I first visited the Windy City of Chicago in November 2011. Freezing cold and not particularly crowded as evidenced by the curiously empty Chicago Bean below , it didn’t leave much of an impression and was high on my list of places to return to. Fast forward several years, and I found myself back in the Windy City, this time in late July for a corporate event photography job. Despite enduring Chicago’s crazy summer weather of extreme heat and humidity, sudden torrential downpours, and awesome lightning storms, I gained a full appreciation for the third largest city of the United States and eagerly hope to return again.
Chicago 2016 Stats
6
Days
99 degrees
Hottest day
50.73
Total miles walked
15.01
Most miles walked on a single day
44.4
Hours Worked
Toughest job in the world: meet and greet after assisting on a photo shoot with Michael J. Fox.
Chicago Tourist Destinations
I had the incredibly tough job of being a tourist in the city as part of my photography assignment and was lucky to visit and photograph most of the city’s famous tourist attractions throughout the week. Due to client disclosure, those photos unfortunately can’t be published yet, but I can highly recommend all of the below destinations as worthy of a visit. Included below are hobby photos I snapped while exploring the city during my time off.
- Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower)
- Navy Pier
- Adler Planetarium
- Michigan Avenue Shopping District
- Oak Street Beach
- Shedd Aquarium
- Millennium Park + Maggie Daley Park & Playground
- Lincoln Park Zoo
- Chicago Cultural Center
- Museum of Science and Industry
- Chicago History Museum
- Giordano’s Pizza
- Rainbow Beach Park
- Wendella’s Signature Lake and River Tour
City skyline from Adler Planetarium
Chicago Bean at Millennium Park. Much busier in the summer than the winter.
A lifeguard stand at Lake Michigan, Rainbow Beach Park
Chicago city skyline from Rainbow Beach Park
City skyline
City skyline from Adler Planetarium
Shedd Aquarium
Trump International Chicago
The Wrigley Building
Ferris wheel at Navy Pier
WGN Radio building on Michigan Ave
Tiffany Dome ceiling of Chicago Cultural Center
Navy Pier at night
Chicago city skyline
Taking cover from a torrential downpour.
Chicago city skyline from Adler Planetarium
Descending above ground after taking cover from a torrential downpour.
Suzi, Great Photos, especially love the WGN building. My senior year of High School was in a suburb North of Chicago. I had a group of friends who loved ChiTown. We’d go there most weekend nights. Had lots of fun but don’t think I ever went to one of those ‘attractions’. Looking forward to going back in Spring.
Wow, awesome photo! It makes winter look more bearable 😉 I probably wouldn’t have gone to so many “attractions” had I not been working while in town, but I was very pleasantly surprised by Chicago. Really would love to spend more time there.