Jeff Cagle

I’m making good on something I said last year. I recently...

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 17:24:56 -0600

I’m making good on something I said last year. I recently got back in touch with Ed Samaan, the teenage bodybuilder I met last May while on assignment for a feature about his state bodybuilding title. He’s put on nearly 60 pounds since I last saw him, and I’m going to check in with him periodically to document his journey as he hardens up, then cuts about 50 pounds as he preps for this year’s national competitions. This is from Day One of the project.

Eli may look like a tough guy, but after his initial curiosity...

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 22:22:34 -0600

Eli may look like a tough guy, but after his initial curiosity when I snapped these, he turned and ran every time I brought my camera to my face and pointed it in his direction.

Soon, but not soon enough, it will be sunny and 75, I will be in...

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:38:00 -0600

Soon, but not soon enough, it will be sunny and 75, I will be in shorts and a jersey, and this view will be a whole lot greener.

Mixed feelings this morning with my first Chicago Sun-Times...

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 08:41:00 -0600

Mixed feelings this morning with my first Chicago Sun-Times cover. It’s not easy to point a camera at people who are in pain and grieving, but I hope my images helped illustrate how loved Shaun was and what the community has lost with a senseless act of violence.

A second grade teacher was stabbed to death late last night in a...

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 21:25:00 -0600

A second grade teacher was stabbed to death late last night in a bar when he tried coming to the aid of his friend and breaking up the fight. Tonight, his friends and family gathered for a memorial service to mourn and remember their friend. I’ve been covering it all day.

One day on this job you will find yourself standing in an...

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 11:39:00 -0600

One day on this job you will find yourself standing in an elementary school gym listening to the owner of some obscure world records talk to fifth graders about things like the importance of time, calling your parents and watching Marines die in Afghanistan, and in the back of your head you will hear David After Dentist asking “Is this real life?”

Earlier this month I took a step in a new direction with my...

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 11:59:00 -0600

Earlier this month I took a step in a new direction with my photography: I bought into studio space that is shared by a few other photographers and artists. It’s a pretty sweet deal. For a fraction of what most studios in Chicago charge by the day — hell, it’s less than half what they charge for pre-daylight access — I get by the month; I just have to sign out time online. It’s got big glass doors with western exposure and access to lights, and walks out onto a deck overlooking the Fox River. Though working in a studio is completely foreign to me, I had my first shoot in there yesterday and I can tell working in there either on my own shoots or assisting others for the experience will be a nice counter-balance to my news work. I’m happy I got the invite and pushed myself to jump in feet first.

Hubristic and humbled

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 13:26:31 -0600

Hubristic and humbled

One of my favorite things to do is pull quiet out of chaos. Even...

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 10:48:00 -0600

One of my favorite things to do is pull quiet out of chaos. Even at a fight — with its pulsing techno, the crashing of bodies onto the octagon mat, the rising roar from fans as a fighter rains hammer fists into the face of a prone opponent — you can find it.

It might be fans reacting to seeing how much damage even a gloved fist can do to a face, a ring girl shielding herself from the spraying blood and sweat as fighters edge closer to the fence, or a relatively new fighter giving that look that says he’s wondering just what has he gotten himself into before the flying knee of a soon-to-be pro ends his night and sends a doctor to his side 40-something seconds into Round One.

These split seconds might be few and far between, but they’re there.

If you haven’t been paying attention or don’t live...

Sat, 28 Jan 2012 10:38:00 -0600

If you haven’t been paying attention or don’t live in the suburbs, you probably haven’t noticed but mixed martial arts has exploded. Gyms are popping up in strip malls on seemingly every corner. Ultimate Fighting Championship bouts are now broadcast on FOX. And around Chicagoland, people come by the hundreds to drop $20 or more on tickets to a night of amateur fighting and a chance to see grown men (and sometimes women!) beat each other bloody.

A good friend and former roommate of mine is running a sports blog with a heavy MMA focus. He’s asked me to come to fights before, but I’ve always had schedule conflicts. Last night was the first time I had an opportunity to make it out, and I’m glad I did. I’m not interested in the fighting so much, but the atmosphere and culture surrounding it.

I think I have a new project.

One of the more interesting experiences I’ve had as a...

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 15:35:00 -0600

One of the more interesting experiences I’ve had as a newspaper photographer occurred last week at a school board meeting to discuss potential boundary changes within one of the school districts out here. I was told to expect some fireworks with parents picketing the meeting beforehand. Check. Then I expected to make some generic shots of people filing in and crowd shots that captured the mood of observers at the meeting. Check and check. At some point I probably looked like the guy in the second to last photo as I waited for something interesting to happen.

What I wasn’t expecting was to be ~~told~~ asked by one of the school district’s PR staffers to not take photos of committee members looking over maps (last photo) at a public meeting in a public school, especially since my hip was in physical contact with the media table the district had set up for us.

It was one of those instances where an average assignment turns into a reminder of just how afraid people can be of cameras, how much influence a photo can wield and why people in power seek to limit when and where cameras can be used.

White out.

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 17:11:00 -0600

White out.

We’ve had it easy this winter, but I’m still waiting...

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 13:57:00 -0600

We’ve had it easy this winter, but I’m still waiting for the brighter days ahead.

More often than not, people make the picture when it comes to...

Thu, 12 Jan 2012 15:10:00 -0600

More often than not, people make the picture when it comes to photojournalism. I have a habit of weighting the subjects in my frames to the left or right and rarely choose subjects that are centered. I made a point to center some of my images when I was out shooting snow scenes around Aurora today for the paper. These are a few of my favorites that I’ve edited and converted, but you can see what went into the paper here.

A few of the flags on display at Naperville’s old...

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 19:05:00 -0600

A few of the flags on display at Naperville’s old department of public works facility.

Sunset photos and silhouettes are a couple of the biggest...

Fri, 06 Jan 2012 18:50:00 -0600

Sunset photos and silhouettes are a couple of the biggest cliches in the photographer’s playbook. If you’ve seen one sunset photo, you’ve pretty much seen them all. But while the color produced after the sun has fully set is what grabs all the attention, it’s that moment just before the sun touches the horizon that offers the most magical light.

A lot of people stopped to take in the sunset tonight.

Fri, 06 Jan 2012 17:13:26 -0600

A lot of people stopped to take in the sunset tonight.

I shot a Bret Michaels concert the other night. I got there way...

Mon, 02 Jan 2012 13:01:01 -0600

I shot a Bret Michaels concert the other night. I got there way too early, but after the three song limit was up I moved to the back and stayed long enough to see a wardrobe change, and I’m happy to report that both shirts I saw Bret Michaels wear had Bret Michaels on them.

Best of the Year lists are hard to compile so I’ll just...

Sat, 31 Dec 2011 14:02:00 -0600

Best of the Year lists are hard to compile so I’ll just boil it all down.

For me, 2011 started in Kansas City standing on a dance floor at a wedding surrounded by a bunch of strangers and extended family members who might as well be strangers, and I really wish it hadn’t. My career blossomed this year and I’m proud I got to see my images in the Chicago Tribune, The Wall Street Journal, Chicago Sun-Times and most of its suburban sister papers, to name a few. I covered some happy stories, a few really sad ones, and met a bunch of people I likely otherwise wouldn’t. I rode my bike a lot, but not as much as last year. I traveled to Portland for work and stayed an extra day for fun, but should have made it two. I ate food every day, but I really loved the El Diablo margarita at Red Star in Portland, small plates at Avec, and a snack of goat cheese, crackers and pistachios at a random picnic table in Occidental, California. Speaking of California, that long overdue trip was a life-changing weekend and planted the seed that a future relocation is a distinct probability. October 2 was my favorite day of the year.

And of the 22,000+ new images in my hard drive from 2011 and countless more misfires that didn’t make it, this is my favorite. It’s not my best or most significant, but a personal shot I made for myself to come back to and get lost in.

I missed the holiday theme memo. My favorite picture from...

Tue, 27 Dec 2011 20:21:00 -0600

I missed the holiday theme memo. My favorite picture from Christmas was of my aunt blowing out the candles on her birthday cake.