North Avenue Beach, Chicago

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5.21.19
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Out of all the days we were in Chicago, this was definietly the coldest. It’s crazy how cold that city can get and I wasn’t even there during winter and I was freezing my buns off. Honestly, I don’t know how Chicagoans do it.

It was Saturday morning and the first opportunity we had to capture sunrise. I decided that North Avenue Beach would be best for the early morning based on what I’ve read from travel forums and blogs. HOLY COW I did not account for how windy it was going to be. I remember looking at the weather before we left the hotel and thinking “Ok, low 40s. Not too bad” But it felt like low 20s. So thankful I had gloves and a beanie packed in my backpack just in case.

It was so windy that as soon as we got out of our Lyft, Andrew went straight to the lifeguard building to block himself from the wind. He waited until I was done taking pictures for him to finally emerge and check out the skyline right before we left for breakfast.

I’m sure it was a lot colder since we were by Lake Michigan but man, looking at this image definietly brings me back to the cold air. And let’s talk about these waves! Yes, it has been brought to my attention that I’m starting to get a bad reputation with my camera and large bodies of water… but this was a body of water that I did not want to mess with. I was so nervous taking this picture because I had no idea how big the waves were actually going to get and I was trying my very best not to get splashed. I think I would have had to cancel the rest of the trip had I gotten splashed.

My camera settings for this image is F5.6 at 1/800th sec and ISO 320 with my Sony A7II and 16035mm wide angle lens.