When John Muchow shoots photos, he’s usually not concerned about where the photos will hang. But his assignment for INB was to shoot photos that would hang on three walls in our Montvale Branch. One image needed to be 80” wide.
John says, “Usually I look for things that interest me. In this case, I had a frame in my mind as I walked around. I needed something interesting . . . and two of the shots needed to display horizontally. I like to shoot vertically. Needing to shoot such wide panoramas really had me thinking differently.
“I knew I wanted a picture of the Carillon. That’s what you’ll see right when you walk in the front door. But then I needed the horizontal shots.”
PokémonGo Stops Photographer
Getting these perfect shots was a real challenge. “I can laugh about it now,” John says, “but at the time it was quite frustrating.”
The “it” was PokémonGo. Players were all over the park this past summer. “I used to shoot pictures in Washington Park when I was a kid because no one was there. With these photos, I’d sit for 60 to 90 minutes waiting for people to get out of the way. But even at that, I sometimes had five or six people in a shot that I took out in PhotoShop. Also, some of my exposures can be long . . . up to 10 seconds. That meant people would walk through and be in my photo.”
Lush Photos Warm Up Office Space
When you look at the photos, the colors jump out at you. Lots of lush green. Vivid flowers. John says that’s partially because he shot on a cloudy day. “Greens look good under clouds,” he says. He notes he did a little Photoshop work to bring out the greens and make it lively and fresh.
The park’s angel statue, whose picture hangs near the teller line, holds vivid blue and red flowers. John says he didn’t place the flowers there, but most every time he’s seen the statue it’s had different fresh flowers in its hands. He adds, “One time I took a picture of the angel without the flowers, and it was really depressing. The flowers make it lively and hopeful.”
Just as John has a new Washington Park experience, he says choosing to use photos of the park in our Montvale branch was a perfect choice. “While there are other landmarks in the area, the park has memories for everyone. We’ve taken our kids there. We’ve been to a wedding. Everyone can relate to it.”
When people see his photos, he wants that memory, while at the same time hopes to provide a different perspective of the park. “I want people to think, ‘I’ve never quite looked at it like that.”
The photos were printed by ACE Sign Co. providing for a frameless final product. “Frames equate to ‘jailing’ in my mind,” John explains. “I love this process which totally opens up the print.” He adds that you can use glass cleaner when dusting, and you won’t harm the image.
See the prints by stopping by our Montvale Branch, 2601 Chatham Road, during regular lobby hours Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
John also did the artwork at INB – Mt. Pulaski.