I'm amazed by the waves, I never thought tides could be that big on a lake! It's nice to see your early work and relate it to what you do today. Thank you for sharing this Susanne!
Thank you for this, Susanne. Such wonderful words and photos. And yes, Chicago is an amazing city. (My second favorite U.S. city after my beloved New York City). And Lake Michigan is indeed stunning.
I only have visited NYC and from this I would say I like Chicago better, but 7 days compared to almost 3 years. It wouldn’t be fair to draw a conclusion from that!
Both are spectacular cities, Susanne, and each has its own personality, which to me is part of what makes a city great in the first place. Right? I’d be thrilled to spend time in either one.
These are amazing and that weather certainly looks frigid! I liked the variations as you change techniques. I have never been, but thinking about visiting for the architecture, albeit in warmer temps lol.
Thank you, Paul! The architecture is interesting, too and I have photographed it plenty of times, too! Chicago is worth a visit. And I can‘t blame you for preferring the warmer months! 😉
I live 10 minutes from the shore of Lake Ontario and you captured the essence and magic of the Great Lakes beautifully! I also have ventured out in the winter many times and it feels like a different planet all together and so worth the pain haha
Thank you for your feedback, Amy! Funny, that you say that about the different planet. I had been there when in 2011 the great Blizzard hit Chicago and I was so excited to witness it. I was standing by the lake and couldn‘t see a thing - only snow, ice and barely any visibility. And I totally thought I was at the North Pole!
Wow, Susanne. I almost backed out of the post to double check that this is actually your post! I say that because of how different your style is from today. These photos are outstanding! So are your photos today but they are very different. I love seeing you play with color and slow shutter speeds...even some street! Love it. I also didn't know you actually lived in Chicago. For some reason I though it was another city. One of my best friends lives there and I'm very familiar with those places since I visited her often and she was living around the corner from the dog beach. It's a beautiful city and much more navigable than New York, to me. Thank you for sharing your past here and a lovely sequence of color shots.
I love that Alon's work prompted you to dig into your archives and bring these to light, Susanne! The Caribbean colors in Summer and ice formations in winter are really quite astonishing extremes.
The Great Lakes are wonderful to explore and photograph in winter. I live near the “shallowest” lake, Lake Erie, and in winter the shore feels completely different every day.
Beautiful, Susanne. I always love long exposures of water... and the shot of the orange ladder handles is great. Reminds me of where I live near Lake Superior and all of shooting I used to do by the lake!
Thanks, as ever, Susanne. Such lovely images coupled with a great narration of your time in Chicago (A surprisingly lovely place I spent time in a few years ago). I love some of your winter images, they would be my favorite.
Great variety of cool shots of Lake Michigan! I’ve only ever visited Chicago outside of winter so I find myself especially drawn to your winter views. It must’ve been amazing (as well as frigid) to explore the lakefront in winter.
Chicago has much more to offer to its visitors and the weather is usually much more pleasant and welcoming during the summer months. But I still would say it is worth a visit in the wintertime, too. And if it’s just for freezing your nose off at the lakefront. =)
Stunning pictures! The second one really draws me in.
I love Chicago and I love Lake Michigan.
We lived in South Bend for several years about 40 min. from a beautiful beach, our regular summer getaways. The drive up the coast in Michigan is very beautiful as well, many hidden, gorgeous beaches as well.
Thanks for sharing this! Brings back nice memories for me as well.
What an amazing opportunity to live there for three years! I’ve only been to Chicago a couple of times, but never in the winter. The beauty of your images, with the frozen water, makes me want to visit during that season.
It was the opportunity of a lifetime for me and I am grateful for it. Especially in a city like Chicago. I can highly recommend visiting the city in the fall or winter.
I just love this. I was going to praise the second image especially, but then came so many more great ones. I'll still call out the would-be swimmer, love that, and your street photograph. I love that the paint says "Slow Area" and the guy looks like he's moving as slowly as a person possibly could while still moving like a runner.
I'm amazed by the waves, I never thought tides could be that big on a lake! It's nice to see your early work and relate it to what you do today. Thank you for sharing this Susanne!
I was pretty blown away by it, too! Thank you for reading and commenting, Xavi!
Thank you for this, Susanne. Such wonderful words and photos. And yes, Chicago is an amazing city. (My second favorite U.S. city after my beloved New York City). And Lake Michigan is indeed stunning.
I only have visited NYC and from this I would say I like Chicago better, but 7 days compared to almost 3 years. It wouldn’t be fair to draw a conclusion from that!
Both are spectacular cities, Susanne, and each has its own personality, which to me is part of what makes a city great in the first place. Right? I’d be thrilled to spend time in either one.
I agree. Wouldn’t it be boring if the cities were all the same? ;-)
These are amazing and that weather certainly looks frigid! I liked the variations as you change techniques. I have never been, but thinking about visiting for the architecture, albeit in warmer temps lol.
Thank you, Paul! The architecture is interesting, too and I have photographed it plenty of times, too! Chicago is worth a visit. And I can‘t blame you for preferring the warmer months! 😉
Only visited Chicago in the non-winter time; had no idea the lake could do that kinda wave-thingie. Thanks Susanne.
Haha, yes! The lake has a lot of different faces. Pretty amazing!
I live 10 minutes from the shore of Lake Ontario and you captured the essence and magic of the Great Lakes beautifully! I also have ventured out in the winter many times and it feels like a different planet all together and so worth the pain haha
Thank you for your feedback, Amy! Funny, that you say that about the different planet. I had been there when in 2011 the great Blizzard hit Chicago and I was so excited to witness it. I was standing by the lake and couldn‘t see a thing - only snow, ice and barely any visibility. And I totally thought I was at the North Pole!
Wow, Susanne. I almost backed out of the post to double check that this is actually your post! I say that because of how different your style is from today. These photos are outstanding! So are your photos today but they are very different. I love seeing you play with color and slow shutter speeds...even some street! Love it. I also didn't know you actually lived in Chicago. For some reason I though it was another city. One of my best friends lives there and I'm very familiar with those places since I visited her often and she was living around the corner from the dog beach. It's a beautiful city and much more navigable than New York, to me. Thank you for sharing your past here and a lovely sequence of color shots.
Haha, these are different for sure. As I said, I was all over the place - exploring different techniques…
I have been to New York (as a tourist) and would pick Chicago over NYC every time.
I love that Alon's work prompted you to dig into your archives and bring these to light, Susanne! The Caribbean colors in Summer and ice formations in winter are really quite astonishing extremes.
Thank you, Diana. Substack is full of inspiration and I am glad the spark hit at the right moment. =)
The Great Lakes are wonderful to explore and photograph in winter. I live near the “shallowest” lake, Lake Erie, and in winter the shore feels completely different every day.
Beautiful! Archived are very worth to revisit, always!
The Great Lakes are gorgeous 🤩.
Beautiful, Susanne. I always love long exposures of water... and the shot of the orange ladder handles is great. Reminds me of where I live near Lake Superior and all of shooting I used to do by the lake!
Thanks, Dan. I can imagine Lake Superior offers very similar scenes.
Thanks, as ever, Susanne. Such lovely images coupled with a great narration of your time in Chicago (A surprisingly lovely place I spent time in a few years ago). I love some of your winter images, they would be my favorite.
Thank you, Michael! It is a great place to live. I am happy to hear you enjoyed this little throwback!
Great variety of cool shots of Lake Michigan! I’ve only ever visited Chicago outside of winter so I find myself especially drawn to your winter views. It must’ve been amazing (as well as frigid) to explore the lakefront in winter.
Chicago has much more to offer to its visitors and the weather is usually much more pleasant and welcoming during the summer months. But I still would say it is worth a visit in the wintertime, too. And if it’s just for freezing your nose off at the lakefront. =)
Stunning pictures! The second one really draws me in.
I love Chicago and I love Lake Michigan.
We lived in South Bend for several years about 40 min. from a beautiful beach, our regular summer getaways. The drive up the coast in Michigan is very beautiful as well, many hidden, gorgeous beaches as well.
Thanks for sharing this! Brings back nice memories for me as well.
Thank you for your comment, Manuela! Chicago will always have a special place in my heart and my memories. We had such a great time living there.
What an amazing opportunity to live there for three years! I’ve only been to Chicago a couple of times, but never in the winter. The beauty of your images, with the frozen water, makes me want to visit during that season.
It was the opportunity of a lifetime for me and I am grateful for it. Especially in a city like Chicago. I can highly recommend visiting the city in the fall or winter.
I just love this. I was going to praise the second image especially, but then came so many more great ones. I'll still call out the would-be swimmer, love that, and your street photograph. I love that the paint says "Slow Area" and the guy looks like he's moving as slowly as a person possibly could while still moving like a runner.
Thank you, Donn! There was always something going on by the lake. And if not, the lake was just enough…