The 360 Degree view

(Grafton, IL) Passengers enjoy the view from the top deck of the Spirit of Peoria paddle-wheeler as it cruised  north of Grafton on the Illinois River at dusk.  This vessel is one of the very few remaining true stern-wheeler's traveling the US inland waterways that has no other form of propulsion.

Click on the image for a larger view.

Used a panoramic camera to capture a few images aboard the Spirit of Peoria riverboat as it was cruising upriver at dusk.  If you look closely you can see the same people at each end of the image.

A great tool to have when you want an image that is different!

Image quality was reduced and re-sized to 20% of original so that it loads quickly.

Spirit of Peoria Website Link

Opening Day at the Stadium!

The much anticipated opening of the Stadium Theater in Jerseyville Illinois has finally taken place.  The Theater was closed by AMC in 2011 and now has been renovated and reopened.  New screens, new sound and digital projection create a much better viewing experience than the previous film based system.

Link to Stadium Theatre website

(Jerseyville, IL) Patrons line up for opening night at the newly renovated Stadium Theater.

(Jerseyville, IL) Two young boys reach up to the counter with money in hand to pay for their tickets.  The new cash register had failed and transactions were kept track of by a tally sheet.

(Jerseyville, IL) Patrons jam the lobby of the newly renovated Stadium Theater on opening night waiting for the early showing of "The Hunger Games" to conclude.

(Jerseyville, IL) Three friends ready for a movie on opening night.

(Jerseyville, IL) The newly renovated Stadium Theater has new technology installed to created a better viewing experience for the audience.  The orange case to the left s delivered by a courier service as the features change at the theater.  The case holds a hard drive containing the digital movie files that are then installed into the server that is directly below the projector.  The server housing has a slide out keyboard unit that is used to program the digital projector.  This particular system uses Dolby software to manage the files and the LCD display attached to the server giver the operator a visual representation of what has the system has been programmed to do.  Attached to the front of the projector is a special polarizing screen that makes 3-D movies possible.  The 3-D system slides back and forth on a rail so it can be moved into place when showing 3-D movies.

(Jerseyville, IL) A view out of one of the windows in the projection booth of the Stadium Theater.  In the center of the image is a view of what is on the theater screen.  To the left is a rack holding the multichannel sound system components.  To the right you can see part of the digital projector.

(Jerseyville, IL) Theater patrons with 3-D glasses watch "The Lorax" on opening night at the newly renovated Stadium Theater.

Last Picture Show - The Sequel

What once wasn't.. now is again!

The Stadium Theater in Jerseyville IL is reopening after being closed by AMC.  After a huge public outcry, AMC negotiated a reasonable sale price to the new owner and after many renovations is open for business again.

(Jerseyville, IL) The once shuttered Stadium Theater is now reopen after extensive renovations.  The theater was closed by AMC last year and after a huge public outcry and show of commnuity support it was purchased and renovated by a local independent theater chain operator.

(Jerseyville, IL) Stadium Theater owner Steve Dougherty stands in the doorway of his newly renovated facility during an open house held to show off the renovations the night be fore the theater officially opens.  The theater has been upgraded to digital projection, surround sound and 3-D capability.

Opening night photos coming soon.

http://www.thestadiumtheatre.com/

Crown Fountain

(Chicago, IL USA) A face smiles at visitors to Crown Fountain in Millennium Park on a fall day in downtown Chicago.  The changing images on the panel are created by LED lights behind a wall of glass blocks.  During warmer weather the panel sprays water from the ever changing images.  This panel is one of two that face each other and form the fountain.

Millennium Park is a favorite spot for visitors to Chicago.  This image of a Crown Fountain tower panel was shot on a fall day after the water had been shut off for the season.  When the water is flowing you might see a face, which is created by an LED panel behind glass blocks, spurting water from pursed lips.  The fountain is comprised of two panels which face each other, spray water and change the image created by the wall of LED's.

Chicago Street Musicians

(Chicago, IL  USA) Two street musicians at the intersection of State and Monroe in downtown Chicago the Friday after Thanksgiving.  People were rushing everywhere to start their Christmas shopping.

I watched these two musicians from the other side of the intersection for quite a while before I crossed the street and grabbed a few shots of them playing.

Jerseyville Legion Senior League Playoffs

Seems like at playoff time there always has to be some sort of controversy.  In this particular case it was about a bat.  Seems the bat in question was on a recent list list of unapproved types and it was only brought to light after a play had been made.

Game officials checked all the bats of the Eldred Legion team after one of the bats was found on the unapproved list.

And we also have the exciting shots of guys trying to beat the ball.

A Rock Island runner tries to beat the ball that is almost in the glove of a Galesburg player.

Click on the header to go to the galleries or use the link below to see all the photos.

http://michaelweaver.zenfolio.com/f855249845