“Muddy, Horns & The Clock” From my town to yours…I am using the public mural designed by Brazilian artist Eduardo Kobra, the holiday horns hanging over State Street from Macy’s, and the original Marshall Field & Co. clock to send out my Happy New Year wishes to all.
Category Archives: Digital Art Photography
I Just Published A Book!
Click on the photo above for a slideshow of performers and details about my book celebrating SPACE, the music hall in Evanston, IL during its first 10 years.
Thanks JRAC-A Slideshow
Here is a slideshow that documents some of the 45 performances that Chicago’s Chris Anderson organized for his creation, the Jazz Record Art Collective – JRAC – during 2018. The guy never sleeps. Knows his […]
Second Home
…on December 23, there will be a spotlight talk about the building. It brought back the memory of a montage I made of the Michigan Avenue entrance to that building in 2007. Here it is, full of life, a combination of the best of both old and new ideas.
Nighttime L Stop
Nighttime L Stop features an elevated rapid transit train, called an “L”, just leaving its regular stop on the way to the end of the line on the north side of Chicago.
Behind The Country Farm Stand
It was almost Fall. Time for sweet corn and ripe tomatoes at this favorite farm stand. Add some potatoes, fresh garlic, a few cucumbers and zucchini, then rush home for the best salad of the season.
Announcing A Gallery Exhibit Reception for 6 Tillis Images
The exhibit includes 6 Harvey Tillis photographs on display and for sale as large archival pigment prints of street photography in Chicago. They are “Broadway Detour”, “Family Outing”, “Blue Line Bus Stop”, “Sons Salute Dad at Blues Fest”, “Serenading Sam’s Wife” and “Superpawn Chicago”.
Not Eye Candy on a Hot Sunny Day (but still beautiful to me)
“Not Eye Candy On A Hot Sunny Day (but still beautiful to me)” by Harvey Tillis. Street photography from the 10th floor of a nearby building.
Outside Jackson Junge Gallery on a Perfect Saturday Afternoon
Inspired by an artist showing in that gallery, Aaron Wooten, whose work I hadn’t seen before and a person I don’t know, I had to create this image as soon as possible after my visit. If I could paint like him I would have. Instead I populated and altered this scene to express how I felt.
I Shoot What I See
“I Shoot What I See” by Harvey Tillis depicts sections and angles of Millennium Park’s Pritzker Pavillion against nearby Chicago architecture. Available now in the SHOP
Everything Old Is New Again
“Everything Old Is New Again” depicts the Michigan Avenue side of The Chicago Cultural Center, formerly the Chicago Public Library. This is a major center of activities including free concerts and art exhibits.
Lunchtime In A Chinatown Alley
Lines and shadows flashed at me as I crossed this alley. I walked past, then walked back. Shame on me for not stopping instantly, not making time to look, enjoy, and delight in this scene. Back at my computer I discovered an unexpected detail. A man sitting quietly in the shade on this brutally hot afternoon, on a break from work, eating lunch.
Sons Pay Tribute To Dad At Blues Fest
Salute to legendary blues man Carey Bell by his son’s Lurrie and Steve with help from Dave Specter during the 2018 Chicago Blues Fest. The evening featured tributes to Delmark Records and its artists for 65 years of great jazz and blues music.
Blue Line Bus Stop at Chicago, May, and Ogden
Blue Line Bus Stop at Chicago, May, and Ogden. Take steps down to the subway under this street to go to the airport. Catch a bus going west with the lady holding an umbrella. Transit runs all night long.
Still Life 2018
Still Life 2018. More knowledgeable people than me will have to decide if this is, in fact, a still life, but as far as I’m concerned, it is. So there!
7100 N. Sheridan Road
These are retail shops on the ground floor in an apartment building on a busy street in one of Chicago’s neighborhoods. I am always attracted to this kind of architecture and time of day. The image told me to make it black and white so I did.
Xpress Food Mart
This corner grocery store was the only building at an intersection in a far southside, low income suburb. The other three corners were empty lots. No customer traffic outside. Dark inside, yet open for business.
Late Night At The Factory
3:30 AM. The city is finally quiet. No traffic on the street, no planes or trains passing by. Just street lights and reflections to guide my sight as I look around. But someone is still there, working late at the factory next door. Probably not senior management.
Two Office Buildings
The space between these two buildings is what attracted me. If I could convert the colors to BW, make the image more graphic and a little abstract, I could get to where this scene made me feel. See? Pre-visualizing works!
Super Pawn, Chicago
A pawn shop on Fullerton Avenue in Chicago at the end of the day. Shops like this are scattered throughout the city and cater to a wide variety of cultures, ethnic groups, social and income classes. They may often be open until midnight six nights each week plus at least 5 hours on Sunday.
Hot Summer City Night
It was a humid, hot evening as we enjoyed another couple while eating on the patio at one of the best, funkiest Cuban restaurant’s I’ve ever been to, 90 Miles From Cuba, on Armitage. Loud music, noisy people, delicious empanadas, ceviche and a bottle of red. Dusk turned to night. People, cars and kids floated by. So memorable. A special time.
Night Music
“Night Music” Eric Schneider and Matt Ferguson at Andy’s Jazz Club for the 9th Annual Chi-Town Jazz Festival Supporting Hunger Relief. I have applied my changing vision and skills to documenting this fundraising event all nine years. 14 different bands donated their talents and 5 different venues donated their rooms all around Chicago. Great music for a worthy cause.
Clark And Oak
Clark And Oak is the location of this building in Chicago. I have passed the intersection hundreds of times and may have noticed parts of it unconsciously. On this day, in this light, at this distance I suddenly became aware of the entire structure. What a beauty! With help from a few software apps I was able to correct the perspective and fine tune areas to present a finished image of my impression of how it looks.
Singing Mr Soul For Valentine’s Day
The Saalik Ziyad Group performs Sam Cooke’s 1963 album, “Mr. Soul”, at Chris Anderson’s Jazz Record Art Collective (JRAC) in Chicago.
Party’s Over
Party’s Over by Harvey Tillis. A night of jazz had ended, everyone gone. Closing time. Use a variety of filters and adjustments to make the image feel the way I felt. Blur the lines between straight photography and a sketch.
Intersection
“Intersection” is a simple study of lines, space, and meaning set against the open sky. There are times when simple is a nice break from moody, mysterious, dark or busy. That time for me is now.
Corner Newsstand, Florence – 1978
Here is a sample of my street photography before I knew what it was, before I knew I was a practitioner.
Broadway Detour
Night photography is my favorite. Rain makes it even better. Creative options abound. Time to explore when shooting and again when processing.
Between Sets
“Between Sets” – This image was processed using a variety of filters and adjustments to create my version of a scene and style Lautrec might have painted in a Montmartre night club in the 1890s.
Chance Of Snow
“Chance Of Snow” A winter scene in Chicago. Sometimes it takes a while to tease out the look and feel of an image. Musicians might experience this when they see sheet music they want to play, but haven’t worked through it enough to make it sound the way they feel it should sound. Same is true with photos I create.
Happy New Year 2018!
Shot on a perfect chilly early winter night. On Lake Michigan while cruising off Navy Pier. Fireworks were a perfect addition. Happy New Year to all.
Waiting
Waiting. For her ride? For friends meeting here, in front of a music club? For the bus? Just contemplating and regrouping before proceeding with her life? I’ll never know.
Client Will Be Right Down
The title of this image is self explanatory. I was there, waiting, looked up, saw this, shot it, and as I checked my exposure settings the elevator doors opened and out popped my client.
Still Life With Drum Set, Painting, and Bricks
OK, this is not a bowl of fruit lit by a candle on a table. So what? I’m calling it a still life. Wikipedia says, “A still life (plural: still lifes) is…
Harwood Tavern
This place is an easy walk from my place. Adventurous food, fine selection of beers, across the street from two other fine restaurants, a bakery, and The California Clipper with different music every night. Can’t beat this setup!
Keith’s
Keith’s restaurant in Whiting, IN, is a fantastic find of a place to have lunch or, on weekends, dinner.
Wabash In The Wet
Street photography for sure. On a wet afternoon on Wabash Avenue. Light, lines and a little color. What else does a shooter need?
Grand To Howard Blur
…he sent me a Facebook challenge to produce 3 blurred photos over a 3 day period, bw or color at my discretion. This is the last one I submitted before challenging another photographer.
Eggelston Light
Eggelston Light by Harvey Tillis. This image is an homage to William Eggelston because the light made me think of him.
On The Way To Dinner
We finished our drinks and walked out into the misting night. All was dark and quiet with only the factory in the distance hissing and puffing white smoke.
Phil’s Kastle
I’m not sure if Phil’s is open or closed. Or what the hours are. Or what the menu might be. They do offer a deal on Monster burgers…
Ms. Reid
“Equally adept in classical and jazz contexts, Tomeka Reid predominantly finds herself in experimental and improvisatory settings and composes for a wide range of instrumentation, from big band to chamber ensemble.”
City Fire Escape
But I still like ’em because of the graphics they produce all day long. Revealing printed details easily seen on cloudy days, creating strong shadows on sunny days. They are a mess and tangle of iron rods that make perfect sense and save lives too.