monacophoto's PhotoBlog

Amber and Jeremy

2012-06-02T04:56:41Z

My wife, Christina, and I shot this beautiful wedding on May 26th. Jeremy and Amber were a couple of the nicest people I have ever met. They were very polite and extremely considerate. Working with them was a true pleasure and the more I got to know them, the more I could see just how in love they are. This is definitely one of those connections that was meant to be. I hope they enjoy a very long life together! I hope to work with many more couples just like them and I can't wait for the next wedding, which is June 9th. Then it's off to Maine with the wife for a well deserved vacation.

UIC vs Stanford Gymnastics

2012-03-13T06:51:37Z

I, along with another coach, brought the high school gymnastics team we coach to see a college meet at UIC. They are ranked fourteenth, but are still incredible to watch, and Stanford is ranked fourth. It was a really fun experience for everyone there and great opportunity to shoot some wonderful gymnastics. Enjoy!

Portraits for Amelia

2012-02-11T08:34:34Z

I did a portrait session for my brother-in-law's girlfriend's children. They were quite energetic, but that definitely made for some great photo opportunities!

My Camera Collection

2012-02-04T05:53:16Z

I was doing some product photography and decided I really wanted to have good pictures of my camera collection. Unfortunately I can't upload all of them, but here are my favorites!

Alton, IL and St Louis, MO

2012-01-27T08:57:18Z

The Wife and I went to Alton, IL for a weekend trip to check out the Bald Eagles that migrate there every year. We left Friday night and drove a nasty snow storm followed by ice. A four and a half hour trip turned into a six hour trip but I enjoy driving in snow so it was all good! We arrived safely and were excited for the next day. We woke up early and visited all of the best spots we found online. It was rather cold outside so we didn't last too long at each spot. The Eagle activity was a bit down because of the warmer weather we've been having in central and northern Illinois but we still saw quite a few, as well as many other species. It was extremely foggy on Sunday and there wasn't much in the way of Eagle watching. We decided to take the short trip to St. Louis and check out the city. It was a lot of fun and the fog definitely added to the trip. I'll upload some of my favorites from the trip.

Macro and FIsheye Fun

2011-12-24T09:49:22Z

Got a new lens! A Pro-Optic 8mm 3.5 Fisheye. It cost about an eighth of the price of the Canon 8-15 and is actually pretty good quality. Threw in some macro stuff too because that's always fun!

Photo Shoot with Addyson

2011-12-21T09:22:00Z

I had the privilege of shooting a beautiful two week old girl named Addyson. Unfortunately they are huge White Sox fans and the name is not a reference to the Chicago Cubs. She is still quite adorable though! I really wanted to try out a new wicker basket I received the other day so I brought that along. The shoot went well up until we tried to do some diaper only photos. I believe she got a bit cold and was not very happy. What we eventually did was put her in the basket and cover her with a warm blanket. It definitely did the trick! I look forward to doing more photo sessions with infants in the near future. 'Til next time, happy shooting.

Holiday Portraits

2011-12-21T09:35:16Z

Did some holiday portraits this weekend and tried a new background. My sister saw it in on Pinterest and thought I should try it out, so I did! It worked out really well and is super simple. I used my white backdrop and hung white Christmas lights about a foot in front of it. I set the subject about 8 to 10 feet in front of the lights to get some nice bokeh. The only thing I wish I had was some more natural light! The space I set up in only has four windows for a fairly large space. Thanks for looking!

Rock Cut State Park

2011-12-21T09:46:10Z

Took these photos while camping at Rock Cut State Park. It was an extremely clear night and the moon was very bright. There were also about 5 campfires all around us which lit the trees up in a very cool way. Enjoy!

Waukegan Air Show

2011-12-22T07:33:26Z

Visited Waukegan for their air show on September 10th, 2011. It was a lot of fun! We tried to make it to the Chicago Air Show but after an hour looking for parking we gave up, went home, and bought tickets for Waukegan. It was very cool to see the planes take off and land, which is something you don't see in Chicago. I think we will definitely check it out again in a couple years.