2016 in Review
At the end of every year, we all tend to look back at what we accomplished in the past year while making resolutions and plans for the upcoming year. Looking back I quickly noticed one thing – we traveled a lot. In almost every month there was another adventure.
- [Jan] Bruce Munro Lights @ Phoenix Botanical Gardens
- [Feb] Southeast Asia with stops in Myanmar, Cambodia, and Thailand
- [Mar] skipped – Kas under the knife
- [Apr] Superstition Mountain
- [Apr] Central Arizona with stops in Winslow/Little Painted Desert/Route 66 Ghost Towns/Petrified Forest NP
- [May] skipped – too busy packing and moving
- [Jun] Lancaster, PA
- [Jul] Photoshop World from Las Vegas
- [Jul] Nelson, NV (Ghost Town)
- [Jul] Zion National Park
- [Jul] Bryce Canyon National Park
- [Jul] Sedona
- [Aug] Grand Canyon (South Rim)
- [Aug] Sedona (a second time)
- [Sept-Oct] Mammoth Lakes (Mono Lake)
- [Oct] Bodie Ghost Town
- [Oct] Death Valley National Park
- [Oct] Grand Canyon National Park (South Rim for a second time)
- [Oct] Northern Arizona/Southern Utah Page (Toadstools, Little Cut, Horseshoe Bend, Secret Canyon, Yellow Rock)
- [Nov] Escalante Grand Staircase (Cottonwood Road, Burr Trail Road)
- [Nov] Capitol Reef NP, Goblin Valley State Park
- [Nov] Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park. Fisher Towers
- [Dec] Tucson (Saguaro National Park, San Xavier Mission, Viejo Barrio)
- [Dec] Tempe Town Lake Lights
We are pretty sure we will not travel as much during 2017. One of us might need to get a real job to fund our addiction. But, you never know. Is there a rich benefactor out there?
Best of 2016
We shot a lot during 2016 – over 30,000 photos between us. If you do the math, that is an average of over 80 photos a day! For each and every “click” we expect the resulting photo to be a winner. We hope (expect) each photo will win a contest, receive accolades, and be enjoyed by our peers. But this isn’t so – not even close. It turns out that only a few are of that caliber. I have read that professionals deem a photo shoot to be successful if they get one shot that is worthy of their gallery. Looking back over 2016, I would have to agree. Out of the 18,000 photos I took, only a handful made it to my on-line gallery.
What were our best shots of the year? Out of the 30,000 photos we took, what did we deem gallery-worthy? Check out these beauties:
Jeff’s Favorites:
I chose this because it made me a guru!
I chose this because it has done very well in ViewBug contests.
I chose this because was a near finalist in the Lens Culture Street Photography contest.
I chose this because it was a one-in-million shot, rainbow over a sunlit hoodoo with dark and stormy clouds above.
What do you think – are these four worthy of the best of 2016?
Kathyrn’s Favorites:
There is no way to choose favorites after all the amazing places we have visited this past year. I have multiple favorites from each shoot and with dozens of shoots, it makes for hundreds of photos. I think we both found Myanmar to be really special, and that’s where our favorite photos were taken. But I can’t compete with Jeff’s Monk or his Fisherman, so I closed my eyes and picked a few out of the hat that I enjoyed capturing.
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With 2016 in the books, its on to 2017! Happy New Year!
You might ask, “with such a busy 2016, what is in store for 2017?” Right now, we have very little planned – a long weekend in September to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon and a tentative plan to visit our daughter, Rachel, in the Palouse region of Eastern Washington. That’s it. However, it would be very surprising if we didn’t add a photo shoot or two along the way. If you have any ideas for us, please send them along (just mention them in the comment section below).
We want to hear from you!
Finally, one more piece of business. As some of you know, at the end of each year we pick out thirteen of our favorite shots taken during the year and assemble a calendar. We send one to 25 of our most avid followers. We judge this by looking at who reads our blog the most. This next year we are going to shake things up a bit. When we pick our top 25 Sweet Light Photos followers for 2017, we will use a different criterion – we will pick the 25 people who comment the most. So, if you would like a calendar next year (and you should, they are great), start commenting on our blogs. If you are unsure how to comment, just go to the bottom of the blog post and enter a comment in the area that says “Comment”. Then, type in your name and email address (don’t worry, your email address will remain private). Lastly, enter the captcha result which is the answer to a simple math problem and press “Post Comment” button. That’s it!
Thank you very much for following us in 2016. We had a lot of fun bringing you pictures and comments from around the world. We look forward to continuing in 2017.
Happy New Year!
(And remember, it’s all about the light.)
We should also go to the cascades when you come to visit! It’s a bit of a drive, but it’s really beautiful out there.
This sounds great. We drove by them (and maybe even stopped at a cascade) but didn’t have the time to do them justice. We’ll plan a circuit with you which must include the “Palouse Falls” at either sunrise or sunset.
Have you considered photographing Cabot Park, a beautiful greenery just south (north?) (east?) of Cabot Park Village, in lovely Newtonville MA? There’s a dog park, a volleyball court, a swing set, elders walking. I can’t speak to the alpenglow, but the cars parked at dawn are a breathtaking sight.
No, have not. But it sounds like a great place to practice my still life photography.
If you come to the Palouse or the Pacific Northwest let me know, I would love shoot with you guys again!
Hi Karen- we will most likely be visiting the Palouse region in June. We’ll keep you posted as to the exact dates – would love to meet up and shoot with you again.