Run, Kid, Run...

My favorite picture of the day, when one little girl was left behind by all the other kids. Then her sister came up behind her, put her arm around her and ran the rest of the race as her guide.

Yesterday I photographed a 5K run for one of my local clients. After the adults ran, there were several heats for the kids. The excitement was high for a lot of the kids, but it was heartbreaking to see some small kids in complete and utter terror as the race started and all the sideline parents screamed ‘encouragement’ to their little cherubs. In the final race, the 7-10 year olds, thirty kids tore out of the gate in one huge pack; it was scary to think what would’ve happened if one of them had tripped, as someone did in the 4-6 year olds’ race, when a little person pile-up was narrowly avoided.

At the end of the day, fortunately, all of them made it back to their parents, and the event was a success. At least I think they did. I left before all the 7-10’s made it back to the finish line. Hmmm…

Invasion of the Trolls

One of my favorite clients is the Morton Arboretum, who I've been shooting for for about the last ten years. One of the cool things about the Arboretum is the yearly installation exhibits they've been doing. I've shot Steel Roots (steel piping twisted into the shape of tree roots), Legos, metal frogs, even large scale origami art, but I think this year's takes the prize for the coolest. For the last couple months, artist Thomas Dambo from Denmark and his team have been constructing gigantic trolls from reclaimed wood, and placed them in fields, in the woods, overlooking the highway and elsewhere.

I spent a couple hours photographing the trolls under construction in late May. Now they're finished and I'm heading back this afternoon to photograph the 'official portraits' of the completed trolls, with people to show the scale of the giants. Should be fun.

The trolls are on display for the next 2-5 years, depending on how long they last in the Chicago weather. If you're in the area, go see them; you won't be disappointed.

When the President Comes to Town... and Needs a Photographer

The Family Photo

The Irish Consulate in Chicago called me, wanting to know if I’d be interested in photographing the president of Ireland, Michael Higgins, on his visit to the city. Without missing a beat, I said yes and got the details. A few weeks later, after being checked out by the Secret Service and Irish security, my son (in his first job as my assistant) and I found ourselves in the Drake Hotel, ready to photograph 300-500 guests, all eager to shake the president’s hand and have their picture taken with him.

Setting up the family photo- President Higgins has many relatives living in the US.

Attorney General, Lisa Madigan (in blue dress), representing Chicago politics

Secret Service not looking conspicuous at all. My son David is in the front, fitting in well.

I was told the woman on the left is one of Muhammad Ali’s daughters.

The late Cardinal Francis George stops by for a few laughs with the President.

Everyone got a picture with the president

In the end, David and I got to pose with the President too. Photo by Shane O’Neill/ Fennell Photography (Dublin)

I set up a website where everyone could download their pictures, as well as order prints.

Senior Communities

Last year, I photographed all eight senior communities for Franciscan Communities, from the northern suburbs of Chicago, to Lafayette, Indiana and all the way out to Cleveland, Ohio. The shooting took place over about a month.

I’ve photographed retirement communities several times in my career, and have always enjoyed the work. The residents are generally very relaxed and willing to be in pictures (usually… but not always!). It’s a different pace of life. We shot lots of different scenarios, from meal times (showing off the dining areas) to the residents’ apartments, going on walks, the gym, cinema and even residents hanging out in their new pub. The purpose of the pictures was to show the residents having a good time while showing off the amenities.

Best in Show, Two Years Running

Last summer I took part in my second Bar Harbor “Art in the Park” fine art photography show in Maine. This annual fair at the gateway to Acadia National Park is a showcase for painters and photographers to show and sell their art.

The most popular print at the show- a 40×60″ metal print

I custom printed over forty-five large (16×20 to the large 40×60-inch metal print above) limited edition prints for the show, as well as over 120 open edition 8×10’s, my Acadia Centennial poster, and sold several copies of my book. It was my second time participating in the show, and the response to my work has been very gratifying. The icing on the cake came at the end of the show when I was surprised to learn my photography had been awarded “Best in Show” for the second year running. I’ll definitely be back this year to do it all again.

Along with wall prints, I sold several signed copies of my book, Under October Skies, to fans of Acadia National Park.

Wendy's Bakery- Christmas Shortbread

My wife Wendy is a good baker. A very good baker. For years, she's baked shortbread, toffee and peppermint bark for Christmas presents. Recently she started selling her treats and the response has been tremendous. The "bakery" is in full swing right now. On Monday she took the day off her day job to work on two very big orders, baking over thirty dozen shortbread cookies by mid-afternoon. And yours truly was there to document the big day.

the rejects- more for the family to enjoy :)

Meet Me!

I was contacted by a writer out of Los Angeles a couple months ago to be featured in their digital magazine, Voyage Chicago. This week, the article came out. Read it here.

Professional Athlete, Casey Short

One of my favorite clients is Naperville Magazine, who I’ve been shooting for since 2007. The magazine has a circulation of over 40,000, and is bundled with the Sunday Chicago Tribune. My assignments have included shooting CEOs of multinational corporations, interiors of beautifully renovated homes, working with dozens of models for fashion spreads, shooting in restaurants, colleges and on the streets of downtown Naperville and other Chicagoland locations. It’s been a lot of fun and the variety has been great.

Not too long ago, I photographed one of my favorites shoots for the magazine which also came out as the cover story. In late November, we met up at Toyota Park to do the shooting with Casey Short, who plays defense for the Chicago Red Stars soccer team and has been invited to try out for the USA national team.

Casey couldn’t have been more easy to work with. We had the stadium to ourselves to work in and around, so we shot the cover image in the tunnel leading down to the field. We also used the field as well as the Chicago Fire (men’s soccer team) locker room. Most of the shots were taken using basic lighting– a medium soft box, with natural light allowed to fill in the background– and a Canon 1DX Mark II camera. I used a 70-200 f/2.8 lens for all the pictures except the action shots, which were taken on a 300mm f/2.8 lens.

New Gear- the Eye in the Sky

I've always wondered about professional photographers who blog a lot. How do they find the time? If they're busy running successful businesses, when do they write about their work? I mean, I'm glad some do, but as much as I love my job, I'm also busy with a family and other outside interests. All this is to say, I've been very busy on photo and video shoots, traveling with my family and working on lots of exciting projects. So, my apologies for not keeping up more with the MHP blog.

Several clients have been asking if I had a drone and until last week, the answer was always no. That's all changed. This has got to be one of the most exciting pieces of equipment I've ever owned, and I haven't even had it for a week. There's so much to learn, but already I have an assignment to shoot with it tomorrow.

The drone I got is one of the top of the line models, capable of shooting UHD 4K video (4X the size of normal video) as well as conventional video, and high resolution still photos on its large, 1-inch sensor (50% larger than most drone sensors). The range is just under five miles and it can ascend (legally) to 400 feet. It's really amazing– even on a breezy day, the drone can hover in place with virtually no movement. It's like having a tripod in the sky.

I'm working towards getting my FCC drone license (a must for commercial drone use) but I'll be posting some fun clips as I find new uses for it. For now, enjoy this clip shot over the weekend, gliding over woods near my wife's cousin's farmhouse in Iowa.

The First Photography Class

Sunrise, Grand Teton Mountain Range, from Snake River Overlook, Wyoming

I'm not into public speaking. I'm far more comfortable behind the camera than in front of it. But last month I gave my first photography workshop on a subject that I'm passionate about– landscape photography. I love nothing more than to hike outdoors, far from computers, phones and with a camera in hand.

Last Spring, the people at Out of Chicago photography workshops learned about me from seeing my books online and in the stories in Bar Harbor, Maine. A flurry of emails followed and I ended up being booked to speak at a workshop in Maine this October. But before that, they had me come out to talk to a packed room of photographers at the College of Lake County in Grayslake.

Despite my nerves, I had a great time and everyone seemed to learn something. Now that it's done, I'm wondering if I might try to find some other venues to speak at between now and October. Email me if you have any suggestions for me.