If you read my blog with any regularity, you know I finished my From the ‘L’ series earlier this year. This is the first full series I set out to do and the first I’ve completed! To commemorate this little achievement I’ve put together a book of the best images from each line, I also wrote a post about this shortly after completing the series a few months ago. And if you want to see every single image I made (well, every image I edited that had any decency to it) you can check out my Flickr set. But onto why I felt compelled to create a book…
I think most photographers strive to create a series (or many series), something that defines their work, something that allows a feeling of accomplishment and portrays a piece of themselves and how they see the world. This was no small task for me, and something that eluded me for many, many years. Determining what I really love to photograph, let alone determining a series that would have an actual start and finish and fall within a genre and style that I want my work to progress from has been many years in the making, not to mention many moments of extreme frustration.
I don’t know if the few years away from Chicago and fine art photography or simply maturing is what finally allowed me to discover what it was I’m most passionate about, but whatever it was I’m sure glad I found myself heading downtown on the ‘L’  one early Sunday morning. I have always loved the Chicago skyline and cityscape and have, of course, photographed it many times. But as I headed into the loop that morning something clicked and my interest in finding a way to see the city from a more distinctive perspective was speaking to me.
I have always found the ‘L’ fascinating…maybe because I grew up in such a small town and public transportation like this felt so urban, so foreign—the complete opposite of the rural town I was used to. There’s a grittiness to the ‘L’, a feeling of being a part of the city when traveling this way, seeing the city from a perspective that can’t be seen any other way.
I decided this was how I was going to explore Chicago, how I was going to showcase this city in a unique way—present the way this city feels and looks from the lines I was familiar with and those I had never traveled. And hopefully allow my fellow Chicagoans, visitors and those who have never visited here the same experience.
While I created this book to commemorate the completion of this series, I invite you to check it out and consider purchasing it for yourself or someone you know who would appreciate this distinctive take on Chicago. To preview and/or order the book, click here. Thank you so much for being a part of this process with me!