Top 20 in ‘20
As we near the end of the year, it is typical to reflect on the past 12 months. Given how lousy 2020 has been, I am more interested in looking forward than revisiting the recent past. Still, photographically speaking, it is always gratifying to take a look at the work I produced over the past year. My goal for this blog was to highlight my 10 favorite photos I created in 2020. As I perused my Lightroom library, I found this task to be quite challenging in part due to the different types of photos I took during the year. While I no doubt see flaws in many of my photographic efforts, I generally have been happy with the photos I took this year and limiting myself to 10 was difficult. Given the struggle involved in editing one’s own work, I probably should have outsourced this selection task. Instead, I cheated and included my top 20 favorite photos. There is nothing magical about the number 10 and as my wife, Jane, pointed out, “Top 20 in ’20” would be a good name for a blog.
Even choosing my top 20 images was difficult but below I present my favorite images of the year with a brief commentary on each. They are not presented in any particularly order.
The first photo was actually taken late in 2019, but I did not download it until 2020 so I am including it in the list. In this shot, I had the rare opportunity to combined the grace and elegance of Katelyn Conrad, a professional ballet dancer, and the beauty of the Hawaiian shoreline. The trick for this image was the shutter speed of 1/3 of a second which captured the movement of the water while Katelyn held her position. I used an off-camera flash to help freeze Kaitlyn and balance the light on her and the ambient, pastel, pre-dawn light of the sky.
On New Year’s day, I drove to the shore near Kona and was greeted with a rough sea that produced crashing waves on the black lava rock. I put away my wide angle lens, stayed about 50 yards from the shoreline and used my 70-200mm lens instead. The rising sun off to my left illuminated the waves which were contrasted nicely against a dark sky in the distance. I just had to wait for the perfect wave which you are seeing below.
One of the benefits of having my son go to school in Southern California is tacking on additional trips during our visits to his campus. In February, we spent 5 days in Palm Springs diving into the mid-century modern design that the city is known for. I loved the way the tail fins of this fantastic car mimicked the design of the house in the background. Two classics in one shot.
One of the mornings in Palm Springs, I woke up to the scene below. I thought the unmade bed, the flip-flops on the floor and the bright outside light told a story. I’ll let you make up that story in your head.
I try to take advance of foggy mornings by grabbing my camera gear and heading out early. This Spring we had two foggy days in a row and both yielded images that made my top twenty. The left image was taken in Rockland County. I normally avoid have branches invading my frame but the contrast between the organic shapes of the branches and leaves and the straight lines of the dock against a clear palette created by the fog made the photo one of my favorites. The next morning I drove to the Jersey shore and created this minimalist image of a fishing pier disappearing into the fog of Raritan Bay.
Taking photos of our kids when they were little was always a challenge and I can’t count the times I heard “Are we almost done?”. For the shot below, my son, Andy, was a willing and enthusiastic participant. A makeshift studio in our basement using one speed light and a white reflector served me well. Good looking kid, right?
I brought my speed light into New York to photograph the beautiful Paige Nelson who, I have learned over the years, does not take a bad picture. Ever. We found a fantastic, classic New York backdrop and with a little breeze creating some motion in her hair, a great environmental portrait was created.
I traveled to Montana for a photo assignment in September and got some great images of Glacier National Park for my client. On route to the park one morning I stopped by this gas station and shot this Ed Ruscha-inspired image you see on the left. The next day I was driving though big sky country. As the light and scenery changed, I came across this barn, jumped out of my car and took several shots before the light changed once again.
The fall foliage this year was especially colorful and I ended up making a number of solid photos. The shot below was my favorite. The different colored leaves created multiple layers in the image with the fence and trees acting as leading lines through the photo. I used a long lens to compress the scene. A week earlier or a week later, this would not have worked.
I finally invested in a macro lens (Nikon 105mm f/2.8) and I have been experimenting with it over the past several weeks. A good friend lent me several beautiful watches to photograph. Using our dining room table, I put down some coffee beans to create the image below. Should I “forget” to return the watch?
In June, we sold the house we lived in for 20 years and we are renting a home as we build our new house in Connecticut. Exploring my new neighborhood, I came across a classic laundromat that I though might make a good subject. I stopped there early one morning on my way to a sunrise photo shoot. The color of the walls and the florescent lights give the image a timeless feel.
Late in the year, the sunrise aligns with the streets of midtown Manhattan. I hopped on a train hoping to get some interesting light on 42nd street. At the hour I shot this photo, the pre-dawn light from the sky matched the light from the subway. I liked the balance of the scene and the glimpse into the subterranean life of New York.
I have shot this fishing pier a number of times and, depending on the light, clouds in the sky, the tide, and time of year, images can differ greatly. A light fog off-shore provided a warm glow during the morning I shot this and very calm waters yielded a great reflection.
On route to shoot a 1930’s ice cream shop in the Hudson Valley, I passed this motel that I had driven by several times. Wet pavement and the car with frosted windows added to the mood and I framed the shot so the “vacancy” sign and the Raintree Motel sign balanced each other nicely. This shot ended up being better than the one I took of the ice cream shop.
Driving on Route 9 in the Hudson Valley, I caught a glimpse of the red glow of this motel office out of the corner of my eye. I quickly pulled over, set up my tripod in the parking lot and took some shots. Several standout parts of this image: the reflection of the “Office” sign, the “Key Return” sign on the door to the left of the image, the two empty chairs, and, of course, the color. On my way home, I stopped by the same motel to shoot Room 34. The light and shadows on this motel room gave the facade nice depth and the chair just seems to be waiting for someone to sit in it. I just want to know, what is happening behind the closed door?
One of books in this image is titled, “Shared Space”, which I used for the photo’s title. By the way, the entire book store I took this photo in looked like this — cramped, chaotic and colorful. I asked the owner if he knew where every book was, somewhat hoping he had a devilish organizational system that only he understood. His response, Of course not!”
I woke up early during our trip to Palm Springs and headed toward the outskirts of town to shoot this image. I love the layers in road in the foreground and the road which leads to the colorful sunrise. In a year where we all faced immense challenges, there is something hopeful in this photo — a reminder that the road always leads to a new day.
