How we photographed Chicago firefighters commemorating 9/11 on the 25th anniversary
This week’s top photo comes from photojournalist and Photo Desk Editor Ashlee Rezin. Follow her on X and Instagram.
What makes this photo important?
Nearly every American above a certain age remembers where they were on Sept. 11, 2001. I was in biology class my sophomore year of high school in suburban Detroit. We didn’t get a lot of classwork done that day as administrators wheeled analog TVs on rolling carts into each classroom so students and teachers could watch the news. A lot of people cried. The Chicago Fire Department commemorates the 9/11 terrorist attacks every year. This year, the 25th anniversary, feels particularly important. All of our lives were forever changed that day.
How I got this photo:
While CFD members and cadets were participating in the ceremony, I ran upstairs to see the view from the windows of the second floor and the outdoor balcony of the third floor at Navy Pier. The annual event only lasts about 30 minutes, so I had to sprint up and down before and after getting photos from the ground level. This image was taken from the second floor with my lens pressed against the window glass to avoid my own reflection.
Technical details:
- Equipment: Canon EOS R5 with an RF 24-70mm f/2.8L IS USM lens
- Focal length: 26mm
- Aperture: f/4
- Exposure: 1/8000
- ISO: 640
Plus, 12 more great photos from Sun-Times and WBEZ photographers from this week in news:
People stand on the Ironworkers Local 1 float as it travels down South Ewing Avenue in the East Side during the Chicago Labor Day Parade on Sept. 5.
A dog enjoys a ride down DuSable Lake Shore Drive during the 25th Annual Bike the Drive fundraiser on Sunday.
Candace Dane Chambers/Sun-Times
Artists Consuela Hendricks, left, and Angela X Lin, of People Matter, stand in front of their mural on Cermak Road at South Clark Street on Sept. 4.
A woman views “The Child’s Bath” at the Art Institute of Chicago’s new Mary Cassatt exhibition on Monday.
Candace Dane Chambers/Sun-Times
Englewood Arts Collective co-founders Janell Nelson and Rob Smooth stand with site manager Hector Gonzalez in front of their mural, part of a new sculpture park along Englewood’s 63rd Street between May Street and Racine Avenue.
Englewood Arts Collective site manager Hector Gonzalez and co-founders Rob Smooth and Janell Nelson touch one of many star installations along Englewood’s 63rd Street between May Street and Racine Avenue.
Doctors hold signs in support of the Responsibility in Firearms Legislation Act during a press conference Tuesday outside the University of Chicago Medical Center on the South Side.
Candace Dane Chambers/Sun-Times
Tom Kotarac, who leads the Northern Illinois Transit Authority, heads into an executive session during the agency’s first board meeting Thursday.
Dozens of students participate in a walkout Wednesday at Lincoln-Way East High School after racial incidents occurred during the Frankfort school’s recent athletic events.
Dozens of students participate in a walkout Wednesday at Lincoln-Way East High School after racial incidents occurred during the Frankfort school’s recent athletic events.
Johari Mnyuku, 4, reacts at a butterfly that landed on her hand at the Judy Istock Butterfly Haven at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum in Lincoln Park during “Flutter into Fall” on Sept. 5.
Regina Salter, who is 7 months pregnant and the sister of Crystal Salter, sits with her 7-year-old niece Juliana, Crystal’s daughter, near her Southwest Side home on Tuesday. Chicago police and relatives said 42-year-old Crystal Salter was fatally shot early Sunday by her boyfriend — in front of Juliana and another 7-year-old girl the woman had taken in to raise. A couple of hours later, Crystal Salter’s boyfriend was found dead in his vehicle with a self-inflicted gunshot wound, police said.