This Week: Cloud Gate

So you are probably wondering: where are all the people?  When I took this photo I was the only person at Cloud Gate.  In fact it was another 10 minutes before anyone else showed up.  Here's how it happened.

I went to Millennium Park and Cloud Gate every day of my visit to Chicago.  The first afternoon it was overcast.  The next two days were either overcast and/or very crowded as expected of a tourist attraction in the middle of July.  On days where it was bright and sunny I had very little time to photograph the park and sculpture.  I was only scheduled to visit Millennium Park my first day, but since it was only a few blocks away from my hotel I managed to find myself there every day even if only for just a few minutes.  

On my final morning I left my hotel at 7 a.m. with the intention of getting breakfast and then visiting Grant Park with my few remaining hours.  As I stepped outside it was a beautiful crisp morning, blue skies and no clouds.  And as I started walking towards the CTA station it dawned on me that I could finally get the Millennium Park photos I wanted.  The ones with blue skies and clouds.  I turned towards Millennium Park and when I arrived, no one was there.  No one.  There were a few people walking through the park on the way to work (this was a Friday morning) and some city workers getting the grounds ready for the day, but the tourists were definitely no where to be found.  I went snap crazy for those 10 minutes before another photographer showed up.  I was lucky and am so grateful for the opportunity to get my patented "no people" shot of The Bean.

Photoblog Postscript: Cloudgate Sculpture Again by Matt Dunmore