Chicago River Dyed Green - 2018 4K Time Lapse

March 17th, 2018 St. Patrick's Day. The Windy City celebrate this festive holiday yearly by dyeing Chicago River green. This year's dyeing Chicago river happen in the same day as St. Patrick's Day. Unusual. Another super cold morning brought half a million spectators for this unique event. The color lasted only for few hours. Footage was shot from a rooftop of London House Chicago Hotel. Over 7000 stills taken for this video in 4 hours.
Shot with Canon 5D Mark III, Canon 70D, two Manfrotto tripods, Kessler TLS slider. Processed in Lightroom 5. Edited in Premiere Pro.
Lenses used:
Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM Lens
Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS II USM
Music licensed through EnvatoMarket
The Epic by Danyvin
For licensing please contact me directly at [e-mail]
#chicagoriverdyedgreen #chicagostpatricksday #chicagotimelapse #chicago #chicagoriverdyedgreentimelapse #timelapse #stpatricksday

[@thatotherthing]

best kids choice awards ad i’ve ever seen

[@chrisbiela]

:) Thanks. It would be a great choice.

[@Leighton_Filkins]

My dad was in kids choice awards

Chicago: A city to dye for

[@chrisbiela]

Hah:) Like your comment.

[@callmecasey6186]

Living in Chicago all my life this is one of my favorite things that only happens once a year

[@chrisbiela]

That is why it's so special. I guess:)

[@Madhattersinjeans]

Fun fact the green dye is used to scare away the fairies and leprechauns from stealing away little children. The green in the water tricks them into thinking it's grass and they all drown. I just made this up. Have fun on paddys day.

[@mrbigbigtoe]

Yassss nice green river one day of the year, and bullets flying the rest of the year lmao

[@PascalZeuke]

Do u know, how long it takes, to remove the green color?

[@Coolcoop2008]

@@PascalZeuke it eventually flows out to Lake Michigan in like a few weeks

[@mroceans8336]

Awesome. Did my part by puking over the Mich Ave bridge a few times.

[@chrisbiela]

I have seen that too, yesterday:) Haha. Thanks.

[@Renclif]

Cool time lapse, great work! It's such a busy city and I like the vantage point looking down!

[@chrisbiela]

Thanks. It was my second year in the row to photograph it from this hotel. It is perfect location for dyeing river green event.

[@josemopar708]

Amazing job one of the best time lapse I ever see.

[@chrisbiela]

Thanks man.

[@carver13shreddy90]

Man that is just outstanding photography I mean once again more inspiration wow just wow absolutely in love with what you do you know when somebody's good cuz they make it look easy and I can only imagine how many hours it took to make that keep up the super fantastic work Patrick

[@chrisbiela]

Thanks Patrick. Really appreciate your kind words. This may look easy but it took a lot of sacrifice, lifting, planning and over 5 hours in freezing cold:) .... and then over 24 hours to process, correct, edit, music search etc. It is a long process from start to finish but when results are satisfactory and people like you write nice comments about it that gives me fuel and motivation to do more. Thanks again.

[@waynelee7325]

Awesome work Chris!

[@chrisbiela]

Wayne Lee Thanks Wayne.

[@allergyboys1817]

Beautiful and wonderful video !!

[@chrisbiela]

Thanks

[@nikolasmaragakis1596]

FANTASTIC!!!!

[@chrisbiela]

Nicolas Mara Thank you very much.

[@giantscauseway45]

Happy paddy day folks ..from tipperary. Ireland

[@chrisbiela]

Thanks

[@sohamachrekar8779]

This is so beautiful 🇮🇪

[@chrisbiela]

Thanks

[@strawbrrina]

thank you chris

[@chrisbiela]

Thank you.

[@jenniferhorstmann2279]

“If they can dye this river green one day a year why can’t they dye it blue the other 364?” - The Fugitive 😂

[@chrisbiela]

They did once. Few years ago. And looked cool:)

[@TAPPChannel]

great job. That slider took it to another level...

[@chrisbiela]

Love those motion time lapses.

[@MonacoMike]

Great job Chris. You're really hitting home runs with your timelapse videos>

[@chrisbiela]

I would like to think so:) Thanks for your motivating comments.

[@MonacoMike]

First Class Chris. Wish I could be with you to see how you record it all. You should make a video of what all is involved. Or better yet, create a DVD on how you do it, maybe even with different cameras , like GoPros and other 4K cameras like the SONY FDR AX100 etc. I'll bet you could sell a bunch of them :-)

[@chrisbiela]

There is a lot of BTS videos out there on YT. I would have to involve someone to do it for me. It is to many things to do with my work plus carrying more equipment on top of what I have right now would be to much:) You are more then welcome to join.

[@MonacoMike]

Ha ha .. way to cold for me where you are LOL, Maybe if you ever come down to Florida :-)

[@chrisbiela]

For sure I will someday:)

[@fauda21]

💚💚💚

[@chrisbiela]

Thanks

[@Big_Mike25]

This is amazing

[@chrisbiela]

Thanks

[@67kurtcobainfan27]

💚💚💚💚

[@chrisbiela]

🤢🤢🤢🤢

[@bigsmoke7086]

hows shrek's stomach doing :((

[@chrisbiela]

:)👍

[@sedicibrah2025]

I like it this way better ngl

[@chrisbiela]

:) Thanks

Impresionantes imágenes de un gran time lapse. Tienes mi like y me suscribo a tu canal. Saludos.

[@chrisbiela]

Gracias.

[@juliettedemaso7588]

Awesome! (Missed an opportunity to use Irish music though!) 😉 ☘️

[@chrisbiela]

Yes. You are right. Thanks

[@cshimala]

Nice work! Slider of the dyeing in progress not work out?

[@chrisbiela]

Thanks man. I did not wanted to risk the footage with length of Time Lapse. My pan&tilt head malfunctioned day before so main event was steady. Still used slider to reach further, over the edge with camera for better POV. Will definitely try some more motion TL in near future. Love the way it comes out.

[@ddot9182]

Where did you take the video? I would love to watch the river with that view!

[@chrisbiela]

Credits and location is at the end of my video. Thanks for watching.

[@Kuchar1992]

Does it get dyed the entire length of the river?

[@chrisbiela]

No. Usually from Columbus Dr to State Street.

[@mafuyu5112]

Is this dye eco-friendly or degradable?

[@chrisbiela]

It is vegetarian dye. Dissolves after few hours.

[@namjesus3789]

Hey doesn't the dye pollute the water?

[@chrisbiela]

It is vegetable dye.

[@201990neilirving]

Is this safe for the environment? Like are there absolutely no effects for doing this ?

[@chrisbiela]

Supposedly.

[@alexanderip1003]

is the dye organic

[@chrisbiela]

Vegetable dye

[@luismrbarros7985]

I've searched on Google and I didn't find anything, can sameone tell me why does chicago celebrates St. Patrick's day? This is one of the amazing things I've ever seen like dying a river in green!!! It's so beautiful!

[@chrisbiela]

You have to search a little deeper. This year would be 58th time. The tradition of dyeing the river green arose by accident when plumbers used fluorescein dye to trace sources of illegal pollution discharges. Like a lot of things discivered by accident this was used to celebrate St. Patrick's day due to color and interesting ceremony. 6 decades and this tradition is one of the biggest events in Chicago.

[@luismrbarros7985]

@@chrisbiela thy so much. But I still don't get why Chicago or the US (I don't know if it's just the city or the whole country) celebrates St. Patrick's day if that's an Irish thing.

[@chrisbiela]

@@luismrbarros7985 Because Chicago, New York and other big cities have large Irish populations.

[@luismrbarros7985]

@@chrisbiela Ohhh that makes sense right! 😂 Thank you so much for taking your time to explain me (although we're in quarentine and have nothing to do 😂😅)

[@chrisbiela]

@@luismrbarros7985 Oh. That is not a problem. I'm happy to answer.:)

[@nagyba]

So murica

[@chrisbiela]

👍

[@MrSottobanco]

Isn't the river usually green?

[@chrisbiela]

Yes. It is, Same color as left part of thumbnail.

[@ruhani2010]

India rivers- We don't even have to try

[@chrisbiela]

Maybe blue color would work better.

[@adamst.martin1932]

August 4, 2022- GREEN RIVER....It's VIGO!.....Uuuumm... WHO ARE YOU GONNA CALL??????? GHOSTBUSTERS!

[@chrisbiela]

Good one.

[@vinodchandran4938]

Does this harm the fishes or organism living in this river?

[@chrisbiela]

I wish I could say "no" but I doubt that there is any healthy organism living in that part of the river.

[@vinodchandran4938]

@@chrisbiela Was just curious hence asked. Thanks for the reply

[@chrisbiela]

@@vinodchandran4938 I'm happy to answer. Thanks

[@brentwiens2652]

Mexican joker would be thrilled 😀

[@chrisbiela]

Already is

[@zechunterxx]

If you wanted to make the river turn chocolate, malaysia is the best for doing it 🏄‍♂️😷

[@chrisbiela]

Plenty of brown rivers all over the world. Nature.

[@jorgemorfinez8188]

I Love Milwaukee 😘😍😘😍😘😎

[@chrisbiela]

I like it too.:)

[@Sammie551]

Lol

[@kacsa_hun2754]

The fishes aren't dead?

[@chrisbiela]

I do not know if there is any, despite the fact that they use vegetable dye.

[@jtsharp6129]

You know, a lot of people ask if this harms the environment in anyway. It doesn't. They use a special kind of dye that is bio-degradable. Usually the dye dissipates after 24-48 hours after being cast. It does NOT hurt the Eco-system and the life that resides in that river.

[@Sammie551]

@@jtsharp6129 Thanks for explaining

[@arizoniangrizzly1140]

So that's why my bass was green 🤔

[@chrisbiela]

:) probably.

[@arneshpal7702]

Cool, definitely didn't pollute the river and kill a thousand fishes

[@chrisbiela]

I do not know if there is any. Downtown part of the river is polluted heavily for decades.

[@joshsagutch3489]

Frank Gallagher’s baptism pool

[@chrisbiela]

😀

[@martinamartins9595]

can someone tell what is the point of this?

[@chrisbiela]

Well. Every country or city has some weird tradition and Chicago is known for this one. Lately criticized for environmental impact despite vegetable dye used for the event. I just thought it would be interesting time lapse out of this. That's all I can say.

[@abrahamcamacho1272]

Imagine the fish

[@chrisbiela]

Can't.

[@addisonpalmer5710]

We’re all here from tiktok

[@chrisbiela]

Really? How is that? Is my work on Tiktok?

[@SmokeyMcSpaceballs]

Fuck no we're not all from that Chinese spy app

[@amilchauhan949]

@@chrisbiela yup

[@dan7eiscool]

I’m here from Snapchat

[@mryou1679]

Instagram **

[@mspics-and-more]

Great work! Had to like it! And of course to follow you! Maybe you find time to visit us also on our channel and give some feedback. Greetings!

[@chrisbiela]

Ms Pics-and-More Thank you very much. Much appreciated. Will do for sure.

[@fellocanadian3948]

I hope that dye is safe for the invirment

[@chrisbiela]

Allegedly is.

[@fellocanadian3948]

@@chrisbiela I don't trust that answer

[@cringemeat9430]

Veggie powder. Literally harmless

[@GoFloTRAVEL]

💚 HAPPY ST PATRICK! ☘️ Check our video! you’ll love it! 💚💚💚

[@chrisbiela]

Thank you. Will do.

[@xolwora2762]

Why have you done this!?

[@chrisbiela]

Why I filmed it?

[@xolwora2762]

@@chrisbiela a question to the state good sir

[@chrisbiela]

I think you mean a question to the city officials. State has nothing to do with it.

[@xolwora2762]

@@chrisbiela my confusion can not be contained in a single city.

[@chrisbiela]

@@xolwora2762 Well. It is a city decision. Big cities like Chicago are independent. May obey state ordinances. Little confusing. I know.

[@SteamSoftworks]

This is what Mountain Dew would do to a river if they allowed corporations to own land lmao

[@chrisbiela]

😀

[@wiseupmahu808]

who tryin have a ocean takeover?🤣🤣

[@chrisbiela]

👍😀

[@mostafahassan40]

Destroy nature Him: why would i destroy it ....its green so its natural.

[@chrisbiela]

:)

[@isyt1]

Why they celebrating paddy’s day? Probably never been to Ireland in their lives

[@chrisbiela]

Big Irish community in Chicago. I guess,

[@IanEckert1977]

I had to go to the English Embassy In Chicago Illinois USA to get the ok from my parents to Marry the Everton USA Chairwoman 2009...She has Buggered off to Sunderland or Durham and I am furious...

[@chrisbiela]

👍

[@IanEckert1977]

It's a Nightmare...Freddy Krueger Is a walk In the park...

[@unleasheth]

Music is creepy for the video. Especially the end. Geez

[@chrisbiela]

I respect your opinion. Music is always hard to pick and never satisfies everyone.

[@franciscotoscano9924]

Not sure about dying it green looks more like a toxic waste dump than anything else, how about a Irish parade in the river instead?

[@chrisbiela]

👍

[@KE-zl1qf]

What a stupid thing to do

[@chrisbiela]

I respect your opinion

[@samyap0809]

water pollution

[@chrisbiela]

💯

[@WryleHargreeves]

Black live matter, dyes black

[@chrisbiela]

Interesting idea.

[@Shandakel]

If only we dyed the river a different color for Cancer Awareness or Patriotic colors but instead we celebrate a random day that’s just an excuse to drink...

[@chrisbiela]

Well. I would love to see those colors. It is a great idea.

[@chrisbiela]

:) You got a good reason for it.

[@firked]

they're not even irish, they're just common yanks with no culture of their own so have to hijack otehrs.

[@BrothWasTaken]

@@firked I mean Irish people went over to America during the famine so they have Irish heritage that’s why

[@A1R5932]

17.03. its my b-day, but i dont drink alcohol 😂

[@chrisbiela]

Well. Happy birthday then. You don't need to drink alcohol to have a great time and celebrate.

[@shmoneybag-bs8sf]

Bro this is fucking so weird. And feels illegal to look at

[@chrisbiela]

:) interesting comment 🤔

[@shmoneybag-bs8sf]

@@chrisbiela yeah bro green water just don’t feel right too see

[@chrisbiela]

@@shmoneybag-bs8sf Well. It is green everyday. Just so you know. I believe you are referring to water pollution but they use vegetable dye.