Nikki O'Leary Photography

Nikki O'Leary Photography Chicago-based photographer, available for editorial and commercial work. Please reach out if you have a story to tell.

I'm currently working on a series following those who have stories of Lake Michigan to share.

Last week, I grabbed my bud, Ali, and we installed a project that I have been working on since August for local governme...
12/19/2025

Last week, I grabbed my bud, Ali, and we installed a project that I have been working on since August for local government law firm, Ancel Glink. They wanted to dedicate their wall space to the municipalities that they serve.

I spent the late summer traveling across the north and south suburbs of Chicago, exploring libraries, city halls, parks and architectural landmarks. What an absolute treat it was to do it all in black and white.

Thank you,

11/25/2025

I’ve been running a print shop for the past couple holiday seasons… reproductions of images taken throughout the years, most from my personal photographic journaling, with a couple from a special project.

Added a larger collection for this year’s print sale! Check it!

Thought of this image today… I took it in the attic of the Cloud Club in Boston.Casey in the Attic. c. 2011 Pla...
08/31/2025

Thought of this image today…
I took it in the attic of the Cloud Club in Boston.

Casey in the Attic. c. 2011



Platinum Print

A little phone snap in P-Town.
07/16/2025

A little phone snap in P-Town.

A little collaboration I did with my partner and some of our buds. They play music, I take pictures, we collaborate on d...
03/21/2025

A little collaboration I did with my partner and some of our buds. They play music, I take pictures, we collaborate on design, and this is what you get!

This is their first single release. Give it a listen on the ole’ Spotify. It’s really good.

An old dark room creation…. Salt print on Bienfang paper, “Between Land and Sea,” from A Mariner’s Descendant series. I ...
03/09/2025

An old dark room creation…. Salt print on Bienfang paper, “Between Land and Sea,” from A Mariner’s Descendant series. I haven’t been posting a lot of my fine art work here…

Give a follow for more work about the sea.

This Ch-Ch-Ch-Christmas, Turn and Face the Strange.- From the (Bowie) O’Learys
12/25/2024

This Ch-Ch-Ch-Christmas, Turn and Face the Strange.
- From the (Bowie) O’Learys

I took this image of Christopher at the Cloud Club in Boston. It’s an underground artist’s community. If you have been, ...
12/10/2024

I took this image of Christopher at the Cloud Club in Boston. It’s an underground artist’s community. If you have been, you know how special it is. I was led up a stairway that felt like I was in a beehive. There were countless piles of books in the halls, collections of vintage radios, and found objects. I climbed a tree trunk, studded with antlers and cabinet hinges, and other objects, in the middle of an attic-like room. It was furnished with a piano and odd objects. The tree trunk led up to a platform with a bed and a glass dome. Ivy grew both in and out. The Dresden Dolls were practicing in another room. And I took photographs with my brass and cherry wood 4x5 camera. I’ll always remember this place on this day, now over a decade ago.

This image is one of my favorites, both for the portrait that I captured, and the memory of the day. The original print is a palladium print, but this one is a digitally edited version. I’m including it in my rotating print shop, which you can view on my website.

I dug up this image in my archives recently. I had forgotten that I had taken it. I took this photograph when I was stud...
12/08/2024

I dug up this image in my archives recently. I had forgotten that I had taken it. I took this photograph when I was studying under Cig Harvey in Boston - where I often took images of the figure in the environment - seduced by light and color… (Iooking at this now, I can see her influence).

I was learning color darkroom. Such a magical process. It was around the same time that Harvard, and other institutions were removing their dark rooms. What a devastating loss of a beautiful process… there’s no other way to truly learn about color, than behind a CMYK enlarger.

I still often take images for myself on film, but there are few places that still process locally, and it’s not quite the same as printing the images in the darkroom yourself. But, I’ll still hold on to film as long as I can.

Offering this print in my rotating print sale this year! Check it in the links!

A new year, a new collection of works available in my rotating print shop! A weird collection of bits and bobs throughou...
12/05/2024

A new year, a new collection of works available in my rotating print shop! A weird collection of bits and bobs throughout the years…

Order by December 15th to receive a print before Christmas.

In the Chicago area? Shoot me a DM or an email for a pick up before your order to waive the shipping fee.

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Chicago, IL

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