Chicago at night, from 36,000 feet

Milwaukee!

Chicago at night, from 36,000 feet by myelectricsheep.

This image is also published in the Chicago Architecture Handbook.

You can see an annotated version here (thanks Salovesh!)

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Comments

Sholeh says:

home!!! aww Chris this picture is awesome, thanks for taking it. I needed this.
Posted 36 months ago. ( permalink )

skiesclear says:

Everything is so lovely, so beautifully square! Where is this paradise, do you know? It so reminds me of Salt Lake in its grandeur of squareness.
Posted 36 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

You're welcome Sholeh, and thanks for the ID. I didn't know what city it was!

Ang, it's Chicago. I've updated the title and tags. I love cities with grid layouts. Mainly because my sense of direction is so bad, that helps me navigate.
Posted 36 months ago. ( permalink )

T-FIZ says:

Wow, what an opportunity! Great pic!
Posted 32 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

thanks! yes, i love plane flights. i always go for the window seat.
Posted 32 months ago. ( permalink )

Four Feathers Photo says:

I'm more of a mountains and trees kinda guy, but I flew into Chicago the other night and I have to say the view from the air was one of the prettiest things I've ever seen.

Wow.
Posted 25 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

thanks, it is quite a spectacular city! sometimes i feel an inner conflict when seeing the beauty of massive urbanization, since i know the natural beauty of the area has been replaced. but now i have learned to give in and just appreciate urban beauty, because it's important to find goodness wherever you are. for about half the world's population, that's cities!
Posted 25 months ago. ( permalink )

PheeOwnR says:

what a great view. Found this on reddit
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

blakie says:

amazing, no other words
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

AndyGoodwin says:

This a great picture. Truely amazing.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

eszter says:

Beautiful! Thanks for sharing.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

fadeddays says:

Amazing. Well done.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

iDanSimpson says:

found this at FFFOUND.com. way cool!
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

EJ and MJ says:

Beautiful shot - and you made the Reddit.com front page.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

CCBImages says:

Nice capture, I only managed to get part of it here:

www.flickr.com/photos/snwbeast/2229950615/

-- Curtis
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

@PheeOwnR: Thank you, it certainly is spectacular to see in person. At first I was wondering where all the views were coming from!
@blakie: Thanks, that is what I really hope, that my pictures can communicate something beyond words.
@AndyGoodwin: Thanks! It was a real stretch, ISO 1600, f/1.4, and still there was barely enough light.
@eszter: Thank you for the compliment, and it's a pleasure to share.
@fadeddays: Thanks, I feel my fanaticism for the window seat has paid off at last.
@iDanSipson: Sweet, so it's not just reddit. Thanks!
@EJ: Thank you, it certainly is wonderful to have so much appreciation for this image.
@CCB: Nice, that looks like a lower angle. I was fortunate in that I was flying over the city, rather than landing there. Fortunate for the picture, I mean. I like Chicago!
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

Cymen says:

Wow! (Viewed 41,523 times).

This makes me homesick -- trying to work out where my home is. I think I found it ;).
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

usher.shaun says:

incredible photo. you're about to get on the front of digg too.

digg.com/travel_places/What_Chicago_Looks_Lik e_at_Night_F...
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

top5withabullet says:

This has to be one of the best photos I've seen taken from a plane. Excellent shot! Was the plane banking a little so you could take it? Also, were you sitting before the wing?
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

Zlatko Unger says:

Wow this looks fantastic. Great job!
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

nicepaul says:

I was flying back from SXSWi Austin to London overnight, and the views out of the window over the cities of North America were amazing. It made me wonder if Google Earth had night-time flyover shots, and if you could have a "name that city" competition with this kind of spectacular photo. I'd hazard that the layouts of cities are more recognisable by night, when the roads and features stand out rather than merge into one grey mass.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

idarknight says:

Very cool
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

ceris42 says:

Great picture! I can see the street I grew up on.
Thanks for taking it
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

miocyon says:

You should listen to the song "Exile in Guyville" by Liz Phair. It's about her thoughts as she flies into Chicago. It starts - "I was flying into Chicago at night..."
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

Christian Kahahawai Photography says:

Woah, very nice! Crystal clear night
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

knightboat82 says:

"has anyone there seen 'Tron'?" "no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, yes...wait, no"

anyways, awesome pic.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

verycarla says:

Beautiful. I was born somewhere around the middle of that picture, and lived my first ten years there. Chicago has always held a very special place in my heart, and this is one of the most beautiful pictures of it I've seen in a while. Many, many thanks. Makes me want to be there right now, actually.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

Troy McClure SF says:

Very nice!

I cropped/rotated/tweaked.

Man, I can't wait to go back to Chicago.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

kevinbost says:

You've been dugg!

Fantastic.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

WMGoBuffs says:

Great! I took a similar picture last year http://www.flickr.com/photos/wmgobuffs/160790 1058/
with the moon in the background. If only I could've sped up the shutter...
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

mpancha says:

Love the picture!
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

Matthijs Dijk says:

That's an amazing shot. Dallas/Ft Worth looks this nice from the air, unfortunately i didn't have my camera on me. Now i can show people what it kinda looks like!
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

tony.eckersley says:

Wow - thats very well captured.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

-bc says:

Reminds me of the first time Newt Kiley and me flew up to Pixley in Steve Elliot's cropduster. We beat the Cannonball by a country mile!
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

drew wymore says:

Awesome photo! I always loved flying into Chicago when I had my biweekly flight from Atlanta to Portland Oregon. I used to choose the early morning flights so I could see sights like this.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

Rooney. says:

Nice shot. And congrats on hitting the front page of digg and various other cool stuff.

--
Found in a search. (?)
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

djzealot says:

<3 chicago.
Great architecture, museums, food.... Oh, the food!!!
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

Vyshemirsky says:

It must be so boring to live in a city like this.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

kcav8or says:

I spent quite a bit of time in Chicago a few years back, including a very cold winter internship at Argonne National Laboratory. Great city. I'm a private pilot now, so I love aerials.

How about posting a version of the photo with labels of major landmarks ? I know that the dark square block just southwest of downtown is Midway airport. I think large dark square on the southwest outskirts with the bright U-shape sticking into in might be Fermilab.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

Sholeh says:

Not at all boring...probably one of the best cities I've ever lived/visited. It looks very orderly from the air...but it has so much hidden underneath.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

JeremyHall says:

Very nice shot. I am always wondering what I could take out the plane window that would look good and interesting.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

The New No. 2 says:

Fermilab is about 30 miles west of Chicago and not visible in this shot.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

heatherthevegan says:

man...I LOVE that city.

Time for another visit!
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

MrImage says:

Awesome shot!
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

WMGoBuffs says:

No, definitely not Fermilab. I'm sitting at Fermilab right now!
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

crowbert says:

I can see my house from here.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

@Cymen: i'm somewhat in awe of the traffic! glad you found home.
@usher: thank you! my first digg-ing!
@top5: thanks, just straight and level flight, sitting behind the wing.
@nicepaul: city layouts are fascinating, and that's a great idea. i love the abstract artistic element of road systems, but also knowing there are millions of people swarming down there.
@mass media: it was quite clear, just a few clouds near the top of the frame as you can see!
@miocyon: i will check that out, thanks!
@bwanderson: i'm glad this shot has such a resonance for you, that's wonderful. my mother was born there, and i loved visiting.
@wmgobuffs: i like that you got the moon in there. hey, a d3 would solve the blur problem, iso 25600? ha.
@drew: i can understand, sometimes the view out the window is worth the price of the flight, in my opinion!
@Rooney: thank you, so fun to be dugg. cheers!
@djzealot: the pizza!
@kcav8or: unfortunately i don't know the city nearly well enough to do that easily, but if you or someone else does, please go for it, and i'll link to that here. that would be sweet!
@sholeh: right on!
@heatherlovespocky: that's how i feel!
@crowbert: nice!
@zlatko, idarknight, ceris42, knightboat, troy, hollums, tony, mpancha, matthijs, fred, jeremyhall, MrImage: thanks so much!
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

lrmeulman says:

Hey - this was the photo of the day sometime last week on a Dutch weblog : www.sargasso.nl..

Well done !
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

Carlos Manta Oliveira says:

Amazing shot!
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

silly_a1804 says:

ahhhh this makes me so home sick lol great shot tho. I cant wait to go back and visit my parents. welcome to my desktop lol
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

Richard- says:

Fantastic aerial of a fantastic city. Go Obama!
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

@irmeulman: sweet, thanks for letting me know!
@Carlos: thanks, glad you like it!
@silly: i can see why you'd be homesick, such a cool city.
@Richard: thanks!
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

william couch says:

Excellent, excellent, excellent. Thank you for posting this.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

jamesjulius says:

great shot!
called the city before seeing the title, my hometown
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

@William Couch: thank you, glad you like it!
@James Panegasser: sweet, it really is a uniquely compelling place.
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

magic_eye says:

Chicago rulezzz!
Wonderful view
My seet home Chicago,miss it...
Posted 22 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

i really enjoyed visiting, very cool city!
Posted 21 months ago. ( permalink )

Hornplayer says:

Great picture and great city! Would love to go back soon.
Posted 21 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

thanks! it absolutely is, hopefully i can make it back in the future.
Posted 21 months ago. ( permalink )

Salovesh says:

That dark block, with the bright "U" shape is actually Midway.

Perspective is tricky here - the image area is about 15 miles wide at the bottom, and 50 miles wide at the top. The little orange dot near the top is about 50 miles up from the bottom of the image, and (I'm guessing) almost 60 miles from the camera.

I've created an annotated copy of this image, with 20-something features highlighted. If you'd like to identify a landmark, leave a comment there.
Posted 21 months ago. ( permalink )

camikamm says:

My hometown of Chicago, Chicago. Love this pic!
Posted 21 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

@Salovesh: excellent, thanks for all the notes!
@camikamm: thanks, i'm sure it is a wonderful place to call home.
Posted 21 months ago. ( permalink )

ZtBoy says:

Awesome. I'm a New Yorker and Chicago is my 2nd favorite city. Los Angeles has got nothing on it (aside population).
Posted 21 months ago. ( permalink )

Boris Taratutin says:

that is a pretty stunning image - great sharpness and overall capture!
Posted 21 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

@ZtBoy: thanks! i will say this about LA though, it is really intense to view from a plane.
@Boris Taratutin: thanks, i was really stretching to get this, i wasn't sure if i could keep the camera steady enough!
Posted 20 months ago. ( permalink )

overthinkingme says:

wow that looks amazing, almost surreal, great pic =]
Posted 20 months ago. ( permalink )

zio fabio says:

A sublime comment to an amazing city and metropolis. Bravo!
How did you get it? Haven't yet seen, maybe you had already explained the secret of this masterpiece.
Posted 20 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

@overthinkingme: thanks, it was surreal to see it as well!
@zio fabio: thank you! no special tricks, just a steady hand at 1/20th of a second. and while f/1.4 isn't generally recommended for landscapes, in this case i needed all the light i could get!
Posted 20 months ago. ( permalink )

AravindJose says:

I've got no words for this.
Absolutely Stunning.
Posted 20 months ago. ( permalink )

perfectlymadebirds says:

I have a Sony DSC H9 and the lowest light setting it will go is f/2.7. Do you recommend another kind of camera? I have tried many time but have never got night shots with our blurring from planes. Also what should I have the ISO set on?
Posted 20 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

@AravindJose: thanks so much!
@perfectlymadebirds: some basic tips: use the highest ISO your camera allows and zoom out all the way. this will minimize blur from camera shake. if your camera allows manual settings, use the largest aperture available (smallest f number). this will maximize the amount of light hitting your sensor, allowing a shorter exposure, and less blur.

to do better still, you will need a digital SLR. this will allow for higher ISO settings due to the larger sensor. then you can purchase a lens with a larger maximum aperture, such as f/1.4. your goal is to collect as much light as you possibly can in as short a time as possible. this won't be cheap, but will improve your results. hope this helps!
Posted 20 months ago. ( permalink )

perfectlymadebirds says:

Thankyou for the info myelectricsheep. This is perhaps the most perfect airplane night photo I have ever seen.
Posted 19 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

You're welcome, and thank you for the kind words!
Posted 19 months ago. ( permalink )

olasisucsd says:

Simply amazing!!!
Posted 18 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

thanks!
Posted 18 months ago. ( permalink )

christianpma says:

someone dug / digged this picture and brought it to my, and probably a lot of other people's, attention. amazing, home, i miss it.
Posted 18 months ago. ( permalink )

zooto68 says:

Another example of atrocious and unnecessary light pollution.
Posted 18 months ago. ( permalink )

Diego de Haller says:

Amazing picture, really! Thanks for sharing it :)
Posted 18 months ago. ( permalink )

licensetoshoot says:

found this on digg, very cool shot!
Posted 18 months ago. ( permalink )

Kirpernicus says:

Wicked cool shot!

Hi, I'm an admin for a group called Eye Candy!, and we'd love to have this added to the group!
--
Found in your popular shots. (?)
Posted 18 months ago. ( permalink )

eblack says:

That's an awesome lens. Is it the Sigma?

Great shot.
Posted 18 months ago. ( permalink )

[[Neo]] says:

Nice...I just got back from Chicago, and shot the same one (though not quite as high) during the day:

Posted 18 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

@christianpma: thanks! and thanks for informing me, this is actually the second time it's received lots of views via digg and it's quite fun. i've only visited briefly but i really enjoyed the city.
@zooto68: i think the sense of human beings as bacteria overtaking the planet and wasting resources is part of the attraction here. at least for me it is!
@Diego de Haller: thank you!
@licensetoshoot: thanks, it appears many people did!
@Kirpernicus: thanks, i've added it.
@eblack: it sure is, my current favorite lens. without its wide aperture there's no way i could have gotten this shot. thanks!
@[[Neo]]: cool, the grid certainly is photogenic. it's so different from, say, London.
Posted 18 months ago. ( permalink )

Zlatko Unger says:

Cool shot ... I got to see this view every week this month as I flew to Chicago....
Posted 17 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

thanks! and you're quite fortunate, it's a powerful experience.
Posted 17 months ago. ( permalink )

Vyshemirsky says:

I've seen a very similar picture in last month's National Geographic. Had to check it with the flickr history, unfortunately they must have commissioned their own photographer. Well done anyway.
Posted 14 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

Thanks for the heads up, I just saw that cover today. It looks like mine is from a higher altitude but certainly it's similar. I've noticed quite a few other people on flickr have done similar shots as well. Glad you like!
Posted 14 months ago. ( permalink )

Troy McClure SF says:

Hey, it (sort of) was used in this Wired Blog post, too.
Posted 12 months ago. ( permalink )

buzbadem says:

Wow.
Posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

buzbadem, thanks!
Posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

ropesack says:

ho-lee-shit.
Posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

ropesack, thanks, you're my 500th favorite on this photo!
Posted 10 months ago. ( permalink )

Punk Dolphin says:

Supreme shot!!!

I have one in my photostream, as well!!!! Congrats.
Posted 9 months ago. ( permalink )

myelectricsheep says:

Punk Dolphin, thanks! It was quite a sight. I'll take a look at yours, too.
Posted 9 months ago. ( permalink )

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Taken with a Nikon D70.
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Taken on January 2, 2007
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