With the Black Eyed Peas’ nomination for a Grammy award this evening it reminded me of a brief meeting with them a few years ago.

Because of my relationship with Ravinia Festival, I was asked by ABC/Disney to photograph two tapings of the Live With Regis and Kelly Show. The show was going to be shot at Ravinia’s pavillion. Although most guests were from Chicago, the Black Eyed Peas were the musical guests for the show.

My job was to document the taping. A few of the photos can be seen here but a more complete gallery can be found on our Facebook Fan page.

Regis Philbin and Kelly Ripa

Black Eyed Peas with Regis and Kelly

Gary Sinise with Regis and Kelly

Jessica Biel with Regis and Kelly

Scotty Pippen shoots a basket for Regis and Kelly

WGN's Dean Richards interviews Regis & Kelly between tapings at Ravinia Festival.

Kelly shows her improvisational skills with Second City group.

Richard Roeper and Roger Ebert discuss Chicago's role in film with Regis and Kelly.

Kelly and Regis answer questions from the audience after two tapings.

My friend, Mitzi continues a generations-old tradition of having her grandchildren photographed when they reach the age of three. Each photo includes the same chair which is as old as the tradition. The wonderful thing about this for me is that none of the children ever pose for me. They simply present themselves to the [...]

I really like getting e-mail messages from Uncle Lou. He has nine decades under his belt and with deteriorating vision his messages sometimes seem like code. The message below came this past Saturday. Although there are no photos with this post, I think Uncle Lou’s writing provides more insight and texture than any of my [...]

When I was young I lived in a small town in the deep south. Occasionally my father would walk me down the long, winding path to a back-woods shack that served as the area’s juke joint. As I watched my father dance and drink his troubles away with his friends, it must have presented a [...]

I couldn’t bring myself to post a photo of the snow that fell in the Chicago area last night. Instead I’ve opted for this “warmer” interpretation of the season’s colors that I photographed this past summer. I didn’t realize how quickly I’d default to the old gardening theme of the original blog. Maybe I’m trying [...]

For 30 years wedding photography was never a part of my photo business. I managed to avoid it not because I disliked brides and grooms but because of the way they usually liked their weddings photographed. The photographic style for many years could only be described as cheesy.
Couples are now asking for a very nice [...]

Noah will be 13 months old tomorrow. The photo below was taken when he was three days old – literally a lifetime ago. I’ve pretty much filled up a hard drive with photos of him I’ve taken over those months.
I like this one because it shows not only the vulnerability of the son but [...]

For my photographer-friends, ASMP has announced what has already become my best resource for all things photographic… Take a look at dpBestflow, a site funded by the Library of Congress. Let me know what you think.

Not long before he died, Ken Taylor needed a new photograph of himself for a magazine. He apologized for the brevity of our time together and the lack of an “inspired” location – his office.
It was not unlike him to spend our time together worrying about how he should pose. This session, like most with [...]