right? All right, lets go grab some coffee, and do this.

Remember Eunice? The girl from Dunkin Donuts that helped me with my assignment last week? Well, we decide to pay her a visit and give her the photos that I took of her. She was so happy with how well they turned out!

Eunice Jones at Dunkin Donuts, Chicago

You know, the more I do this, the more I like it and want to keep doing it. It truly makes me happy to see people smile when I show them their pictures. Ok Eunice, gotta go. Time to find ourselves some sculptures! 

I did some research beforehand, and saw an article on how some "mysterious" sculptures popped up in the Logan Square neighborhood. Logan Square? I thought to myself. That's interesting. Mysterious? NOW you got my attention. Off to Logan Square!

Since we are headed to Logan Square, why not stop at 90 miles Cuban Cafe first for some lunch. I've been there once at night, but never in the day time. Lets see what it's like.

                                          90 Miles Cuban Cafe 2540 W. Armitage Chicago

90 Miles Cuban Cafe 2540 W. Armitage Chicago

Hey, that's the sign that's in Key West...90 miles to Cuba! You are WAY further than 90 miles from Cuba here buddy, as you can tell from all the looooovely snow. 

I am really loving all the murals on the outside of the restaurant, especially this one of the Cuban band. It reminds of my friend Mike's abuelo, Roland Arrom, God rest his soul. He was a member of a swing band in Cuba in the fifty's. He played the saxophone, trumpet and all kinds of other instruments. He wrote his own music as well.  I remember when we used to visit him in Miami he would tell us stories about Cuba and how beautiful it was. He used to say, "Maria Elaina, MUSIC is LIFE," He used to call me Maria Elaina because of my middle name, Elaina. He really loved SWING music. His band was called the "Roland Swing." Awww....abuelo I really miss you. You had such an amazing spirit and passion for life.  I know you are making music with the angels up above, and having everybody dancing. :) 

90 Miles Cuban Cafe 2540 W. Armitage Chicago

Did I just see cafe con leche? Sign me up! Cafe con leche is a traditional Cuban coffee drink (actually it's common in most Latin American countries) It literally means, "coffee with milk." I have to have some ASAP. I know, I know, I just had some Dunkin Donuts, but how can I say "no" to cafe con leche??!

We walk in, and it is simply MAGICAL. I love all the paintings, and the little sayings everywhere. You also hear good salsa music playing in the background. I literally feel like I've been teleported to Cuba. "Two Cafes con leche please!" 

Cubana

If Love arrives....do not let it go. US FLAG?! (lol)

Always ;)

Cafe con leche

I got my cafe con leche, and I am IN LOVE WITH LIFE right now! Cheers! 

Even my girl Cassie is feeling the music, dancing, and loving life right now. Ready? HERE SHE IS! The beautiful Cassandra Hannan. 

Cassie!

All right, lets EAT! So Cassie let's me do the ordering, since I am semi-familiar with the food on the menu. I remember them from the time Mike's mom, Martha, would make them for us in Miami. She is a lovely woman and a phenomenal cook! :)

So we order:

Ropa Vieja, with plantains, rice and beans 

Guajirito with plantain chips.

Yucca

This is Cassie's first time eating Cuban food and she is simply amazed at how good it is. Everything tastes delicious. From the shredded beef(ropa vieja), to the plantains(platanos) that came with it, to the Guajirito(which is the Cuban version of the Puerto Rican Jibarito), to the Yucca, which is a root vegetable similar to the potato. Wow! That was good!

Now, we are stuffed and ready to go back to BED, but we can't! We must stay focused. We finally pay, and head towards the door. As we are walking out, something catches my attention:

I made it nice and BIG so you guys can see it. 

The poster speaks for itself. You can come to 90 miles in Logan Square every Wednesday and be transported to a Latin American country for the next few months! Are you kidding me!? Heck yeah! Whose ready? I know I am. Food AND entertainment from a different county each week? Can't beat that. Also, 90 miles is BYOB, so bring your favorite bottle of Malbec wine (or whichever kind you like) and enjoy. :)

We get back in the car and start driving towards Logan Blvd where the sculptures supposedly are. We get to Logan Blvd. We're driving, driving, driving, AND nothing! Huh, that's interesting. Where are they? I tell Cassie to  look left, as I look right. Still nothing. Ok. Where did they go? 

I can tell you guys are tired already huh? I know, but come on, stay with me. We're almost done, I promise. We can do this! :)

As we turn around to go back the way we came, Cassie spots one, "There it is!"  Phew....finally! 

These sculptures are pretty far apart from each other and since it's cold outside I decide to drive, stop, shoot and go. So lets do some shooting already! So this is what I did. I took the pictures from far, then I came close. I went up, I went down, and then I went ALL around. 

Here is what the sculptures look like when you simply look at them from a distance. 

"Expanding Universe" by Eric Lindsey

"Another Thought" by Michael Brown

"Living Sculpture" by Jason Verbeek

"Bouquet" by Terrence Karpowicz

And NOW here is what I saw with my camera lens ;)  Can you tell which ones go with which sculpture above? You know what...forget it. I'll make it easy for you. Nobody's got time to think anymore. ;)

"Expanding Universe" 

"Another Thought"

"Living Sculpture" 

"Bouquet" 

WOW!!!!! COOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL!!!!!

I felt like I was getting lost in them! I would go closer and notice one thing, even closer and notice something else. I really enjoyed the flowery one. You would never know that those are plants inside that sculpture, unless you went that close! Also, the icicle just hanging down on the "Bouquet," amazing....simply amazing.  Which one is your favorite? I still haven't decided on mine. All I know is,  they are ALL beautiful.

I have to say,  that this assignment taught me A LOT! You don't know what you are missing until you look at something up close, from multiple ways, in different angles, and so forth, AND as a photographer; it's really important to pay attention to these DETAILS. (Wink, wink Ernie) It totally gives you a new perspective on the object that you are looking at. The teacher was right. I definitely made a new discovery today.

I ask you to try it for yourself and see what you will find. Trust me, you will be AMAZED. I know I was. 

Until next time,

XOXOXO

  

PS: I found out that these sculpture were placed in Logan Square by the city, and Mayor Emmanuel, to incorporate ART and CULTURE to different neighborhoods in Chicago. They will be displayed on Logan Blvd till Fall. Enjoy while you can:)