shirley - behind the lens: University of Illinois

Showing posts with label University of Illinois. Show all posts

The Daily - September 2, 2023 - Saturday - Football Opener

>> Monday, September 4, 2023 – Daily stuff, football, journal, University of Illinois, unscripted writing

Slept great last night, woke up at 5:10, did my warm up routine before heading to the pool. The water was on the cold side - those first 2 laps felt brisk! But after a few more laps it all felt nice. Then 50 minutes on the bike. The weather is pleasant this morning. Heat and humidity moved for the afternoon and evening.

We went to the evening opening Illini football game - we were impressed by the attendance - Memorial stadium was almost full. This bodes well for the inconsistent football program. The game started with a quick Illinois touchdown but then descended into the opposing team flexing its strengths and Illinois unable to respond. By halftime we thought the game had been lost. But the tides turned and the Illini pulled out a dramatic win with a last minute field goal.

Call me old but I’m bringing ear plugs to the next game. There were a group of young boys behind us screaming the entire last half of the game. If the scoreboard prompted the crowd to “make some noise”, these spirited fans obliged at 200% effort. While I don’t mind a fun, rowdy crowd, the high pitched screams got old and grated on my nerves. Overall it was a fun experience and we are looking forward to future games

Prom 2018 Shenanigans

>> Tuesday, July 3, 2018 – Class of 2018, formal, high school, prom, Teen Age Life, University of Illinois

So what if Prom was back in May? I'm simply trying to get back into some routine of blogging and these photos were a lot of fun to take.

First of all, my son and his girlfriend were super late to the designated photo venue. Like last year, they opted to gather at the University of Illinois' Main Quad. Traditionally, the senior class takes photos at the local country club, but I think something transpired a few years ago which led to the students no longer being welcome on the golf course's 18 fairway (probably because they tore it up).

Serious Photo. The girls are so tall with their high heels, it's hard to see the guys. This group, with the exception of my son and the boy on his right are juniors.

So I asked the guys to get up on the edge of the stone banister, but then one of them slipped and Chaos ensued!

This is my favorite outtake photo!

After things settled down:

With the Senior Gang

The guys insisted on this one:

Then a more candid moment - with the golden sun

A great Senior prom for the Class of 2018

Class of 2016 - Senior Caroline

>> Friday, March 25, 2016 – around town, Class of 2016, Main Quad, portraits, senior, University of Illinois

Caroline is the daughter of a friend, and I am used to seeing her wearing sweatpants or a soccer uniform. She was super fun to photograph - even if it was a little windy and chillier than we would have liked. Caroline has a wonderful smile that matches her fun personality and is simply beautiful. These are but a small sampling of our work and we have a follow up scheduled to capture sporty photos on the soccer pitch with friends.

Caroline plans to attend the University of Illinois in the fall and she looks right at home on the Main Quad, with Foellinger Auditorium in the background. It's Spring Break week, so we had the entire quad to ourselves.

This photo is one of my favorites from our session. I knew it was special when I was looking through the viewfinder.

Photography Note - To shoot this, I asked Caroline to look down as I set the focus point on the camera, and then I had her slowly lift her head to look at me. This gives the model some "downtime" from smiling / trying not to blink and allows them to relax a bit.

I still have many photos to cull through and I look forward to getting together with Caroline again.

Campus Life

>> Tuesday, May 12, 2015 – architecture, around town, campus, chambana, Main Quad, University of Illinois

The weekend before the start of Finals plus the first real Spring like weather equals:

Oh, to be a college student again.... (OK, maybe not!)

Class of 2015 - Senior Allie

>> Tuesday, May 5, 2015 – around town, high school, portraits, senior, University of Illinois

I had a blast photographing Allie this weekend. She's another one of my daughter's classmates and friends.

I've known Allie since she was in grade school - how quickly they grow up!

She included her mother, father and best friend, Mason in some of the photos.

It is apparent these two young ladies have a ton of fun together:

Another smart, kind and lovely young woman, heading to the University of Illinois. It was appropriate that we took these photos on a most gorgeous Saturday afternoon on campus, on the Main Quad. You can't tell, but the place was teeming with students, enjoying the day.

Congrats on your upcoming graduation, Allie!