We have had a bit of a miserable spring here with temperatures struggling to get over 70 and the sun barely peeking out from behind the clouds.
I took a walk around Downtown Naperville this afternoon as people enjoyed the warmer weather even without the sun making much of an appearance.
The Illinois River, which normally sits at around 12 feet, crested at over 29 feet in April and broke all previous flood records. While downtown Peoria saw a lot of water, it was the smaller towns along the river that felt the effects of the flooding the worst.
Some homes had been rebuilt in the mid 2000's with all living areas being on the second floor above a garage, but most of the older homes had basements full with water and could not begin pumping until the water receded on its own.
The people of Peoria were incredibly welcoming to this stranger with a camera and I can only wish the best for all those I met and those dealing with losses from the flood.
So this is a bit delayed, but at this past Midwest Photo Summit put on by the Illinois Press Photographers Association I was honored to be named Runner-Up Photographer of the year. I am also happy to say that a few of my long term projects garnered some attention including an ongoing project of mine out at the Jericho Circle housing project in Aurora which received first place honors in the News picture story category. A story I worked at Mooseheart Child Cities new maternity home for underage mothers was awarded first place for feature picture story and placing second in that same category was a story I did on a family from Aurora that was able to move out of a homeless shelter and into their own apartment before Christmas.
A big congrats to Photographer of the year Scott Strazzante, Sports Photographer of the year Andrew Nelles, and all the other winners this year.
Here is a look at the portfolio I submitted for judging...
The story on the Maternity Home at Mooseheart was also recognized in the National Press Photographers Association's annual Best of Photojournalism contest receiving third place in the Best Published Picture story category for smaller markets. Here is a look at that story:
