Interior architectural photography of apartment or condominium buildings can be a bit tricky due to a number of reasons. For one, the owner or realty management company oftentimes prefer to primarily show the utilizable space and sometimes less of the architectural features, as much as an architect would want to show.

Luxury style living space and kitchen of a unit at the Roosevelt Collection

The other aspect is that many of the rooms are over accessorized, which mostly is what interior designers like to show. Not to mention the spatial challenges that come with smaller living spaces.

Bedroom with view onto city at the Roosevelt Collection

That leaves the architectural photographer with the task of showcasing a fine balance that incorporates all aspects and shows the space in its authentic and best possible way.

Clubhouse and fitness area

One of Marian Kraus Photography’s recent architectural photography assignments was to represent the outstanding features of the latest addition to McCaffery Interest’s portfolio.

Living room and kitchen

My client recently acquired The Apartments at Roosevelt Collection in downtown Chicago, IL. The redevelopment is a top notch apartment community with a focus on luxurious metropolitan living. It was a joy for me to photograph it.

Fitness space with state of the art equipment

Situated south of the loop at Roosevelt Rd. and State Street, the units offer spectacular views of the city and surrounding areas.

Looking northbound from the rooftop garden

McCaffery Interests services focus on minimizing risk and a determination to develop ‘the right thing’ has led McCaffery Interests to consider property development, retail leasing, property management and redevelopment opportunities from a unique perspective.

Dusk view of Chicago

The company boasts an impressive portfolio in all four segments and more can be found out my client’s website.

Dusk view of Chicago

The Roosevelt Collection complex also features the outstanding Kerasotes Icon Showplace Theater and I had the pleasure to previously photograph it. Find out more here.

Kerasotes Icon Showplace Theater at the Roosevelt Collection

To the southeast is another high end luxurious development. Designed by architecture firm Pappageorge Haymes and constructed by Lend Lease, One Museum Park West is a uniquely modern yet classic structure. In October of 2010 I had the pleasure to photograph it for my client Lend Lease, a multi faceted construction company of global scale.

Looking at Museum Park

Marian Kraus Photography is a Chicago area based professional architectural photographer, multi media artist and purveyor of fine art photography who has been consistently delivering compelling architectural photography to clients ranging from architects, advertising agencies, construction companies, home builders, corporations, real estate companies and the like since 1999. Additionally, Marian Kraus Photography’ s nature and architecture fine art photographs can be found in a growing number of corporate and private art collections.

Detail view of surrounding area high rise

Last week my trusted assistant Jason Barnes and I were on a 3 day photography assignment in Battle Creek, Michigan, just outside of Kalamazoo.  The architectural photography encompassed photographing the interiors and exteriors of a Fairfield Inn by Marriott. As always, we moved about efficiently and swiftly, and above all, had good fun doing so.

Now, I live in the Midwest, in the Chicago area at that, so one should think that I am somewhat accustomed to the visuals. However, it totally blew me away to see as many overweight and apparently out of shape people as I did there. A person that was not over their “normal” weight by at least 20 or 30 pounds, stood out of the crowd as an anomaly. Weight and ratio proportionate, this observation unfortunately also included kids.

During the past 20 years, there has been a dramatic increase in obesity in the United States and rates remain high. In 2010, no state had a prevalence of obesity less than 20%. Thirty-six states had a prevalence of 25% or more; 12 of these states (Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and West Virginia) had a prevalence of 30% or more. To illustrate the dramatic increase in the US, here some trend setting and eye popping comparisons.

to the Mexican restaurant, where we dined for three straight evenings because all else seemed to tailor to the unhealthy fast food kind of fare, windows of various eateries prompted large banners promoting unlimited gorging at minimal and affordable prices, i.e: “All you can eat pancakes at $3.95…” displaying  a dozen pancakes with over abundant syrup dripping down.

I have always been fascinated, intrigued and baffled with a life style that inevitably and ultimately has to result in uncountable and perceivable cumbersome experiences. Simple tasks and activities such as pulling up your pants, putting on socks, tying shoes, getting in and out of a car, walking up five or more stories of stairs or 1+ miles at a fast clip, sitting down on the toilet and particularly getting up again, clipping ones toe nails ok, ok… you get the picture, seem like major projects when in the possession and discomfort of an excessively heavy body.

So what is it that allows people to get excessively large? To essentially play Russian roulette with their health, and yes, their lives? We all have heard it, information about it is available in abundance: Heart Disease, Cancer and Stroke crown the top three spots for worldwide causes of death, and obesity is unquestionably a major contributing factor. Not to mention the financial burden on the already debatable health care insurance system.

And please don’t give me: “Oh…it’s hereditary… hereditary my butt!!” I am no expert on this topic by any stretch of the imagination, however, I would venture to say that unless you are a goner, or clinically and hopelessly depressed, or just don’t give a hoot about your health and your appearance, you can change that. So please, wake up, because at the end of the day it all comes down to choice, as with everything else in life. What, how much and why do I put it into my mouth…? And in this case, equally important, how will I burn it off? E x e r c i s e!

A standing ovation and more power to everyone who has recognized the need for making a prolonged and sustained behavioral change in their lives, on any level, food, booze, drugs, nicotine, sex, shopping etc. And specifically, congratulations to all of you who are changing their eating and exercising habits in a disciplined fashion for the better. To those who want to live a more energized and conscious life, embracing mobility and endurance. People who know that if nothing changes…nothing changes. Bravo!!! Stay with it, you will love it, it may not be easy but it is so worth the effort.

If you need to count calories and are in need of some tools, check out this: http://www.calorieking.com/foods/ . Anything you may need to know about foods can be found here http://ers.usda.gov/ and specifically about obesity, causes, stats etc. at the United Nations’ http://www.fao.org/FOCUS/E/obesity/obes1.htm The Center for Disease Control and Prevention has a ton of information about health and obesity here http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/trends.html

And as for the exercise portion? Here too, there is a ton of information readily available. If nothing else, begin with a brisk walk every day and build up your distance and pace. Certainly a good start…move your bodily vehicle, that is one of the aspects it is meant to do.

Now, you may ask what does all this have to do with architectural photography? Or any photography for that matter?  Well, while subjective, to me it is all about aesthetics, flow of energy, achievement, satisfaction, happiness and well being.

And who knows, if you are one of the heavier people, are comfortable and love the way you occupy your body, more power to you as well…

Recently I was awarded a multilocation contract via OnRequest Images that allowed me to work on Marriott properties in and around Chicago, Indianapolis, Milwaukee and Rockford. My client, Seattle based OnRequest Images, is a leading provider of world wide custom photography services and software for global enterprise brands. ORI simplifies the creation and management of visually powerful, brand-aligned photography. Amongst many top 500 fortune companies Marriott Hotels International had chosen ORI to assist with a rebranding project.

The project comprises of several phases and the pictures above depict some of the properties that were involved in phase one. The client required emphasis to be put on comfortable, inviting and homey settings. My assistant Jason Barnes and I believe to have created and achieved that with careful and specific lighting and placement of furniture and the like…

We are very excited to share the first photographs of our new 2000 sq. ft. interior design showroom in Downtown Chicago, located in the hip and hot Grand Avenue Design District http://www.grandavenuedesigndistrict.com/index.html at 2248 West Grand Ave.

Kevin, Steve and I have been working on creating this new showroom to be an inviting and pleasant space where one can find unique and hip vintage and re-purposed furniture, architectural and nature fine art photography and other cool home accessories. We are planning on having a grand opening party later this fall.

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As you can see there are great finds here and should you not be local to the Chicago area, we invite you to visit http://statestreetsalvage.com/index.html to browse our various items.

To read our corresponding press release, please follow http://www.mariankrausphotography.com/news/. Stay tuned for more to come.

To view more of my fine art photography please view this gallery

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G Skin & Beauty Institute from Marian Kraus on Vimeo.

Marian Kraus Photography’s representation of the latest state of the art campus addition of the G Beauty Schools in Oak Brook, IL. The aesthetic appeal and design features of the space coupled with the highest grade educational standards and work ethics of the ownership and management team clearly set a top notch benchmark for beauty schools anywhere.

For over 30 years the Hair Professionals Academy/G Beauty Institutes family of beauty schools has been the first step for thousands of hair and skin beauty professionals. The educational programs the schools offer are second to none as a result of a constant quest to offer students the best education available in the beauty industry. This recent campus addition enhances the existing Las Vegas, NV and Naperville and West Dundee locations in Illinois.

The institutes offer 3 different beauty programs for students to chose from: cosmetology, esthetics, and make-up. As a graduate of any of the programs the students will enter the beauty profession with the confidence of a solid education and training for a promising future in a sought after industry. A must see for those seeking an education in this market segment as well as those who want to be pampered…check it out!

To view additional interior imagery, sit back and relax and enjoy the show.

Experience a multimedia presentation showcasing the awesome Kerasotes ShowPlace ICON Theater at Roosevelt Collection in Chicago, IL and read more about it here

Kerasotes Showplace ICON Theater from Marian Kraus on Vimeo.

Recently I had the pleasure of photographing this awesome, state of the art movie theater on behalf of my client Graycor Construction. The photo shoot began at 4:00 AM and enabled me to capture the space in its unobstructed beauty.

The ShowPlace ICON theater, located at the Roosevelt Collection on the north side of Roosevelt Road just west of Clark in the South Loop, redefines how movies are enjoyed in Chicago with a multi-sensory experience of lounge, dining and digital widescreen picture and sound.  Luxurious design, state of the art technology and delectable dining converge into a fresh cinematic experience.

Chicago-based Kerasotes ShowPlace Theatres LLC selected Graycor Construction to perform the interior build-out of this new 100,000-square-foot, fourth-floor flagship location. The customer-focused design extends beyond the Lobby Lounge to 16 ICON auditoriums with stadium seating and two ICON VIP Premium auditoriums. Graycor Construction has built several theaters for Kerasotes in recent years throughout Illinois and Indiana

Kerasotes Showplace ICON Theater from Marian Kraus on Vimeo.

The Lobby Lounge

The lounge comes from the mind of celebrated restaurateur, Jerry Kleiner, whose venues 33 Club, Carnivale, Marché, Red Light, Opera and Gioco are among the most popular and original nightspots in Chicago. Custom designed furniture, bar, and lighting create a warm, lavish but edgy atmosphere that captures the glamour of Hollywood where guests can enjoy amazing views of the Chicago skyline. Guests 21 years and older may enjoy cocktails, wine, or beer with savory food made from fresh ingredients in the lounge or VIP Premium seating areas.

The Film Presentation

Kerasotes ShowPlace Theatres is serious about making every presentation a premier event and giving guests the magic of the movies. Cutting edge digital cinema projectors – capable of displaying 35 trillion colors – allows each frame to appear exactly how the director imagined it. The projectors produce the brightest images available with unparalleled accuracy on giant wall-to-wall screens. ShowPlace ICON TheatreSM has five screening rooms equipped with RealD 3D technology for the brightest 3D presentations in the market. High-performance digital sound systems let you hear every whisper of dialogue and experience every explosion in full digital detail, without being overwhelmed. The two VIP Premier auditoriums have sound systems powered by 26,000 watts of power for distortion free listening.

My wife at that time and I had chosen to view a movie at this cinema on one of our date nights and can strongly recommend it to anyone who is seeking to experience the next level in the worlds of cinema and entertainment. Give it a go, two thumbs up for sure.

In the meantime, I invite you to view additional images of my interior architectural photography.

Interior photography is one of Marian Kraus Photography’s specialties. From residential and retail spaces to corporate and institutional buildings, Marian Kraus is Chicago, Illinois’ leading provider of breathtaking interior architectural photography.

Kraus has an eye for the details of interior spaces that make up the essence of any room. His interior photography captures the features that make your space stand out, finding the perspectives that lead to memorable photos while maintaining a dedication to the creation of commercially accessible interior photography. We present you with a variety of interior photography services, perfectly suited for any of your interior photography needs.

Marian Kraus Photography is always available for interior architectural photography that covers corporate interiors (such as offices, meeting rooms and more), interior architectural photography for hotels, spas, restaurants, hospitals and institutional spaces and interior architectural photography for retail and residential properties. Marian Kraus is experienced in creating unforgettable images that highlight the most important architectural features of your property. By balancing artistic and commercial sense, Kraus stands out in the field of interior photography as an unparalleled choice that is synonymous with the unique spirit of quality architecture and design. Find the only solution you need for your interior architectural photography requirements at Marian Kraus Photography.