My Top Ten Images From 2013!

Picking my favorite images each year is always a tough thing to do. It would be nice to say that it is hard to decide because I shoot so many wonderful images but the subjective nature of the process is what really makes it difficult. It is much like judging a photo contest with several other judges. You like an image but the other two judges don't. Then you and judge #2 like an image but #3 says "this doesn't do much for me". Such is the nature of the beast! I did get some feedback from several friends and family before finalizing the choices. Several opinions were given but nothing strong enough to make me change things much. 
Another thing that helped make the choices difficult is that most of these have several very similar versions that are also on my web site. Horizontal or Vertical? This angle or that angle? Most of the time they all work well...but which is the best? I welcome your comments. If you like a different version of one of these ten then feel free to say so in the comments. You might also see one on my web site that I took this year that you feel I overlooked. One thing you might also notice is this...I am becoming quite the night stalker. Almost all of these were taken well after sunset.

Looking to the Stars

I have put these images in the order that they were created during the year.  I will also give you a little information about each. The image above was taken at the Very Large Array about 40 miles west of Socorro, New Mexico.When I finished shooting on this cold February night the temp gauge on the car said 10 degrees.

 Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts

While I was in Kansas City for a show in  May I had several evenings to shoot the downtown area. I didn't really have a plan the first night but as soon as I saw the Kauffman Center it was like "where do I park the car". The building is really a photographer's dream. I spent the entire evening shooting it from different angles.

 Fulton Beach Fishing Pier #2

 I was in town for the Rockport Art Festival which is held over Fourth of July weekend. Somehow during previous visits I had missed the green LED lights of the pier on nearby Fulton Beach. Not this time.

 Devon Energy Tower and Sculpture

 I had photographed the Devon Tower the previous year and felt the area was worth exploring some more when I was back in town Labor Day weekend. I couldn't resist combining this interesting sculpture with Oklahoma City's tallest building in the background.

 Pensacola Pier

Last year I bough several neutral density filters in order to take long exposures lasting several minutes. I really had not used them very much but from seeing other photographer's work they were usually most effective when you have moving clouds or water that will blur heavily during a long exposure. Spending a November evening on Pensacola Beach was a good opportunity to see what they could do. I was pleased with this 3 1/2 minute exposure.

 A Nice Place to Swing

One of my favorite places to fish and photograph is Caddo Lake on the Texas-Louisiana border. I was blessed with a clear and calm night to shoot this dock that was built around one of the many Bald Cypress trees that grows in the lake. The light was coming from a nearby boathouse.

McDonald Observatory and the Milky Way

The drive to my last art show of the year provided me with several of my top images. I had planned to take several days to get to El Paso, Texas and do some photography on the way. The first day I detoured off the interstate about 40 miles in order to shoot the McDonald Observatory after dark. Most of the drive from Dallas had been cloudy but the skies cleared around sunset and I had some great conditions for picking up the Milky Way above the telescope domes. Be sure and check out the similar images on the web site. There were numerous winners from this nights shoot.

Guadalupe Reflections #2

The following day I drove to Guadalupe Mountains National Park. I was a little late for fall color but recent rains had a salt flat flooded that was just west of the park. The winds were dead calm at sunset and the reflections of El Capitan and Guadalupe Peak could not have been better.

 The Light From Within

After sunset I drove a few miles down the road to some abandoned buildings and did some light painting. I shot numerous versions with different colored gels on my flash, but this version definitely worked the best.

Futuro Home With Green Light

I have driven by this abandoned Futuro Home for years on my way to the lake. A clear December night with a full moon was just the time to make the 45 minute drive to photograph this structure which looks much like a spaceship that has landed. Unlike the previous photo, I used an LED light with a colored gel to provide the light for the inside. The light coming down the steps was made with a green flashlight.

I hope you have enjoyed these and have a very Happy New Year!

The McDonald Observatory and Guadalupe Mountains National Park!

 McDonald Observatory and the Milky Way

 Last weekend I traveled to El Paso, Texas to participate in my final art festival of the year. Weather for the festival turned cold, windy, and even icy, but the two days I photographed prior to the festival were great. The weather was warm with little wind and the clouds vanished after sunset for my first stop at the McDonald Observatory near Fort Davis. I had driven all day from my home in mostly cloudy conditions but it seemed the farther I drove west the clearer the skies became. My last minute decision to go photograph the observatory paid off. Skies cleared at sunset and a gorgeous Milky Way was clearly visible once all signs of the sun were gone. I was also pleasantly surprised by the red glow coming out of the observatory. I could barely make it out with my eyes but a long exposure made the red very obvious in the photographs.

Guadalupe Reflections #2

 After photographing at the McDonald Observatory, I drove 80 more miles to Van Horn and finally stopped for the day. After shooting a few things in Van Horn the next morning, I drove to Guadalupe Mountains National Park. The first thing I did when I arrived was to scout out the salt flats west of the park. I had heard that there was some flooding back in September and I also remember seeing pictures of the mountains reflected in a large lake. Sure enough part of the salt flat was now a very large shallow lake. My plans for the evening were now to come back at sunset.
 

 Guadalupe Sunset

After driving back to the park, I spent most of the afternoon hiking in McKittrick Canyon. GMNP has a lot of maple trees growing in the canyons and the fall color can be spectacular. Unfortunately, I already knew that I was about two weeks past the peak. Many of the trees had already lost their leaves and the rest were soon to drop. Peak color or not the hike is still very pretty. After the hike it was back to the flooded salt flats. Conditions could not have been better. The winds totally died and a few clouds pinked up at sunset.

 

 The Light From Within

Before starting my final drive to El Paso I had one more image I wanted to create. Just down the road from the salt flat was some abandoned buildings. I set up the tripod and set the camera for 30 second exposures. This gave me enough time to fire a flash with a colored gel several times during an exposure. I had planned to combine parts of several exposures but decided the light on this single exposure worked just fine.

Sooooooooo...after two pleasant days of photography just how bad was the weather for the art show? Well, the weather changed dramatically on Friday. During the show on Saturday and Sunday it was windy and the temperature never reached 40 degrees. I also knocked some snow and ice off the roof of my tent Sunday morning. That is the first and hopefully the last time I have to deal with that. I did manage to sell a few pieces despite the less than favorable conditions. Overall, I would consider it a successful trip to west Texas.