For my seventeenth ‘keep me sane during the pandemic’ photo shoot, I returned to Blue Island, a suburb just south of Chicago I had already shot twice on these outings. My first of these weekly shoots was to the Olde Western area of Blue Island, and I returned a few days later to shoot on a rainy night. I shoot in Blue Island often because it’s close to home and easy to get to, and I find it kind of photogenic. It’s also good when time is short but I still want to get out and shoot, which was the case this time. With the Fall semester in full swing, I had to focus my attention on teaching, and any shooting trip would have to be a quick one. Also, I had hurt my knee, was painfully hobbling around wearing a brace, and didn’t want a longer outing with lots of walking (although I ended up walking for about 1.5 miles, until the knee hurt too much to continue). I chose the north end of Blue Island, which looks less like a small town than the areas I shot in earlier, and more like an aging suburban area, which, if I’m being honest, is exactly what it is. I love mid-century architecture, especially the low rise commercial buildings found on the edges of cities, and there’s a few of them in this area, so that made the shooting fun.
In case you’re wondering, I still don’t know what was up with my knee. I ended up braving a visit to a medical facility during the pandemic to see a doctor about it, but they didn’t think there was anything serious. X-rays revealed a completely normal knee. Wearing a brace for a while and icing it a couple times a day eventually took care of the issue. Guess I’m just getting old!
Here are my favorites from this shoot.
