technically speaking number 1,2,4,5,6 look to contrasty to me. Meaning not enough of the gray scale. meaning they are mostly black and white in these images, with not much grays between them. Im guessing these are digital images?
I personally like the contrast in them, I feel images that have a lot of gray are kind of bland. I too am from Chicago and can definitely relate to the harsh look of Lake Michigan in the winter in 1 & 2, nice shots.