Awhile back I wrote about my marathon printing experience, assisting the great Michael Smith over a weekend.  The objective: to print 100 photographs of Chicago for book publication and exhibition. We achieved that objective and somehow I survived it. And I think it made me a better photographer in all respects. The result of this work was part of what was published in the book Chicago: Loop / Chicago: Lake. Smith’s multi-talented wife and partner Paula Chamlee contributed to the other half of the book with her photographs, other artwork and writings.  I think the best way to describe the book is to quote what Michael Smith wrote about it.

“In 2008, Paula and I were commissioned by Bob Wislow of U.S. Equities Realty to photograph Chicago. We were free to photograph anything that appealed to us, but Bob asked that we each concentrate on a particular subject. Paula said that she wanted to photograph the Chicago’s shoreline all along the lake. That gave me the opening to photograph the buildings, mostly in the Loop, something I had wanted to do for almost thirty years. To do a project like this with our cumbersome equipment, a commission is essential. We could park in otherwise illegal spots, and we had access to rooftops from which to photograph. Half of the photographs, which were all from 8×20-inch negatives in my half of the book were made from rooftops, a few from a roof on the 90th floor of the Sears Tower.

The book is really a two-part book. My photographs are of the buildings. Flip the book over and it becomes Chicago: Lake, which consists of diptychs, triptychs, and quartets of Paula’s photographs in black and white and in color, along with her drawings, assemblages, and writings. You get two books for the price of one.”

I have a special place in my heart for this book, in part because of my personal experience with part of its content and my friendship with Michael and Paula. This having been said, Chicago: Loop / Chicago: Lake is a wonderful and truly unique book, and I am glad I own it based on its own merits.  The photographs and other artwork are outstanding and like all books published by Lodima Press, the reproductions are absolutely first rate. Paula’s writings add a special dimension to her work.

I think Chicago: Loop / Chicago: Lake is a bargain, especially if you purchase it on the used market. Get it; I think you will agree it’s something completely different … and really special.